by Adam Mitchell | Jan 5, 2018 | Vocations - Blog
Congrats to Maryknoll’s newest member, John Siyumbu, who took first oath to the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers this past weekend!
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John is the first international candidate to take a temporary oath with Maryknoll. Later this month he will travel to Cochabamba, Bolivia to begin our Overseas Training Program. We congratulate and wish John many blessings during his Training Program and we ask that you keep John and all of our seminarians in your prayers!
by Adam Mitchell | Dec 30, 2017 | Vocations - Blog
You are the Miracle of Christmas
I am what Jesus is
because Jesus became what I am.
Christmas came and went
almost unnoticed.
But after all the running around
and anxiety about finding it,
There it was
6 lbs. 8 ounces and growing
her given name: Milagro (Miracle).
So we almost missed it again…
but then we found her
in a poor house
just like Bethlehem.
Thanks to this miracle
we looked around and
found them everywhere
with muddy feet and bright faces.
I never thought this was really Christmas
until now I understand Bethlehem.
It was a real place
just like right here,
Where the star came to rest
and a baby was born.
by Brother Marty Shea, M.M.
by Adam Mitchell | Dec 29, 2017 | Podcast
Father John Dear joins us to discuss how he has committed his life to promoting world peace, social justice, non-violence and awareness of the extreme dangers we face with climate change.
His empowering message will motivate you to deeply consider your personal role in ending violence, racism and poverty as he shares his own accounts of non-violent activism, incarceration, protest and putting himself in harm’s way for the promotion of peace and justice.
“To be a Christian is to be a person of non-violence, which means to be a Christian you cannot have anything to do with war, racism, greed, nuclear weapons, environmental destruction … you have to be continuing Jesus’ life of revolutionary non-violence.”
His profound stories range from hitchhiking through war-ravaged Lebanon, where from the Sea of Galilee he witnessed Israeli bombs drop upon the place where Jesus spoke. Father Dear goes on to share his reflections from his life-long work that has taken him around the world, from the most dangerous war zones to the streets of the largest cities, spreading his message in protest of violence and social injustice.
Father Dear is an author and sought after lecturer on the topics of peace, disarmament and non-violence throughout the United States, and around the world, including national speaking tours of England, Australia and New Zealand.
Father Dear has received several peace awards, including the 2010 Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award and has been nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize. In January 2008 he was nominated by Archbishop Desmond Tutu and with Leo Rebello in 2015.
Today, Father Dear lives completely off the grid on a remote mountaintop in the desert, but continues his busy schedule of educating people on the necessity of creating a new culture of peace throughout the world.
“We all have to become activists; we all need to stand in opposition to the culture of war.”
Father Dear can be personally reached at www.fatherjohndear.com
Published work is available from Orbis Books, follow the links below.
Thomas Merton, Peacemaker
Lazarus, Come Forth!
You Will Be My Witnesses
They Will Inherit the Earth
Mohandas Gandhi
Daniel Berrigan
by Adam Mitchell | Dec 21, 2017 | Podcast
We are proud to bring you the first episode of Among The People, with an impactful interview with Maryknoll Brother John Beeching.
In this episode, Brother John shares:
• His time with Mother Teresa, a story we’re sure you’ve never heard.
• His war experiences in Beirut and Yemen.
• Managing the trauma of war.
• His selfless work with the Mon refugees of Myanmar and Thailand.
• Christian love and Buddhist compassion.
About Brother John:
Much of Brother Beeching’s work in Thailand has involved accompanying Mon refugees and monks, who have taken shelter at Wat Prok, a Buddhist temple in Bangkok.
The Mon are indigenous Burmese people, who have been brutalized by the ruling military regime of Burma (Myanmar, as the military government now refers to the country).
Brother Beeching joins the Mon and other Burmese ethnic groups in demonstrating in front of the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok, helps them secure visas and passports, and assists them in getting supplies to some of the refugee camps along the Burmese/Thai border.
He writes: “Despite differences in belief, these fellow refugees and I have grown through the experience of service as a shared sense of community. Together we break the bread of compassion. Together we sit in silence trying to be present to the gift of the moment, and are drawn ever deeper into the ineffable mystery of God.”
