Bank Holiday Monday 30 Oct:  Mass at 10 am only – no Evening Mass; Tues 31 – 10 am/pm (Vigil Mass)
Feast of All Saints – Wed 1 November: 10 am  11 am   7 pm; Thurs 2/Fri 3:  10 am   7 pm

Christmas Fair 2017 – Sunday 26 November – 10 30 am – 4 pm – St. Colmcille’s Primary School 

Service Of Remembrance – Wednesday 15 November 8.00 pm – St. Colmcille’s Church 

Children’s Choir and Gospel Drama
Rehearse on Monday nights from 7.30 p.m. – 8 p.m. in the church. It is open to all children who have made their First Holy Communion.

Every Wednesday- GROW – Community Mental Health Movement 7.00 pm in the Iona Pastoral Centre

Monday Rosary - ‘Return to Faith of our children and grandchildren’ : Mondays – 6 p.m Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Firhouse

Foundational Leadership Programme for Young Adults
October 2017 – March 2018  Email: evangelisation@dublindiocese.ie

Faith 4 Life - (Deepening the connection between Faith and Life)

Course 2: 2-3 December
Called to become…Centred on the Word of God
Tel. 91 837 3732 – Ext. 246/247 E: evangelisation@dublndiocese.ie 

BINGO
Tuesday 13 June – 7.30 pm
St. Colmcille’s Junior School
Tickets at door

TALENT SHOW GRAND FINAL
Wednesday 14 June – 7.30 pm
St. Colmcille’s Junior School
Ticket only event

Fr. Martin Paravookaran, O.Carm., P.P.

Fr. Paddy Smyth, O.Carm., Prior

Fr. Michael Morrissey, O.Carm.

Fr. Joe Mothersill, O.Carm.

email: knocklyonparish@gmail.com

Fr. Martin Paravookaran, O. Carm., P.P.

Fr. Michael Morrissey, O. Carm.

Fr. Paddy Smyth, O.Carm., Prior

Fr. Joe Mothersill, O.Carm.

email: knocklyonparish@gmail.com

Parish of St. Colmcille

Knocklyon

Monday – Friday: 10 a.m. 7 p.m.

Saturday: 10 a.m. 7 p.m. [Vigil]

Sunday: 9 a.m. 10 a.m. 11 a.m. 12.30 p.m. 7 p.m.

HOLY DAYS: 7 p.m. [Vigil]; 10 a.m. 11 a.m. 7 p.m.

LENT: 8.25 a.m. 10 a.m. 7 p.m.

BANK HOLIDAYS: 10 a.m. [No Evening Mass]

]]> http://www.knocklyonparish.ie/2016/01/mass-times/feed/ 0 http://www.knocklyonparish.ie/2012/03/14th-march-2012/ http://www.knocklyonparish.ie/2012/03/14th-march-2012/#comments Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:16:22 +0000 admin http://www.knocklyonparish.ie/?p=1320 penis

It was a wonderful weekend of sport on TV. Ireland showed some skill in the second half against Italy in the Six Nations Rugby, having played a pedestrian first half at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. But the real surprise was the performance of a young inexperienced English team against Wales in the same competition. It was a manly physical game, which Wales won on the stroke of full time. I only saw recorded highlights of the Open Match Play Championship in Arizona early on Sunday morning. The young NI player, McIlroy, played some extraordinary shots on the desert course. I watched the opening two holes of the final on Sunday night but had to quit due to sleepy eyes at 9.30pm. McIlroy was unable to reproduce his form and missed out on becoming No 1 in the World rankings. At 22 he has many years ahead of him.

Weekend ministry took me to DZVAiro on Saturday morning. The locals had done repair work on the dirt road by digging large scraws of grass or rushes and placing them in the many potholes. This time last year the road was almost impassable due to the heavy rains. The small community of about twelve people are always so welcoming.

I try and get in an early walk on Sunday mornings and be showered before Morning Prayer at 6.30am. That left me time to watch the golf highlights and be on the road for Nembaware by 10.15. A round trip of 110km, 70km on bad dirt road , takes its toll on ones energy. However, there is a large congregation with a strong male presence, which makes it very worthwhile. Homilies on such weekends are longer than usual as one tries to explain the significance of Ash Wed. and say something about the Temptations of Jesus. I was back in Rusape at 3.00pm just in time to phone home and hear how life is on the farm in the mild but rainy weather.

