By Fr. Blasius Tete, SDB –
Imphal: At an Anglo-Manipuri fusion design Cathedral of St. Joseph, located at Mantripukhri, ‘Chrism Mass cum Priesthood Day’ was celebrated with great festivity when all the priests of Imphal Archdiocese gathered around his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon, the Chief Shepherd of the Archdiocese, to be around him, to be instructed, guided, strengthened, encouraged, renewed and march ahead in their priestly ministry in their parishes. A total of 135 priests including the Archbishop, about 200 religious sisters, sisters’ candidates, seminarians and many faithful of the Archdiocese participated in the Chrism Mass cum Priesthood Day celebrations. The Chrism Mass cum priesthood Day celebrations kicked off at 9.30 am local time with the words of welcome by Rev. Fr. John Kashiiprii, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Imphal.
In an ambience of prayer and reflection, wishing the Archbishop, all the priests and religious present for the one-day-recollection and confession in the morning, Rev. Fr. John Kashiiprii, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Imphal, in his welcome address, said: “The most important part of the liturgical celebrations of the day is the great act of God; the institution of the Holy Eucharist and the institution of the Priesthood. The institution of the Eucharist reminds us of the great act of love of self-giving by Jesus Christ, Son of God and institution of the Priesthood tells us of the continuation of the plan of God in human history. In 2020-2021, we could not have the usual way of celebrating the Chrism Mass due to covid pandemic. We thank God the situation has improved and we are able to come together for the Chrism Mass.” Having said that, he explained the modality of the day’s programme; viz., recollection talk by his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon, coffee break, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, prayer and common adoration, opportunity for making confession during the prayer and common adoration and the Chrism Mass later in the evening at 6.00 pm.
After a hymn to the Holy Spirit (AYH, 191), taking a reading from the Gospel of St. Mark, (Mk 10: 17-22) the passage of the rich young man, his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon proceeded with the reflection talk of the day for all the priests and religious of the Archdiocese of Imphal. After the Gospel reading, his Lordship prayed a short prayer in the following words: “God our loving Father, thank you for bringing us together for prayer and reflection. Send your Sprit into our midst and in each one of us to guide us, to enlighten us, to warm our hearts, to strengthen our will, to have the courage to accept your will. Mother Mary be with us all through the day.”
In his recollection talk, his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon Said: “Dear Fathers and sisters, we have come together for reflection and prayer in preparation for the paschal mystery-the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Later in the evening, we will come again to celebrate the Chrism Mass and the Priesthood Day. With the Palm Sunday, we have entered into a very important period of Lenten season to celebrate the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. This Holy Week, especially the triduum has changed millions of lives including ours. If this had not changed, we could not have been here today. May God’s protection lead us towards further transformation and a new world.”
“For our reflection today, I have taken the topic: ‘For a Synodal Church’ the process in which the entire Catholic Church is going through right now. In October 2021, Pope Francis officially opened the two year process called ‘a Synod on Synodality, for a Synodal Church’. The Bishops around the world will consult everyone from parishioners to priests, nuns, people in the colleges and universities before coming together for a discussion in 2023, October. Through this Synod, the Holy Father is asking us to invoke the Holy Spirit to guide the Church into a deeper communion, deeper participation, enlightened in Christ and a deeper commitment to the Church’s evangelising mission. The word ‘Synod’ means ‘journeying together, waking together’. The Synod reflecting on the Word of God, listening to all sections of the people, thus, becomes a Church in dialogue, the Church becoming a listening Church. The Synod’s key words are ‘Communion, Participation and Mission’ which makes the theme of the Synod” said his grace.
“Communion: By his gracious will, God gathers us together as diverse people of one faith through the guidance that he offers his people. The communion we share finds its deepest roots in the love and unity of the Trinity. It is Christ who reconciles us to the Father and unites us to each other in the Holy Spirit. Together we are inspired by listening to the Word of God through the living tradition of the Church and grant it in the sensus fidei that we share. And all of us have a role to play in discerning and living out God’s call for his people” said the Archbishop.
“Participation: It’s a call and a requirement for all who belong to the people of God: laity, consecrated men and women, ordained minsters, to enter into the exercise of deep and respectful listening to one another. This listening is a space for us to hear the Holy Spirit who brings us together, Holy Spirit who guides us specially our aspirations, longings for the Church in the third millennium. The Holy Spirit listens to us or we listen to the Holy Spirit who guides us into the Church of the third millennium” said Most Rev. Dominic Lumon.
“Participation is based on the fact that all the faithful are qualified and are called to serve one another through the gifts they each have received from the Holy Spirit. In the Synodal Church, all the communities, in free and rich varieties of its members, are called together to pray, to listen, analyse, dialogue, discern and offer advices on many pastoral decisions to fulfil the will of God. Genuine efforts must be made to ensure that all are included specially those who are in the margin, those who feel neglected. Every person must be involved” said the Archbishop.
His grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon speaking further to the priests of the diocese communicated what the Holy Father Pope Francis, while addressing the Bishops, the information curia, lay persons, consulters, synod of priests, specially the finance committee asked them all to do in the area of participation that is to include laity and consecrated men and women in the decision making bodies. In this connection, his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon brought out the example of Pope Francis who has appointed the first female Under-Secretary, a French Sister Nathalie Becquart by name, with a right to vote in Synod of Bishops.
“Mission: The Church exists to evangelize. Our mission is to witness to the love of God in the midst of entire human family. This Synodal process has a deep missionary dimension. It is intended to enable the Church to better witness to the Gospel specially those within the spiritual, social, economic political, geographical and on the essential peripheries of our world. In this way, Synodality is a part of which the Church can be more fruitfully fulfil her mission of evangelisation as a leaven in the service of the coming of God’s kingdom” said Most Rev. Dominic Lumon.
“‘Súnodos’, is a Greek word signifying walking together, journeying together. It’s a path along which the people of God walk together. It is the image of our Lord Jesus Christ going with his disciples journeying together. It is an image of a friend going together, enjoying the company, sharing their concerns, sharing the words of wisdom and caring for one another” said the Archbishop.
In his talk, his grace brought the Logo of the Synod to the attention of all the priests and religious and said: “In the logo we see all the sections of people walking together, there is no hierarchy between these people. They are on the same footing: young, old, men, women, teenagers, children, laity, religious, parents, couples, singles. Bishops and the nuns are not in front of them but among them.” His grace further said that our Holy Father Pope Francis perceives the Church not as a pyramidal system where Bishops and Clergy are on top and lay faithful are at the bottom but envisages a Church where all are walking together, marching together, nobody is neglected specially the people who are in the margin, on the peripheries of the society, people who are divorced, who have messed up their lives, who are not coming to the Church and so on and so forth.
“This Synod is not a onetime exercise. It is a method of walking together. It is a process-an on-going process of being the Church in communion” said the Archbishop. He also said that this communion should be based on one faith, one baptism, based on the Word of God, unity in the Holy Trinity where every baptized person is given the opportunity to participate in the life of the Church” said his grace.
“The Gospel we just read is the model of how the Church should be. It is the road of encountering the rich young man. We must take time to encounter God and one another” said his grace. Further speaking to his priests and religious, his grace said that as in the school we encounter teachers and children and in the villages we encounter people, we need to learn to encounter our faithful in our parishes, not shielding ourselves, not shying ourselves away from the people specially in encountering the sick and other needy people. He exhorted his priests and religious to get involved in the life situation of their faithful. “Without prayer and adoration, we cannot encounter people” said his grace. “Entering must be our style of life” added his grace and asked them to share the joys and sorrows of the people of God even in their busy and hectic schedule.
“The Lord is listening” said the Archbishop and asked his listeners to make ‘listening’ as the style of life and allow people to express themselves. Referring to the opinions of psychologists, his grace said that those who have no patience to listen cannot be counsellors. At this juncture his grace borrowed words from Pope Francis and asked his listeners ‘not to soundproof their hearts and not to remain barricaded in their certainties’. His grace said that the Church must be a Church that listens and the listening should be based on truth, freedom and charity not on mere rumours and prejudices. When we express our opinions, it must be well thought out statements and opinions and not an uncontrolled outburst of emotions” said the Archbishop.
His grace opined that we need to dialogue, advice and agree and not fall prey to the ‘virus of indifference’. After the dialogue and listening, discerning must be done in the power of the Spirit and in the presence of God. Jesus helped the rich young man to discern and not merely to fulfil some religious practices. When life is full of material possessions, we are called to empty ourselves and make space in our hearts to discern. “To discern, prayer is important” said the Archbishop.
His grace urged all the priests to make the liturgy more meaningful in the parishes. Without changing the main structure of the liturgy, some minor additions could be lodged to make the liturgy attractive for the people. His grace opined that for Indians and African, dance is a form of worship which can be easily accommodated in the liturgy to facilitate more participation on the part of the faithful. He also urged his listeners to minus lot of clericalism. On the other hand he also affirmed that not all the suggestions from the laity could be taken but only what is best, practical and meaningful.
At the end of his reflection, his grace urged everyone to remember and pray for the suffering humanity. He mentioned about the suffering people of our neighbourhood in the recent past like the people of Sri Lanka, Burma last February, house arrest of a cardinal, human right violations, Russians’ invasion of Ukraine, praiseworthy works of Indian sisters for suffering people in war-ravaged areas, Fr. Stan Swami, restrictions and difficulties of Mother Teresa sisters in carrying out their ministry, tensed situation at Karnataka in connection with religions and places of worship, poverty stricken people, refugees, those who have lost their fundamental rights and so on and so forth.
