Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Life. Show all posts
Saturday, 2 May 2015
Monday, 12 January 2015
Sunday, 31 August 2014
The Moscow diaries
Nixtieq naqsam mieghek xi siltiet mid-djarju ta' Moscow, ir-Russja, fejn gejt ingedded l-esperjenza li ghamilt xi ghoxrin sena ilu.
Dal-gimghat li ilni Moska tghallimt xi tfisser tpoggi lil Alla qabel is-sacerdozju. Mhix facli li tkun qassis kattoliku f'pajjiz prattikament ateju u fejn il-Knisja ortodossa thares lejna b'suspett.
Qed nahdem hafna ma' qassis irlandiz li ilu hawn 22 sena - Fr Michael Ryan. Nitghallem hafna minn ghandu ghax ghandu perspettiva fuq l-Essenzjali tal-hajja u t-twemmin kattoliku. Kapaci jaghti l-identita' kattolika f'dak kollu li jaghmel u kapaci jzomm postu fejn tidhol il-Knisja Ortodossa u l-Istat. Il-Knisja u l-Istat saru prattikament haga wahda li jharsu l-interessi ta' xulxin. Qatt ma tisma' kritika mill-Knisja lejn l-Istat u dan minn naha tieghu qed jibni mijiet ta' Knejjes ortodossi f'kull post.
Hawn min jghid li l-Knisja Ortodossa saret qiesha wiehed mid-Dipartimenti tal-Gvern.
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| Rublev's Trinity |
Ghalkemm dan igib certi vantaggi, imma fil-fatt jeqred il-liberta' biex tghallem il-Vangelu b'mod shih.
Ovvjament trid tifhem dak li qed jigri fil-kuntest storiku ta' persekuzzjoni sistematika kontra l-knejjes specjalment kontra l-Knisja Ortodossa taht il-Komunizmu ateju.
Vizta tal-Papa fir-Russja naraha impossibli sakemm ma titbiddielx il-percezzjoni dwar ir-role tal-Papa u l-mod kif tmexxi l-Patrijarkat il-Knisja Ortodossa. Qiesu ma jonqoshom xejn u jistghu jghaddu minghajr Ruma.
Imma x-xewqa ta' Kristu mhix hekk.
Attendejt diversi liturgiji ortodossi u vespri ghand sorijiet ortodossi tal-klawsura. It-tul tac-cerimonji, l-ilbies, il-Knejjes vojta hlief ftit nisa anzjani jitkellmu wiehedhom.
Hu zball facli, li naghmel, li nara l-grajjiet t'hawnhekk bl-ghajnejn ta' kattoliku u tal-West.
L-istess grajja hi pprezentata totalment differenti mill-media tal-West u mill-Ahbarijiet hawnhekk. Dak li qed jigri fl-Ukrajina u s-sanzjonijiet huma zewg temi principali li ma temminx li qed nitkellmu fuq l-istess affarijiet. Hawnhekk Putin hu meqjus bhala eroj li qed jaghti dinjita' lir-Russja kontra l-arroganza tal-West.
Meta jkolli cans nara RT (Russia Today, li hafna ghandhom Malta wkoll), is-CNN, Euronews, TV5, Al Jazeera....u l-istess ahbar, l-istess filmat jaghtik stampa totalment differenti mir-rejalta'.
Ghalhekk importanti li nkunu kapaci nikkritikaw dak li nisimghu fl-ahbarijiet - kull stazzjon ghandu l-agenda tieghu u jipprezenta l-fatti skont min ihallas lill-gurnalisti.
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| Cathedral of Christ the Saviour |
L-istess nazzjonalizmu jezisti fil-Knisja Ortodossa.
Mhix kwistjonijiet ta' duttrina daqskemm Politika u poter.
Hawnhekk titghallem tmur ghall-essenzjal.
Hadt sehem f'dar privata f'maghmudija u grizma tal-morda.
Id-djar huma kollha l-istess zghar biex fix-xitwa jinzammu shan u fejn morna ghandhom kamra tas-sodda wahda li jorqdu erba' minn nies.
Id-djar jappartjenu ghall-Istat u l-Istat hu responsabbli ghall-'maintainence'.
Kulhadd ghandu dar u l-istat ihallas sew id-dawl, il-heating u l-affarijiet easenzjali bhal sahha etc Ghandhom 'purchasing power' iktar f'idejhom li hafna drabi jonfquhom fi hwejjeg fis-supermarkets numeruzi u forniti sew bhal tal-West.
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| The Red Square |
L-ahhar li gejt xahar Moscow kien xi 20 sena ilu biex naghmel l-istess esperjenza.
It-tibdil li rajt hu enormi. M'inix hawn biex naghmel turizmu.
Imma bqajt impressjonat kif idejologija tista' tibni socjeta' shiha u li kollox tibda tarah b'dak in-nuccali idejologiku.