Prior to Bangkok, Brother John served first in Chile and then in the Middle East, working in Egypt, Yemen and Lebanon. In war-ravaged Beirut he experienced numerous narrow escapes with mortar attacks and terrorist bombings. It was also a time when he became involved in interfaith dialogue, an interest that has grown within the old walls of Wat Prok, Thailand.
For him, Christian love and Buddhist compassion comprise the same call to action. “Buddhists say you are a brother to the mosquito you slapped on your wrist. The tree, the water-it’s all part of what is happening in you. It’s a brotherhood that embraces all life.”
by Adam Mitchell | Dec 20, 2017 | Vocations - New Members
Growing in understanding is a grace from God. My Maryknoll Spirituality Year here in Chicago, USA has availed me many opportunities for growth. My understanding of the missionary charism of Maryknoll has also grown. I have learned about the beginnings of Maryknoll. I have also been inspired by the example of James A. Walsh and Thomas Fredrick Price. I have learned too about Mother Molly Rogers, an American woman whose zeal for mission led to the founding of the Maryknoll Sisters of St. Dominic.A major aspect of Maryknoll’s missionary spirituality involves flexibility and adaptability. Maryknoll’s history presents men and women who are willing to live side by side with people of other cultures. I cannot help but notice how, relative to the mission lands of my home region, accessing social amenities is easier in the US. This realization is a result of living in the US during my Spirituality Year. For Maryknoll missionaries serving outside of the US, it is evident that adapting to a lack of this comfort is steeped in and informed by a deep desire to expand the Reign of God. Choosing to be a missionary disciple of Jesus demands that we examine our perceptions of comfort. My Spirituality Year has challenged me to consider the comfort of home vis-à-vis the spiritual fruits of living side by side with the marginalized of cultures foreign to my own. I have asked myself frequently: what do I want?; what do I desire?; what do I hope to achieve?; how can I serve God?; Reflecting on these questions has helped me discover many gifts from God. I have also realized how hard it is to speak definitively about who God is. I do not have a monopoly on the message of Christ.
I would do well, therefore, to tread lightly on, as Rodger Schroeder, one of my professors at the Catholic Theological Union (CTU) would say, someone else’s garden. My prayer, during this year, has been that God may purify my intentions to serve as a Maryknoll missionary.I arrived in the United States on February 15, 2017. I have no fond memories of those freezing temperatures that welcomed me to the western hemisphere of the globe.
I spent the first three months of my Spirituality year in the Maryknoll Initial Formation House here in Chicago. I was warmly welcomed by the community on my arrival. Many of my needs were anticipated by members of my community. With such a community, understanding the basics of Divine Providence is not difficult. The Intercommunity Novitiate (ICN) program helped me consider aspects of my vocation in the company of novices from other congregations and orders. I enjoyed the company of the novices. Often, I found concepts at the ICN stimulating. My studies at CTU and a tutoring ministry at San Miguel School helped orient me to the people of America. I remember admiring the efficiency that seemed to be almost everywhere: from the public transportation system to procedures at CTU.I spent some months at Maryknoll, New York as part of my formation. I found the veteran missionaries inspiring in many ways. I got to meet some missionaries I’d heard about back at home in Kenya. Meeting with Fr. Art Wille, Fr. Paul Belliveau and many other Maryknoll Missionaries who worked across the globe was both humbling and energizing. It occurred to me that I was in the presence of Maryknoll’s living history. I enjoyed conversations with Maryknollers in the dining hall. Conversing with men who have trod in the footsteps of Jesus in the missions strengthened my desire for service. My intention to serve God wherever I’m sent was confirmed.Attending a mission spirituality seminar with Fr. Larry Lewis, MM helped me to reflect on my experiences at the Knoll. God was gracious to me through the work of Fr. Larry. Events at the Knoll helped me learn about Maryknoll’s way of proceeding. I also met many people who support and contribute to Maryknoll’s mission. Indeed, together we make God’s Reign visible.Francis X. Ford, distilling many years of experience in the missions, counsels that ‘God needs us where we are’. I have witnessed God’s fidelity to me in this land far away from my native one. I have been prepared to serve the people of God in the missions. Through my ministry at