After the reflection talk by his grace which ended at 10.30 am, there was common adoration and confession for the priests and the religious till 12.00 noon. Chrism Mass began at 6.00 pm with the words of welcome by Fr. Lijo George, the Parish Priest. “It is one of the most holy and solemn Masses celebrated every year because during this Mass the Bishop blesses the oil of the catechumens, the oil of the sick and consecrates the Sacred Chrism. This Mass is also a moment in which the unity of the priests with their Bishop is manifested and renewed and their commitment to serve God’s people.” With these words he welcomed his grace Archbishop Dominic Lumon, all the priests, sisters, seminarians, candidates and beloved people of God. He also requested the faithful to pray for all the priests on the Priesthood Day so that the Lord might pour out His gifts abundantly upon them and each one of them would be faithful to his call and mission.
In his introduction to the Chrism Mass, his grace said: “I cordially invite you to the celebration of the Chrism Mass. Today is the Priesthood Day. What a beautiful sight to see so many religious and priests and faithful who have come to celebrate the institution of the Priesthood. We thank God for the gift of priesthood. Because the Eucharist is celebrated, the Church is strong, the communities are strong. We have the greatest treasure in the Church, consecrated people, the priesthood. We thank God for the gift of priesthood and we also pray to God to keep us united with him and give us the strength to labour for his greater glory for the salvation of humanity in this part of the world.”
“We follow a person who began his life in a borrowed stable and ended in a borrowed tomb. Mt. 8:18-22 summons to count the cost. Think of what we are doing. Count the cost-the cost of discipleship. The Lord advises us to count the cost of following him. Not to discourage us, not to discourage our enthusiasm but to face the facts, the reality. Jesus Christ never said it was an easy way. The way to glory always involved the Cross. There is no thrill like the way of Christ, and there is no glory at the end of the way” said the Archbishop.
“The Cost- The teacher of the law said. “Teacher, I am ready to go with you wherever you go….. His motive was to have good life of comfort and ease. Another man said: “Sir let me go back and bury my father. He puts cultural demands, customary laws before the Gospel. Still another man answered: “I will follow you sir but first let me go and say goodbye to my family. Sentimental attachment and family bond came on the way of discipleship” Most Rev. Dominic Lumon said.
“The Lord Jesus demands our love in the manner total and exclusive. The church (everybody) as the spouse of Jesus Christ wishes to be loved by the priests in a total and exclusive manner in which Jesus loved us. Priestly commitment is the greatest service in the Church, in and with the Lord. Today we will be renewing our priestly commitment. The Church is not an institution or company and so there is no question of part time fidelity, part time commitment. Our commitment is total and forever. You are a priest for ever according to the order of Melchizedek” said his grace.
“Our Blessed Mother Mary is our model. She has three great qualities; unconditional availability, unbroken faithfulness, and absolute surrender. Fidelity means that we are true to the nature and demands of our call. But we need the life of integrity flowing from an inner conviction of who we are in the eyes of God. During our formation, ordination to the priesthood was our goal. What is the goal after our ordination? It may be to be a better priest, a saintly priest, a holy priest. The goal of our priesthood should be to be holy, to be saintly because holy priests, holy consecrated persons sanctify the world. They are the birth of the Church” said the Archbishop.
“How difficult or how easy it is to be a saint. It is a simple matter. It’s a simple duty because if we learn to love, we learn to be holy said Saint Teresa of Calcutta. We learn to love, we learn to be holy. Holiness lies in giving our whole heart to God. A holy person makes it easier for others to believe in God. When they see us they believe in God. They direct their minds to God like sign posts. We tell people, we remind them of the goodness of God. Holy persons make it easier for others to believe in God. Saints are sinners who keep on trying to be holy. A saint is one who makes goodness attractive. A holy person is a person a man or a woman the light of God shines through” said his grace.
“Holiness is not a difficult path. But to leave where we are the comfortable area and to accept new challenges, new situation is a fearful thing, we fear that. Sometimes we are filled with fears to commit ourselves, to meet new challenges, situation specially our spiritual challenges, to let go of our comfort zones, to loosen our grip on our own expectations but that journey of our priesthood or priestly commitment provides that sense of accomplishment which comes when we accept the challenges, when we challenge ourselves, and rise to meet new situations, new challenges” stated the Archbishop.