Spring has arrived in Ireland and it is most welcome. A quick snack of lunch and I was ready to watch a cracker of a soccer game between Arsenal and Spurs. It tore up the form book with Arsenal winning 5-2. That was followed by Liverpool and Cardiff in the Carling Cup Final, which went to extra time,120 minutes in all, penalties and a shoot out. Liverpool won eventually. NO time to watch the Oscars and Meryl Streep portraying the Iron Lady , Margaret Thatcher!

Fr Desmond is busy with the Nyazura project, clearing the site and digging the foundations as well as getting water from the local dam. NO JCB on site. All manual labour. It is a learning curve for the indigenous brethren as they had no road improvements made before the arrival of the broken stone for the foundations. The heavy truck got stuck and it took two days to have it released. Casual labour is always available e.g. there are men waiting outside the local hardware store in Rusape to unload asbestos or cement. Six of them unloaded six hundred 50kg bags of cement here last week. At the store they are paid $8.00 each . Here, they were paid $12.00 each as they had to carry the bags from the road into the parish hall and stack them fifteen bags high. Imagine carrying 100 x 50kgs(about 1 cwt) for $12.00!!!!

On Monday a man from the local hospital or health department came to spray the house. The chemical is sprayed on the walls and windows of rooms , which are closed for two hours. It kills mosquitoes, cockroaches flies etc. Admittedly, it is a bit late in the rainy season to have it done but better late than never.

I have been following, with some interest, the correspondence re: Children’s Hospital at the Mater Hospital site.

Once again, it shows the darker side of politics. Imagine spending 650 to 750 million Euro on a building with no room for expansion, which will be inadequate in fifteen years time. I have copied the well reasoned article below from the Irish Times plus a note on property prices.

With two outings to Mutare towards the weekend, I decided not to go and play golf on Monday. A day at base was restful.

I will register for the concluding Mass of the Eucharistic Congress as an accredited priest through the Provincial Office. Even have accessed flights and prices for my travel home and return in September.

Love and best wishes.

NB A note on property: And, of course, a strong possibility is that prices might continue to fall. According to the Central Statistics Office, prices fell by 16.7 per cent in 2011 alone, and there are no signs of an improvement anytime soon. “This year will be very difficult again,” says McGarry-Murphy.

It was a weekend filled with liturgy and sport. An outstation on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A long distance, Nzvimbe, and two local ones about 20km away. Rusape was blessed with about 50mm (2inches) of rain from Wed. to Sunday pm, while some places on either side got none. The rainy season normally continues until mid March. That is important not only for the crops but also for the water table. We live in hope.

I have been preaching on elements of Mark’s gospel for a few weeks so the homily preparation was easy. I had left my notes and Sunday Missal at Clare Farm outstation two weeks ago so it was just as well I had a good grasp of what I wanted to say.

Rugby and soccer dominated the sports viewing at the weekend. The rugby Six Nations got off to a dull start on Saturday with a poor game between England and Scotland. France and Italy provided a little more skill.

Ireland bit the dust against Wales on Sunday pm. The better team won. A past pupil of Terenure sent me the result, of the Senior Cup game, Terenure v. Blackrock: “I thought I would email you on the day of a great Terenure win over Blackrock. The final score was 17-15 but they were a little bit better than that – some wonderful backs and real battling forwards who were on the back foot for the 1st half but got on top in the second. Like 1980! Was a beautiful day for a match and a great crowd for a kick off at 2.30 on a Friday afternoon. Some future stars playing and most of them were 5th years. There were only three 6th years and there was even one from 4th year.

I hope all is well with you and that you are keeping up with the news online. I met Fr. Kilmurray and he was surprised when I said my stomach was sick with nerves before the game.

It was good to see some familiar names – Bagnal, Weakliam, Murphy, O’Neill- sons or relations of those who played in the late 70’s and won Senior Cup medals. Perhaps, there’s a cup in this team!

SKY TV informed us of Super Bowl Sunday but our focus was on rugby and soccer.

Monday was a beautiful day for golf, plenty of sun accompanied by a good breeze. We had an enjoyable outing.