the University of Chicago Hospital, I have found Jesus in the people I ministered to. As Ruth Burrows writes in The Essence of Prayer, formation here in Chicago has helped with my ‘attitude of heart and mind…[one]…that remains always on the receiving end in the divine relationship’.I took my First Oath to Maryknoll on December 10, 2017. During the homily, Fr. Raymond Finch, MM spoke of the gravity of my commitment. With my First Oath, I chose to commit myself to Maryknoll. Programs in my Spirituality Year prepared me for this level of commitment. Maryknoll’s mission has held a place in my heart for many years. Now I get to be part of this mission which is itself a gift from God. I choose to learn, to love and to serve God’s people in the Maryknoll way. My desire to be a missionary disciple is confirmed. It is this desire that, as Ita Ford, MM counsels, helps infuse meaning in my life. I do not take this for granted. I’m grateful to my family back at home in Kenya and to members of the Maryknoll Africa region.I leave for Cochabamba, Bolivia, on Wednesday, December 20th, 2017. I am confident that my friends are praying for me. I have their blessings. I have witnessed God’s fidelity through the presence of my friends during my First Oath here in Chicago. I found God in the people who have accompanied me during my Spirituality Year. These souls have been the channels of God’s grace. I felt blessed and joyful on December 10, 2017. Now, I look forward to sharing the gift of joy that God has bestowed upon me in Bolivia. Primum, Regnum Dei.
by Adam Mitchell | Nov 5, 2017 | Vocations - Blog
Bishop Patrick J. Byrne, M.M. was the first Maryknoll priest. Orginally ordained for the archdiocese of Washington, D.C., he was given permission by Cardinal Gibbons to join Maryknoll a week after his ordination. As a young priest, Father Byrnes supervised the building of Maryknoll and was assigned to Korea in 1923.In 1929 he returned to Maryknoll and was elected Vicar General during the first Society chapter. In 1935 he opened a new mission in Kyoto, Japan, and was placed under house arrest during World War II.
When the war ended, he helped General Douglas McArthur calm the people during the beginning of the American occupation.In 1947 he was appointed by Rome as Apostolic visitor to Korea, and in 1949 the first Apostolic Delegate to Korea. On July 2, 1950 Bishop Byrne was seized by the Communists and put on trial. Refusing to give in, he was forced to march to the Yalu river along with remnants of the US Army 24th Infantry Division.He died on November 25, 1950 and was buried in an unmarked grave in Hanjang-ni, North Korea.
by Adam Mitchell | Sep 14, 2017 | Vocations - Blog
Pope Francis has often used the phrase “missionary disciples.” In his first apostolic exhortation, The Joy of the Gospel (Evangelii Gaudium), he says: “Every Christian is a missionary to the extent that he or she has encountered the love of God in Christ Jesus: we no longer say that we are ‘disciples’ and ‘missionaries,’ but rather that we are always ‘missionary disciples.’”
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The pope is continuing to call us back to Christ in the form of ongoing discipleship, and then impelling us to mission, to take what we have been given out to a world that badly needs this witness and message of love. The Holy Father recently picked up this theme again when he said: “The people of God is a people of disciples because we receive the faith and a missionary people because we pass on the faith.”We are all called to be missionaries, by virtue of our baptism— proclaiming the faith boldly wherever we are “each in the place that the Lord has assigned to us.” This is precisely what new evangelization calls for. “Each of the baptized, whatever their role in the Church or the educational level of their faith, is an active agent of evangelization….The new evangelization should involve a new central role for each of the baptized.” Note that the only “qualification” the pope cites is “baptism.” One does not need a higher level degree in theology or formal training to be a missionary, just an encounter with Christ, which naturally inspires one to share this same encounter with others.Mother Teresa once counseled someone who thought they had to go off to a foreign land to evangelize, to, “grow where you’re planted.” The Lord has put us wherever we are for a reason. Indeed, He has entrusted the various individuals who come into our lives and cross our paths, to us. A fruitful prayer is every day to pray for “those who have been entrusted to my care.” Now that can be physical or spiritual children, family, children in a religious education program, students in a classroom, teenagers in a youth group, participants in an RCIA process, couples preparing for marriage, a whole roster of parishioners, your coworkers, all the way to