“How to overcome the fear? There is a beautiful poem by Kahlil Gibran, American Japanese Christian poet that inspires one to accept new situations, new challenges, to leave behind our own expectations and go forward. It’s a beautiful poem on overcome fear. It also has another title ‘the River cannot go back’. Let us take a moment and let the power of this poem sink in. Let us turn our ideas upside down and release the fears that hold us back. The poem is in a narrative form. It goes like this:
“It is said that before entering the sea
a river trembles with fear.She looks back at the path she has travelled,
from the peaks of the mountains,
the long winding road crossing forests and villages.And in front of her,
she sees an ocean so vast,
that to enter
there seems nothing more than to disappear forever.But there is no other way.
The river cannot go back.
Nobody can go back.To go back is impossible in existence.
The river needs to take the risk
of entering the ocean
because only then will fear disappear,
because that’s where the river will know
it’s not about disappearing into the ocean,
but of becoming the ocean itself.”
Getting loosed of our expectations, accepting new challenges especially in our spiritual life makes a saintly, holy priest” said his grace. “Pope Francis offers us a kind of technique to persevere in our priesthood. During the symposium on the priesthood in the Vatican in February 17, Pope Francis spoke of four pillars of our priestly life.
- You must be close to God: It is of fundamental importance based on ‘I am the Vine you are the Branches’ (Jn 15:5) from where we get power, vitality and energy necessary for our ministry.
- You must be close to your Bishop, It is because Bishop is the bond that establishes and preserves the Church in unity.
- You must be close to the Priests: It means communion among priests which involves deliberately choosing to pursue holiness together with others not by oneself. It means being honest and open with others but also to be humble. Priestly fraternity must be founded on mutual love.
- Close to the people: The proper place of every priest is in the midst of the people; in close relationship with others. It means involving in the real life of the people not sheltering themselves from it. Closeness of the people must be the style of Jesus the Good Shepherd; closeness with people with compassion and tenderness” Most. Rev. Dominic Lumon said.
“The reading we have today speaks of Passover Lamb which is an ordinary lamb is the shadow of the real Paschal Lamb Jesus Christ because till then it was eaten to commemorate the liberation of people; one section of the people, humanity from the slavery of Egypt. But the Paschal Lamb of the new covenant was killed, his body eaten not for political freedom but freedom from sin of the entire humanity. God commanded Moses to celebrate every year to commemorate the liberation from Egypt. The Lord Jesus said: ‘DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME’. His Suffering Death and Resurrection cancelled the sin of humanity, liberated us from sin, from eternal damnation and that we have to remember with grateful hearts: ‘DO THIS IN MEMORY OF ME.’ The Eucharist is so important. We are privileged, we are lucky, we are fortunate to have the Eucharist in the Catholic Church” said his grace,
“The reading from the letter to the Corinthians of today is a description of the Passover meal which is the oldest written document on the Eucharist. Before the Gospels were written, Paul had already written on the Eucharist. How important the Eucharistic celebration is in the Church for the Christians” opined the Archbishop.
“The German saint, St. Peter Julian Eymard says a beautiful thing about the Eucharist. Satan wages incessant war on the Eucharist. He knows Jesus is there living and substantially present. So he tries to deface the Eucharist in us. In his mind this defines the struggle. If he succeeds then he wins. Eucharist is important for us. The Eucharist strengthens him. The Holy Eucharist units him with the Lord. That is his strength” said the Archbishop.
“Pope Francis also says that in the Eucharistic celebrations every day, we discover our identity as priests, as a shepherd. Dear fathers, congratulations on this day. I wish you happy Priesthood Day. Thank you for your commitment and committed ministry. May the Lord further strengthen you. Dear sisters and dear people of God pray for us your priests. Forgive us for our failures. Forgive us for the moments when we misunderstood you, hurt your feelings, moments when we have not made ourselves totally available and served you and cared for you sufficiently. Thank you for the prayers daily said for us that sustains us till today. Thank you and God bless you” Most Rev. Dominic Lumon said.
After the homily the priest renewed their priestly commitment in the presence of their bishop and the faithful people of God to be united to Jesus Christ, to discharge their sacred duties toward their brothers and sisters, to be faithful stewards of the mysteries of God, to have zeal for souls and not to seek for any personal gain. His grace also asked the faithful people of God to pray for their priests so that the Lord may give them abundant gifts and keep them faithful in their ministry.
After the homily, the three newly ordained priests presented the three oils to his grace to be blessed during the chrism Mass: the oil of Holy Chrism, the oil of the Sick, the oil of the Catechumens.
At the end of the Chrism Mass, on behalf of MCYO and the faithful people of God, MCYO General Secretary congratulated all the priests and presented a white stole each as a token of love to all the priests. A rich spread of sumptuous meal was served for all the priests and religious at St. Paul Retreat Centre.