Moskow, fejn kont, ghandhom kollox kbir...Il-muzewijiet, il-metro, l-istatwi ghall-Patrija, juru l-kobor tal-imperu russu.
U bhal kull imperu jghaddi zmienu ukoll. Meta mort l-ewwel darba fil-Pjazza l-Hamra kien hemm purcissjoni ma tispicca qatt ta' nies biex jaraw il-gisem ibbalzmat ta' Lenin.
Din id-darba ma kien hemm hadd. Kienu qed jarmaw ghal xi military tatoo ta' kull sena.
In-nies imutu u jintesew....imma l-Idejali jibqghu.
Wednesday, 20 August 2014
CELIBACY
Diocesan priests take only one vow on ordination: the vow of obedience to their Bishop. Chastity and poverty are taken, as vows, by the religious congregations.
Monks and friars, unlike Diocesan priests, are bound to live in a convent, community, obedient to his or her superior, and bound by a vow of obedience to his or her superior, chastity and poverty. Jokingly we say that “they” do the vows and we diocesan priests live them!
I find the vow of obedience, chastity and poverty very demanding. Looking back on these forty years of my priesthood I can vouch that sometimes these vows are too heavy.
Without God’s grace, prayers and support of loving people around me I would not have made it.
Yet I have full respect for priests, monks or sisters who discover God’s will for them is to move on, enter new commitments, leave the priesthood or the convent to build their own family and have their own children. I admire them for their courage and the beautiful families they have. One needs a determined personality to change the horses in mid stream. What is important is not to remain a priest or nun or religious but to do God’s will. Ignatian rules of discernment give inner freedom, strength, and a vision to choose God not the things of God. The Consecrated life is a means to an end, not the end itself.
We were fifty priests ordained together forty years ago…of these fifty, seven died and seven left the priesthood. They are my friends and still very dear to me.
Sometimes, not to have a wife or children of my own is one thing I find very difficult to live. Yet I do believe that celibacy has its own witness as Jesus Himself chose to be celibate. Those who think it’s always easy, they don’t know what they are talking about.
Once my superior sent for me to inquire why I said publicly that I miss a wife and children. Because that’s my own experience.
Unfortunately, we lose very good persons who have a vocation to the priesthood and renounce their call because they want to marry, have a wife of their own, children of their own, form a family of their own. The normal vocation of every person is to marry not to live alone. One needs a special call to live otherwise.
Again Pope Francis comes to my rescue.
Asked in La Repubblica interview about the celibacy rule for priests, Pope Francis recalled that it was adopted 900 years after the death of Jesus Christ and pointed out that the Eastern Catholic Church allows its priests to marry.
"The problem certainly exists but it is not on a large scale. It will need time but the solutions are there and I will find them”
What I feel perturbed about is not that a priest or a sister decides to leave his or her vocation. I know several priests and sisters who now form wonderful exemplary families. I find it difficult to accept how, as it happened to me in Italy, a sister living in a community of love and prayer would not find, not even one sister, to tell her about her pregnancy.
Indeed, to be celibate does not imply to renounce to a tender loving family – that’s why some convents are becoming bare and turned into museums.
Love, even if celibate makes the world go round – even within the Roman Catholic Church.
Sunday, 6 July 2014
Sunday, 29 June 2014
Saturday, 31 May 2014
LIFE BEGINS AT 40…. (FR COLIN APAP, jaqsam magħna xi jfissru dawn l-Erbgħin Sena bħala Saċerdot Malti… )
Life begins at 40…allura din is-sena, l-2014, jiena qed niċċelebra l-Ewwel Sena minn ħajti; m’għandix dubbju li hu birthday uniku u speċjali.
Ser ikolli wkoll il-“Quċċija”u l-ġenituri tiegħi, nanniet u razza u radika kollha poġġewli affarijiet reliġjużi biex nimxi fuq idejja u saqajja, nitkaxkar, biex nagħżel xi haga li tleqq, bejn flus, pinna u arloġġi ser nagħżel Kurċifiss jew Kuruna tar-Rużarju!
Kienu s-27 ta’ Lulju ta’ erbgħin (40) sena ilu meta mitfugħin ma’ l-art, rasna ‘l isfel, ħamsin (50) saċerdot flimkien, ġejna ordnati saċerdoti għal okkażjoni tal-ħamsin (50) sena ta’ l-Arċisqof Mikiel Gonzi bħala Isqof ta’ Malta.
Kienet okkażjoni unika u storika għax konvint li qatt mhu ser tirrepeti oħra bħalha: 50 saċerdot għal 50 sena ta’ Isqof!