the senior citizens or residents in an assisted living home. Each of these individuals, depending on one’s position, are entrusted to someone’s’ care (see Gn 3:9). And we are called to be a missionary to them, bringing Christ to them, helping them encounter the fullness of love and leading others to discipleship.We are called to be disciples. “All of us in the Church are disciples, always and for our entire lives….” We never stop being disciples. The term “disciple” necessitates a relationship with the master or teacher. In the same way that none of us ever ceases to be a son or daughter to our parents, once we enter into relationship with Christ via that encounter, we never cease to be a disciple. And like that family relationship, while the circumstances and levels change, the relationship between the disciple and Christ remains forever.Evangelii Gaudium, according to Father John Hurley, CSP, “invites Catholics today to think of themselves as disciples of Jesus. This fundamentally is what I think the call to a new evangelization is all about. It requires a paradigm shift from thinking of ourselves as members of the Church to disciples in the Church.” Members can be passive, disciples are inherently active. Members can check the “Catholic box” on the surveys and show up on Christmas and Easter; disciples participate every Sunday.The Foundation and Impetus Pope Francis cites Pope Paul VI’s Evangelii Nuntiandieleven times in The Joy of the Gospel. Pope Paul VI wrote: “Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses.” Missionary disciples are precisely what witnesses are and must be if we are to successfully be agents of a new evangelization.by Phil Lawson
by Adam Mitchell | Sep 6, 2017 | Vocations - Blog
Vincent Capodanno was born on February 13th, 1929, in Staten Island, New York. After attending a year at Fordham University, young Vincent Capodanno entered the Maryknoll seminary in 1949, and was ordained in 1958. After ordination, Father Capodanno was assigned to work with aboriginal Taiwanese in the mountains of Taiwan where he served in a parish and later in a school. After seven years, Father Capodanno returned to the United States for leave and then was assigned to a Maryknoll school in Hong Kong.
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Looking for a different challenge, Father Capodanno requested a new assignment–as a United States Navy Chaplain serving with the U.S. Marines. After finishing officer candidate’s school, Father Capodanno reported to the 7th Marines, in Vietnam, in 1966.
When his tour was complete, he requested an extension, served in the naval hospital and then reported to the 5th Marines. He gained a reputation for always being there–for always taking care of his Marines.
On September 4th, 1967 , in the Thang Binh District of the Que-Son Valley, elements of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines found the large North Vietnamese Unit, approx. 2500 men, near the village of Dong Son. Operation Swift was underway. The out-numbered and disorganized Company D was in need of reinforcements. By 9:14 am, twenty-six Marines were confirmed dead. The situation was in doubt and another Company of Marines was committed to the battle. At 9:25 am, the 1st Battalion 5th Marine Commander requested assistance of two company’s of the 3rd Battalion 5th Marines, “M”and “K” Company.During those early hours, Chaplain Capodanno received word of the battle taking place. He sat in on the morning briefing at the 3rd Battalion’s Combat Operations Center. He took notes and listened to the radio reports coming in. As the elements of Company “M” and “K” prepared to load the helicopters. “Fr.Vince” requested to go with them. His Marines needed him. “It’s not going to be easy” he stated. As Company “M” approached the small village of Chau Lam, the North Vietnamese opened up on the 2nd Platoon, which was caught on a small knoll, out in the open. The fighting was fierce, hand to hand at times, and the platoon was in danger of being overrun. Father Capodanno went among the wounded and dying, giving last rites and taking care of his Marines. Wounded once in the face and suffering another wound that almost severed his hand, Father Capodanno moved to help a wounded corpsman only yards from an enemy machinegun. Father Capodanno died taking care of one of his men. On December 27, 1968, then Secretary of the Navy Paul Ignatius notified the Capodanno family that Fr. Vincent would posthumously be awarded the Medal of Honor in recognition of his selfless sacrifice. The offical ceremony was held January 7, 1969. On May 21, 2006, thirty-nine years after his death on the battlefield of Vietnam, Capodanno was publicly declared Servant of God, the first step towards canonization. This year, Maryknoll celebrates the fiftieth anniversary of Father Capodanno’s death on September 4, 2017.
