BOXING DAY - 2007

Definition: English custom of giving Christmas boxes containing food or money to family servants and suppliers. Celebrated in Great Britain, Commonwealths of Great Britain and Canada on December 26.

Yesterday the annual Boxing Day Fair was held here on the grounds of St. Mary's. Over the past two years we've tried to re-work the day into a day for children and their families.

Thanks to our benefactors back in the states: Curley High School (Baltimore, MD), St. Louis Parish (Batesville, IN), St. Catherine Parish (Spring Lake, NJ), the Heine Family, the Bertanzetti Family, Father Kolbe School and St Casimir Parish (Baltimore, MD) and many others... the prize selection was fantatstic and no child went home empty handed.

The day featured: the Bounce-About, Basket-Ball-Toss, Hoop La, Grab Bags, Field of Fortune... the DJ... fried and jerk chicken, beverages and ice cream.

WELCOME - Sr Veronica, FSE

Once again the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist have sent one of their sisters down for the holidays to be with Sr. Marcia and Sr. Naomi. Sr. Veronica comes from the Houston, Texas, Center where she is a practicing lawyer. We welcome Sr. Veronica to Above Rocks and pray her time with us is bllesssed!

There's no time lost... and no defense table to sit behind. Sr. Veronica puts on her work habit and is handed a knife and a bag of onions... time to prepare for the Boxing Day Fair on the 26th. If the jerk seasoning in the air doesn't get you cryin' the onions sure will. Thanks sis!

STEWARDSHIP SUNDAY

Today the 4 Churches came together for Stewardship Sunday. The afternoon service began with a Penance service, and then carols & time for individual confessions. There was wonderful attendance form Rock Hall, Pinto, & Cassava River, as well as the regulars from Above Rocks.

In his homily, Father Joe shared the Polish custom of the Christmas wafer. Each year his family would share the wafer and ask forgiveness from each other. In Jamaica we used pita bread for our wafer and the blessed bread was distributed to the people with the invitation to go home and share the bread with family, friends, and especially those who we may have hurt or have hurt us and ask and offer forgiveness.

The celebration of the Eucharist cul- minated with a procession of the manger figures to the manger, carried by our own angel contingency from each of the Churches while the Church sang The Virgin Mary Had A Baby Boy.

After the celebration we gathered on the Church parking lot for refreshments and a raffle. On the menu were: chicken foot soup, Juici Patties and Sorrel. And what would a Catholic event be without a raffle? Thanks to our friends at Digicel a 5" TV was claimed by, no other, than our own secretary, Hyacinth Lewis.

"I claim this child for Christ"

These words taken from the opening lines of the Rite of Baptism rang out loud as Fr Joe invited the godparents, as well as the entire congregation, to make the sign of the cross on Oshane's forehead as he entered for his big day. Oshane has been a regular around the friary since we arrived. He attends St Mary's All Age - Monday through Friday. Shows up to help on Saturday, and attends CCD and Mass regularly every Sunday morning.

After weeks of formal instruction with Fr Joe, Sr Naomi and Fr Gary, Oshane Francis Lamont approached the font for Baptism and then received First Communion. His sponsor, Miss Laurel, is also our lead singer here at St. Mary's.

May more young adults take Oshane's lead and come to the waters and participate fully in the Roman Catholic Church.

21 Septemner 2007 - 18 December 2007

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Last night as we entered the friary after Holy Hour what do we hear? ... the telephone ringing. Yes, the phone was ringing! After almost three months (shy 3 days) the phone lines have been restored. The phone company has replaced the former copper wires with a fiber optic line that has no 'scrap metal' value on the underground market. Hopefully this will fix the problem... thanks for your understanding.

Just short of four months - Father Gary

Fr Gary Johnson has been with us since August covering for Fr Mike Heine (who was away at Missionary School). This morning Fr Gary finished where he began that first Sunday, Holy Family Church, Cassava River, Glengoffe. We'd like to thank Fr Gary for his willingness to cover for Fr Mike and wish Gary well as he returns to the States and begins his next assignment in formation.

Blessings From Belmar

On November 30th Colleen and Tom Reilly of Belmar, New Jersey hosted a "Project Jamaica" cocktail party to begin the Christmas Season. Guests were invited to bring a new or gently used pair of shoes to be sent to Above Rocks. Over 600 pairs were collected and a great time was had by all!

Mrs. Reilly's 6th grade class of Saint Rose, Belmar raised money to ship the shoes. Students sold hand-made aprons, babysat and sponsored movie nights. The students also donated 1,000 colored pencils for the kids in Jamaica.

Mission Bishop

Many years ago the Friars of Saint Anthony Province traveled to Amami Oshima Japan to open a mission with the Japanese people. The lives of the friars attracted a young man who entered the Order, was ordained a priest and in 1997 became Bishop of the Diocese of Naha, Japan. Here Father Michael meets Bishop Berard Oshikawa in Rome. Father Michael was completing his missionary course and the Bishop was in Rome for meetings with the Pope.

Who knows, maybe there is a future friar, priest or bishop in Above Rocks!

ADVENT - The Coming of Our God!

