The Power At Work Within Us

At the threshold of the new liturgical year, I recall the words of Saint Paul the Apostle of Nations, which I chose as the preamble of my testament and I used them as the second reading for my silver jubilee celebration in Kiabakari last week on November 21.

"I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph 3:14-21)

When I went for my one day retreat at Bunda Carmel one week before the silver jubilee celebrations, I got the powerful message on that day reminding me about the unique role of the Holy Spirit in my life and priestly / missionary vocation. All three reading chosen for the jubilee Mass spoke about the work of the Holy Spirit in my life. And yet I was somehow oblivious of this obvious truth in my past years. The Holy Spirit came back on that day in Bunda and rightfully enlightened my mind and soul to take back His crucial and primary position in my life.

As I celebrated the first Holy Mass of the new liturgical year this morning, I surrendered myself to the Holy Spirit and His Power at work within us. May this new year and all remaining years of my life be the Holy Spirit Domain. 

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth. The earth of my heart and soul. The earth of my daily priestly and missionary life. The earth of lives of all I love and serve.

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Wells Of Life Wisdom

Home visiting of sick and elderly in Kiabakari has been a pastoral experience I look forward to always. This morning I visited our seniors and sick parishioners in four out of six districts of Kiabakari township. Meeting those people i nothing less that drinking their living wisdom, shaped up and matured by life, suffering and experience. Came back overjoyed though sad that there are sick people in the parish. This is mystery of the Cross which teaches me humility and respect for life along with appreciation of whatever health I still enjoy. God bless our seniors and sick members of our parochial community! Happy Easter! Many of you we will see on Easter Sunday! Some pictures from today's visitation (random order).

Hate For Life

St. Lawrence feast today. Astonishing words of Jesus in the feast's Gospel: "Whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life." (Jn 12). Hating owns life and at the same time preserving it for later, for eternal life. Quite a difficult idea to grasp and comprehend. What does it mean actually to hate one's life in this world? The Hindu saying comes to mind - 'Only fool builds a house on a bridge'...

In The Reflective Mood

Since yesterday, when we went to celebrate fiftieth birthday anniversary of one of our Fidei Donum Polish missionaries in diocese of Musoma, I've been into a reflective mood. Looking at that guy, who just turned fifty, I recalled vividly times we spent together in the major seminary, as he was my classmate (till when we were ordained as deacons) and my roommate (at one time). Time flies so fast. It will take me two more years and I will turn fifty myself. When did all these years come and pass? Life is truly a short project and as we are on the downhill part of it at this point of our life journey, I guess this makes for a reflective mood and a serious examination of conscience... Well, fifty behind him (already) and me (almost). How many more ahead? Only God knows. I don't care but I hope we learned something by now and the remaining years of our lives will be pleasing to God and lived wisely, piously and fruitfully, working tirelessly in the vineyard of the Lord, till He comes and calls us off duty.

Dilemma

Sitting in Musoma, somewhere in shades, working on my macbook and wondering what to do with the blog to take it to another step, to higher level, to improve it, to go deeper and broader... Inspired by comments I read somewhere, I feel challenged after one full year of keeping this diary of my daily life, ups and downs, struggles, joys, failures and small victories... Wondering if I should migrate to other blogging platform, especially after last week crash of blogger.com... I know I am a beginner, a novice in this area of activity, communication and sharing... Just a good will is not enough at this point of time. I need some fresh ideas, mental challenges, guidance... I hope I'll get one...

Clean Up

I'm done for now with the design of this blog which, after major clean up, changes made and introduction of pages (menu) at the top resembles a private website rather than a regular blog. Anyway, if this is a direction I feel I should take, so be it. Hope you like the new design, color pallette and menu. More so, I pray that what I share with you, makes positive impact in your spiritual, private and professional life. God bless us all!

Pro-existence

This is precisely the expression used by my former rector in metropolitan major seminary in Kraków, now the archbishop of Częstochowa, His Grace Stanisław Nowak, when he addresses seminarians in the shrine of Saint Stanisław, bishop and martyr at Skałka, Kraków, back in 1983 0r 1984 if I correctly remember...

LIfe From Above

Days of fetching water in plastic 100 liters capacity containers from Musoma two-three times a week are over for now, thanks be to God! The water arrives itself, propelled by favorable winds and seasonal conditions as rainy season arrived in full. Now what we do is to put the same plastic 100 liters containers in strategic places and catch rain gushing through gutters and spitting down in fury. Life in plentitude from above. Happy days, indeed!