Wara tmien (8) snin studji l-Università’ ta’ Malta u s-Seminarju kont naħseb li, kif jgħidu xi wħud, “Introibo ad altare Dei, addio libri miei”. Ix-xhur ta’ qabel is-sajf kienu dejjem marbuta ma’ eżamijiet u eżamijiet - sa minn meta bdejt immur l-iskola primarja, bil-bagalja tal-kartun ikbar minni, fl-Iskola tal-Floriana.
Kont naħseb li wara tant studju, issa nista’ nirrilassa u ngħaddi s-Sajf taħt xi tinda tax-xemx fix-Xemxija jew fuq xi ‘yacht’ ta’ xi ħabib nixxemmex u nsir bħal lobster.
Hekk kif qaddist il-‘prima messa, bdejt studju ieħor, dak tal-hajja, tar-rejalta’. L-eżamijiet f’din l-“università’ tal-ħajja” kienu wisq iżjed diffiċli mill-filosofija u t-teoloġija. L-ewwel ‘eżami’ li kelli kien mal-Moviment ta’ Kana. Biex għallmuni , kienu jagħtuni l-iktar każijiet diffiċli ta’ żwieġ, relazzjonijiet falluti u affarijiet li qabel il-professur tal-morali kien jgħidhomlna minn fuq il-kotba. Il- ħajja hija xi ħaġa oħra. - Altru l-bank tal-iskola u altru l-bank tal-ħajja.
L-ewwel IVA tiegħi lil Alla kienet sabiħa, challenging, b’ħarsa ‘l quddiem ta’ min qed joħlom u jaf li qed joħlom u jaf x’għandu jagħmel biex jilħaq il-quċċata. Imma dan Alla li Huwa Mħabba hu Alla ġeluz - u mhux kuntent bl-ewwel IVA li tajtu. Moħbija wara l-ewwel IVA lil Alla kien hemm katina sħiħa ta’ ġrajjiet li qatt ma bsart li ser ngħaddi minnhom.
Erbgħin sena ta’ ferħ u niket, ta’ ‘suċċess’ u ‘falliment’, ta’ ħbiberiji sinċieri li jibqgħu dejjem f’qalbi u f’moħħi – imma wkoll esperjenzi qarsa tal-hajja bħal tradimenti, ‘back-stabbing’ u ipokresija. Propju bħal kull sejħa oħra tal-hajja: tgħaddi mill-estasi tas-sabiħ u mħabba vera u mill-istallel tal-hajja minn dawk li qatt ma tobsorha li ser jitrattawk hekk.
Illum wara 40 sena saċerdot, inħares lura u nsaqsi jekk għandix nirrepeti IVA oħra ILLUM, fil-‘here and now’, fir-rejalta’ tal-mument preżent. Jgħaddu minn quddiemi purċissjoni ta’ nies u ġrajjiet… u nsaqsi jekk hux ‘worth it’. It-tweġibiet, għalija, mhumiex faċli.
Is-sabiħ tal-ħajja jiddependi mir-relazzjonijiet li nibni matul ħajti. Huma dawn ir-relazzjonijiet li juruni kemm Alla tas-Sorpriżi jkellimni permezz ta’ nies u ċirkustanzi. Dil-purċissjoni ta’ nies mill-Filippini sa Frascati, minn Ruma sa Tirana (Albania), minn Abuja (Nigeria) sa Nairobi (Kenya), minn New York sa Londra…u nirringrazzja lil Alla Li Hu Imħabba għal kull persuna li taghieli b’rigal. Anki, probabbilment iktar, għal dawk li ġegħluni nsofri waqt li qed jaħsbu li qed jagħmlu tajjeb.
Is-saċerdozju, bħal kull sejħa oħra tal-hajja, mhux romantiċiżmu jew pessimiżmu. Kull saċerdot, bħal Kristu, irid jitgħallem jgħix ‘komdu’ fuq is-Salib għax wara s-Salib, u permezz tiegħu, jara z-żerriegħa li tmut li tagħti l-hajja u l-hajja bil-bosta.
Tuesday, 29 April 2014
Saturday, 26 April 2014
Tuesday, 25 March 2014
Tuesday, 25 February 2014
Sunday, 10 November 2013
Sunday, 29 September 2013
Tuesday, 17 September 2013
Tuesday, 6 August 2013
Fr Colin's Podcast - Do you accept the Status Quo or face the challenge?
Catholic Church let me introduce you to a new perspective. Fr Colin talks about us, our lives, what we choose, what in the view of Pope Francis, the Catholic Church needs: Meet Pope Francis!
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Fr Colin's Podcast - I want a mess - I want trouble
An homily by Fr Colin, about the making the right choices in our lives. Fr Colin also quotes from the speech that Pope Francis made in Rio during the World Youth Day 2013 calling all of us to become saints. Let us fear not to be different!
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Saturday, 20 July 2013
Sunday, 14 July 2013
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