Father Capodanno’s inspiration and dedication to “his” Marines goes much further. His story continues even today.
by Adam Mitchell | Sep 5, 2017 | Vocations - Blog
The Maryknoll building seems to have an envelope of quiet majesty about it. Looking at the building from the front steps, one gets a sense of the dedication of the many souls that have toiled for God’s mission over the decades. It is a testament of God’s continuing reward on the unwavering resolve of Fr. James Walsh and Fr. Thomas Price. As part of my formation program, I have spent three months living here at the Knoll.I travelled to Maryknoll from Chicago in the middle of May, 2017. These past few months have been enriching in a variety of ways.
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I have encountered the spirituality of Maryknoll as it is expressed by Maryknollers who have spent decades overseas. Towards this end, the dining hall at the Knoll has been an important place. I recall many conversations on a variety of topics. A few particularly polemical ones with a very amiable Maryknoller served to broaden my perspective on mission.
Through innumerable anecdotes offered by seasoned missioners, I grew in my appreciation of the history of Maryknoll. The love for mission at the Knoll is broad and deep. Though advanced in years, the zeal and zest for all things missionary among the men I met is evident. There is an enduring love for the people among whom the missioners worked. I find this admirable.I got to visit with Maryknollers living in Mission St. Teresa’s. It was wonderful meeting men like Fr. Art Willie whom I had heard about before beginning the formation program. Eager to share their mission stories with me, I could see why it is said that ‘old is gold’. God willing, I will emulate the generosity and patience I have witnessed at Mission St. Teresa’s. This is both in the senior missioners and their caretakers.The story of Maryknoll is embedded in all that one encounters here at the Knoll. From the buildings to the people who have worked here since the early beginnings of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America. From these, I once again got to appreciate the immense gift that mission is. Sites and sights at Maryknoll contribute to an appreciation of the single-minded zeal that contributed to the furthering of God’s presence and accompaniment in the universal Church.There were many communal events during these past few months. Beginning with an ordination ceremony in the month of May, I had the joy of participating in the numerous activities here at the Knoll. Foundation day on June 29th, with accompanying Jubilee celebrations, was an opportune moment to witness God’s faithfulness to Maryknoll. These activities and the other numerous encounters I have had here at the Knoll complement my formation program in Chicago. Visiting the Knoll has served to deepen my understanding of Maryknoll’s history as well as share in a glimpse of its future.
by Adam Mitchell | May 23, 2017 | Vocations - Blog, Vocations - New Members
Father Peter Latouf admits that the appeal of the priesthood was seeded in him growing up in the Maronite Catholic Church, an Eastern-rite church in communion with the Vatican.
According to him, the Mass, the psalms, the liturgy of the hours are appealing to him because others are doing this as well and his prayer is joining in the universal Church’s prayer.
Father Peter was completing his bachelor’s degree in psychology and international studies in Wayne State University in his hometown of Detroit but he needed three semesters of a foreign language. He chose Mandarin Chinese, just because it wasn’t what everyone else was doing.
After three semesters of Mandarin, he spent the summer of 2004 in China on a school trip. He wanted to go back as soon as he left but he wanted to go back having the church element in it. Having been raised in a “very strong Catholic” family, he started asking priests in Detroit how he might do mission work in China and they directed him to Maryknoll.
Father Peter Latouf with Taiwanese children
With Mandarin studies under his belt, plus a master’s in education from Wayne State as well, he was assigned to overseas training in Taiwan, where he gained pastoral experience working with the indigenous Bunun people in a Maryknoll parish in the mountains.
He was given a chance to travel to North Korea with Maryknoll Father Gerard Hammond who works with patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. He tried to prepare himself mentally for the trip, but found the experience nothing like he expected.
The two experiences—helping desperately sick people in North Korea and working with indigenous Taiwanese—sum up mission for Father Latouf. On the one hand, it’s finding reality worse than the “sanitized version” we expect to see, he says, and on the other “there’s a spirit and there’s a knowledge that people have and I think it’s very easy to underestimate that as well.”
Father Latouf celebrated his first Mass at Our Lady Queen of Apostles Chapel of the Maryknoll Society on Sunday, May 21, and then returned home to celebrated Mass in his parish of St. Sharbel Church in Sterling Heights, MI on June 17.
