April, 2011

Dear friends, 

As the weeks of April pass we continue our Lenten journey to the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Coming this year about as late as it possibly can, Spring should be in full bloom by Easter Sunday. At our mission sites in South America, however, it is Fall, with temperatures falling and the fog beginning to roll in along the coast. Like here the faithful are involved in their Lenten practices and people are being prepared for the sacraments at the Easter Vigil.

We began our journey toward this celebration of new life with a meditation on the temptations of Christ. Like the Lord, we too are tempted by materialism, prestige and power. At the Transfiguration Jesus reveals the fullness of His identity and the Heavenly Father speaks again. The Christian hope for transformation and renewal grows. Back in the day, the haunting voice of the late Mary Travers (Peter, Paul and Mary) sang about the encounter with the woman at the well. On the Third Sunday of Lent we hear Jesus promise her living water to slake every thirst. Then we meditate on the moment when the man born blind sees for Jesus is the light that pierces all darkness. As Lent winds down we hear the Good News that Jesus is “the Resurrection and the Life” as He prepares to call Lazarus back to life. Our Lenten journey takes us to Jerusalem as we raise our palms on the first day of Holy Week. As we journey through these sacred days, in the Lord Jesus we find once again the perfect example of love, service and sacrifice. In the empty tomb we see our reason to await forgiveness and new life.

Come Easter Sunday I am sure that our hearts will still be heavy and our minds numb from the catastrophes in Japan. Let us pray in a special way that new hope can be born in people who have suffered so much. In a spirit of solidarity, as I requested last year at the time of the earthquake in Haiti, please be as generous as you can to the relief efforts for Japan through your favorite charity instead of giving to us. Happy Easter.

Sincerely,

Rev. Kevin Hays
Director

Fr. Ed Veasey was born on July 19, 1936 and was called home to God on March 11, 2011. He was ordained for the Diocese of Glasgow, Scotland in 1962 and worked there until 1988 when he joined the Society as a missionary in the neighborhood of "El Guasmo" in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He administered to the poor of Guayaquil through the sacraments and also through social projects. One of his major projects included the Hospital Madre Berenice which began as a small medical dispensary with one doctor and grew to a small hospital with over thirty professionals. The hospital continues today under the direction of the Diocese of Guayaquil. Fr. Ed will always be remembered for his years of service and dedication to the "poorest of the poor" of Guayaquil. May he rest in peace.

Fr. Ed visited and got to know the many patients at the hospital.

Mothers and children celebrate together during a community meal at this soup kitchen in Peru.

In the urban outskirts of Lima, people celebrate being part of a faith community.

Children at the Society's mission sites have the opportunity to receive spiritual formation and take part in special events.

This woman prepares the beautiful palms for the Palm Sunday procession, which leads into Holy Week.

Easter Sunday last year at St. Stephen's, Boston.

The construction of a new chapel provides the people of this mission in Ecuador with a place to worship, and instills in them a great sense of hope and joy.

The annual Blessing of the Crosses in the highlands of Peru takes place during the Easter Season.

 

The 2011 Annual General Meeting
Lima, Peru

Some of the absent members were camera shy.

From left: Bishop Donal Murray, Bishop Emeritus of Limerick, Ireland; Fr. Kevin Hays, Society Director; Msgr. John Devine, former Society member, representing the Archbishop of Liverpool, UK; and Bishop Robert Hennessey, former Society member and Auxiliary Bishop of Boston.

From left: Society members Fr. Des Tynan, Fr. Kevin Hays, Fr. Gerry O'Meara and Fr. Tom Oates take some time to catch up.