Dear friends-

As we enter into the Season of Advent and wait for the coming of our God at Christmas, in our hearts and in the Second Coming... let us unite one to another through prayer and joyful expectation.

Our post have been few these days as our land line is yet to be restored. Only through the graciousness of the Franciscan Sister Allegany, in town, are we able to get on for an line and do some work.

Thanks for your patience and understanding...as they say her "phone line - soon come." How appropriate during this Advent Season.

Blessings of the Season to you and yours-
Franciscan Friars and Sisters

Greetings From Brussels

For the past two and a half months Father Michael has been participating in the International Course for Franciscan Missions. Friar-Missionaries from around the globe have gathered in Brussels, Belgium to reflect and learn about their role as Missionaries in the Franciscan Tradition. The foundation of the course has been Chapter 16 of the Early Rule of Saint Francis dealing with the missionary vocation of the friars. Francis told his friars that they were to live among the people and if it pleased the Lord, they were to preach. In addition to many fine classes presented by experienced Franciscan Missionaries, each friar made a presentation on the Country where he will be missioned. Presentations were made on Ghana, Africa, Kazakhstan, Brukna Faso, Myanmar, Germany and Jamaica.

In order to develop his presentation, Father Michael met with Ambassador Marcia Gilbert-Roberts, former Jamaican Ambassador to the Holy See (Vatican) and the present Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union. She challenged the friars to be a moral voice in a land where there is a great deal of violence. She also asked the friars to help young people, especially young males, to discover a direction and purpose in their lives through education.

The course concludes with 10 days spent in Assisi, the birthplace of Francis and the Franciscan Order

MISSION APPEAL - St Mark Parish, Boynton Beach, FL

This weekend I had the opportunity to speak at all the Masses at our Franciscan Parish in Boynton Beach, FL. Frs Richard, Germain and Sam shared the pulpit with me this weekend and allowed me to share a little about St. Mary's and Missions.

It was a packed weekend: the Mission Appeal, Veteran's Weekend, Catholic Women's Bake Sale, the school's monthly Pancake Breakfast and a Blood Drive... what a weekend!

Thanks to the generous people at St. Marks

who really gave their support to the Mission!

FIRST ANNIVERSARY

NOVEMBER IS THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE BLOG... thanks to our many visitors and bloggers who visit us on a regular basis. We average between 73 and 109 hits per week. Thanks for your "reader-ship" and spread the word about St. Mary's and Missions and the Blog.

Visiting Nurse - Gina Flores

For the past two weeks, Gina Flores, RN, a parish member at St Bonaventure Church, Don Mills, Toronto, Canada, has been with us helping in the clinic, and, assiting with the after school program and feeding program. Gina comes to us with almost ten years of nursing experience. She has been working in pediatric hematology and recently moved to an adult setting doing similar work.

During her time with us, it seems that Noel (the tropical depression, storm, now Nor'easter) followed Gina from her pick up at the airport until her trip to the airport this morning. Yesterday was the first day she came to the friary for lunch - when it was not actually raining.

Dressing changes, blood pressures, and blood sugars were the primary clinical focus for Gina. While Gina has hopes of doing future 'mission nursing' she says that the weather did not dampen her experience.

No Direct Hit -- Noel

Sunday and Monday saw bands of rain but no hurricane winds. Tropical depression, then tropical storm, Noel hits east of Jamaica Sunday into Monday. The crowds for Sunday Services were down... At Pinto I started with just 3 people... and the collection was half the usual $13k ($200US). The locals tell us: "this is the weather we had when I was a kid...really wet Octobers." On any given day we have no electric for 4 - 9 hours of late, but water pressure to sing about. Just a few more days of October... and maybe things will dry up a bit?

An Update on the Phone Lines

It's a month today since we lost the phone lines. Imagine making it through a major hurricane and keeping phones throughout, and then, on the eve of 21 September... loss of service. The reality is: the copper wire is melted down to make bullets. The level of civil chaos increases as the new party, JLP, takes hold and brings change and order. Pray for PEACE in Jamaica!

Still coming down to a cyber cafe every other day to do email.

Apologies...

Dear Readers-

For three weeks now we have been without telephones, and consequently email access. So every few days we come to town and do email at the Franciscan Sisters' Convent or a cyber cafe... you see some one has stolen the phone lines to Above Rocks. If anyone has a connection at Cable & Wireless, or you know who we have to pay off, please give us a call... until then bear with us.

PEACE!

The Friars & Sisters

CONFIRMATION - Holy Family Church, Cassava River

On Sunday, 23 September 2007, seven members of the faith community at Holy Family Church, Cassava River, received the Sacrament of Confirmation through the anointing by Archbishop Emeritus, Edgerton Clark, DD. Confirmation was originally scheduled for 19 August, but Hurricane Dean took center stage that day... and on Sunday we were greeted by a heavy, heavy down pour for over 30 minutes that delayed the celebration.

His Grace, Archbishop Clarke, has said that he would come out to do a Confirmation, "even if you only had one candidate." We are especially appreciative of His Grace for his kind and gentle presence... while the rains may have kept a few people away, the crowd assembled was ready to sing and call down the Spirit.