Stations

Fridays of Lent. Happy are those who understand that Lent without participation in the Stations of the Way of the Cross loses a lot of its meaning and power. Happy are those who in the hectic schedules of their daily lives cut out a sufficient chunk of time for active participation and meditation of the Stations and the Passion of Christ. Nothing helps us grow faster and mature in the spiritual life and union with Living God than meditation on the Passion of Our Lord which has its summit in the Sacrifice of Eucharist. Every Saint throughout the ages will attest to this...

Simple Man

One of the qualities I consider as essential to my identity and comfort in life. Just to be a simple man. Sitting in the shadowy corner and doing my things in unassuming way, away from people's attention, away from spotlights, away from clapping hands... And the warm sensation of satisfaction filling my heart whenever I am able to do something worthy of my personal accolade.  A simple man. Oh, how I dream of disappearing completely from the public life and responsibilities! How I dream of following my lifelong inner call of leading a secluded life as a hermit. I hope one day, God willing, it will happen. Entering a life I dream of, far from people's eyes and completely standing in the presence of the One who created me, saved me and still tolerates my follies day by day... Will it ever happen? Will it happen?

Proclaiming Love Of Life In the Face of Death

Yesterday along with a few people who have been friends with our foreman in construction projects - Mr Sayi Tumaini - we traveled to Malili - half distance between Kiabakari and Mwanza, to take part in the funeral of Sayi's Mum who died last Saturday after a very long battle with cancer...

Crossroads

"Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him". (Sir 15:17) Someone once said: 'Having chosen once, I have to choose every day..." ... Well, I guess it is not enough to choose every day. Not only every day, but every hour, every second, every time I have to make a decision which way to go, what to say, what to do, what to choose, how to react, what to think, how to understand someone or something - in which light - Divine Light, light of faith or simple enlightenment of my human reason? What is the outcome of my decisions? I am free to choose... surely my past experiences, my past choices, things I am used to do, will influence somehow my present decisions or will incline me to tend to choose something over something else... but still I am absolutely free at the end of the day to choose... and I have to live with my decision... and some of them are irreversible and I have to live with the outcome of these decisions forever... This freedom God has given us out of His love and respect for us is scary...

3 A.M.

The time of the night that finds me awake from time to time... More frequently in the last few years as the day hours aren't enough... The early hours of the morning... sometimes the best time of the entire day... the most creative, innovative, illuminating, thrilling... or simply the time to take my coat, hat and walking stick and go down the memory lane...

A Miracle Of Life

Remember the recent uproar of liberal pro-choice people and groups of pressure who cry foul when the ChurchAds.net in UK revealed Advent / Christmas posters depicting Baby Jesus in His Mother's womb with halo around His little head? I consider it a wonderful interpretation of Advent reality - a maternal womb of Our Lady as it was then... But for some, crooked 'art' like some time ago a crucifix in urine or something disgusting like this - is an epithomy of art. I rather see it as a decline and death of human culture that should always serve the proclamation of the beauty of life and genuine talents and charismas of people...

Last Weekend

Looking forward to my return to Poland and bit later - to Tanzania...This weekend, last weekend on North American soil, bears a unique meaning to me - it feels like the words of the Book of Genesis, when God after creating all these wonderful things, rested...

New Life

Last week was truly a new life welcoming week long fiesta! Poor Sister Grace, our health center administrator and midwife by profession, helped by other sisters and nurses from the Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati Health Center in Kiabakari, was rushing daily back to work prompted by anxious people or watchmen from the facility coming to the mission asking for help...expecting mothers were being brought to the gate of the health center and on one occasion - a mum-to-be was left all alone at the gate by a bodaboda rider, as she came herself by motorcycle to deliver a baby!

Humanae Vitae

Today, apart from liturgical celebration of the Feast of St. James, the Apostle, and the commemoration of St. Christopher, we commemorate also 42nd anniversary of the promulgation of Paul VI encyclical letter 'Humanae Vitae' which has become a sign of contradiction in the modern world...

Silent Mode

I like the reflection on today's Sunday readings I found on a blog of Fr. Tom Hoisington, OP. Read it here. It evoked a myriad of memories and mental journeys in the past and present, reading into my own life and lives of people I serve in Kiabakari, family members, friends and those I have met in my life and interacted with in many ways.