Sunday's gathering was our third "joint effort" and church members from St. Mary's, Above Rocks, and Sacred Hearts, Pinto, braved the elements and found their way to Cassava River to celebrate!

-

We Present the Newly Confirmed with Archbishop Clarke.

School's Back - Cassava River Inant & Primary

Cassava River Infant and Primary is the "grade school" associated with Holy Family Church in Cassava River, one of St. Mary's Mission churches. Each day begins with Devotional. The children gather for song, scripture and prayers. Amazingly from ages 4 through 12 they stand and listen as the principal, a teacher or one of the friars/sisters leads the Devotional. Here you will see the children press their lips as they quiet themselves before we say the Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be...the principal is not Catholic, one of 14 teachers is Catholic and less than a dozen of the children are Catholic... but all know their prayers, and press their lips when told to by the leader.

Here's a shot of the Infant Section, the five year old children with teacher. Currently this section of the school is being refurbished... imagine a job started on 9 July is not yet complete, and probably won't be until mid-October... but that's how it goes in Jamaica - soon come, soon come!

Cupertino Program - St Mary's Literacy Program

Now in its second year, the Cupertino Program has taken on that new coat of paint and seen the construction of counter tops, the installation of ceiling fans and a dozen new computers!

The addition of computer stations has allowed us to make hooked on phonics and several other learning programs available to our kids. Again this year we have a morning session (9:30am - 11:30am) for our middle schoolers; and an afternoon session (12:30 - 2:30pm) for our primary schoolers. Tutoring, sustained silent reading, and homework assistance are the usual need each day. I am amazed at how many 1st and 2nd graders cannot correctly identify the 8 colors in a basic box of crayons; and that 8th and 9th graders are being started in a 2nd grade reader.

Through this program we are able to offer assistance to twenty children each day. Our thanks to the RCIA Group that visited in August, and had an extended stay due to the visit of Hurricane Dean. The the doors, counter tops and all things wood are thanks to Mike Stewart, our carpenter. And the computers are thanks to Archbishop Curley High School. Through Fr Mike Martin's assistance 18 computers were sent do for use in the program.

THANKS to all our stateside supporters!

Shoe Sale - - Road Side Vendors

Thanks to our friends at St. Louis Church in Batesville, IN, we had a good selection of shoes after our first sale...so we took our show on the road...literally on the road. Much like a Jamaican Vendor the friars, sisters and Church Council members set up shop just outside Sacred Hearts Church n Pinto. A large number of good shoes... but a small crowd with the threat of rain. All-in-all the two days of shoe sales brought in $64,000 Jamaican Dollars... just about $1,000 US. That money helps us keep the feeding program cook's salary funded. THANKS to all who donated shoes...boxed the shoes and made these available to the people of St. Mary's and Missions.

In addition to the shoes...a number of slightly used prom dresses where available. These dresses were donated through a contact at The Catholic High School of Baltimore are a hot item for Sunday Church. Here you can see Sr Naomi helping AvaGay try on a potential buy.

[The shipping of shoes, school supplies and any collections the folks in Batesville do for us, is courtesy of Hill-Rom (the hospital bed maker, also in Batesville, IN). We'd like to take this space to say thank you to our friends at Hill-Rom.]

Fr Michael - Missionary School

In late August Fr Michael Heine left for missionary school in Brussels. Fr Mike's time away will be with other Franciscans reflecting on how to bring our Franciscan charism to the missions we staff. Here's a look at his 'classmates' - five are Conventuals, five are Capuchins and five are Observants. All are gathered around our new Minister General, Fr Marco (in blue) in the middle of the picture. The participants hail from Europe, India, Africa, South America, Asia and the Caribbean (Jamaica). Fr Mike will return to St. Mary's and Missions on 15 December, until that time Fr Gary will cover his duties.

17 Days No Electric

Thanks be to God, and the intercession of Blessed Mother Theresa, at about 6:10pm the power was restored to the Above Rocks Area... more importantly, to the St. Mary's Church compound. For the past 17 days we have relied on the gas generator for 12 hours a day: to keep the perishables cold, and sometimes frozen... now the roof top water tanks can be filled... laundry done... and fans on at night to keep the mosquitoes away. The level of thanks when the power returned was palpable as we ate a Fr Joe Pasta Dinner. Thanks to Jamaica Public Service (JPS) and the employees who have been working round-the-clock since the hurricane.

General Election '07

Monday night's coverage was neck and neck until almost 10pm... Portia Simpson, the current Prime Minister, announced at that time that she would not concede. Two days into the official recount the JLP picked up two additional seats, and the Hon. Portia Simpson (right) concedes. Here's the lead story from the morning paper: The People's National Party (PNP) last night conceded defeat in Monday's general election, but maintained it would reserve its right to challenge the results of some seats once the final counts are made public.

At the same time, the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) said yesterday that the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has picked up an additional seat, moving the preliminary count to JLP: 32, PNP: 28. The South St. James constituency first declared for the PNP's Derrick Kellier later went to the JLP's Noel Donaldson. Bruse Golding (left) will be installed as the next Prime Minister as early as Monday, 10 September 2007.