I had a sick call to Ziweya outstation on Tuesday pm. The parish chairman approached me on Saturday after Mass but I had no communion left. I promised to be there at 2.30on Tuesday. He was waiting by the roadside. At the church, we picked up three more men and drove a short distance to the homestead. Some of the confraternity women were waiting outside the house. I recognised Clement from church. A small gentle man wasting away with cancer. Nine men packed into the little kitchen or living room while the women sat on the floor at the entrance or outside. Clement understands English. I introduced the ceremony, blessing him with holy water. The men and women sang hymns and said spontaneous prayers of the faithful, while I administered the sacraments. Clement is ready for his final journey supported by the prayers of the community and the church’s sacraments.

Work on the church porches is completed. They look fine and will give protection to the entrance doors as well as to people entering and leaving the church during the rainy season. All that remains is that we put the new doors in place. Another small project completed.

I’m at the lap top early as a rat was chewing on the ceiling board or rafters at 4.30am. He seemed to have great energy. I’ll leave some poison for him today so he can have his last supper.

On the positive side, electricity and water supplies are much improved with only the occasional cut in power.

Looking forward to a better performance from the Irish rugby team this weekend in Paris.

Love and best wishes.

It was good talking to the folks in Ballinlig on Sunday even if the weather report was gloomy – rain with a forecast of snow and frost. However, the agricultural news was good. When I checked the thermometer in the corner of the quadrangle after the phone call it was 28C. I had watched Djokovic and Nadal slog out the Australian Tennis Open earlier in the day and arrived in Mutare as Djokovic lay prostrate on the court having won at 5.00pm. The Irish Times described the game as an epic. The game lasted almost six hours. Both players were exhausted and had to sit during the speeches leading up to the presentations. A worthy final in the Rod Laver arena.

We had a liturgical marathon on Saturday in Mutare. Six deacons were ordained at the Cathedral, five for the Diocese and one Spiritan/Holy Ghost. The procession began at 10.20am and the Mass concluded at 1.20pm. Even though the Cathedral has good ventilation, a very high ceiling and plenty of windows and doors, it was very hot in the sanctuary. At one stage I just had to get up and walk around for some minutes. It was followed by a simple lunch of chicken/beef and rice or sadza. There were stalls or assembly points in the grounds, where the food was distributed to the entire congregation of about six hundred. I was on my way back to Rusape by 2.40pm with my parishioners, in time to see the final part of the Liverpool v Man. United soccer game, which resulted in a Liverpool win. That was followed by a good brisk half hour walk and a cold shower, which refreshed the body. My daily exercise, morning and evening, is well in place. I feel the better for it.

Sunday began well with a full church at St. Joseph’s. The weather could not have been better. The people were in celebratory mood. As it was the fifth Sunday of the month we had no outstations. I was able to watch the tennis game without interruption, enjoy the skill, stamina and good behaviour of two champs. What a contrast with the attitude and bad manners of Conners and McEnroe some decades ago, when they questioned every decision by the umpires. Electronic equipment has made life easier for the referee.

Weather was beautiful on Monday. A rusty performance on the first nine was followed by some good holes on the second nine. A tasty evening meal of beef at the Priory with a few glasses of South African Nederburg 2010 was a good way to celebrate my 73rd birthday.

It was refreshing to read that the Fleadh(Irish music and dancing) is to be held in Derry this year. A sign of growing political maturity on all sides.

I recently received a message from Marie Healy (Maxwell), whose mother, Alice Reilly(Maxwell) was a first cousin of mine. Her brother, Paddy, was a Columban missionary priest, and was killed by the Communists in 1950. She sent a copy of a letter from the Columbans in Dalgan Park together with an attachment from the Diocese of Chunchon, Korea, where Fr. Paddy ministered and is laid to rest. The attachment has about nine questions re: his family, formation years in seminary etc, which I will answer in due course to the best of my recollection. Obviously, the Diocese is beginning the process of beatification of the Korean martyrs, of which there were many during the Communist regime of the late 40’s and early 50’s.

Love and best wishes.

While on the way to Chikovore on Friday, I got a message that one of the outstation masses was cancelled due to heavy rain, where Mass is celebrated underneath a tree. I proceeded to the first station where only four adults were present. Yet they sang the Lord Have Mercy, the Gloria and some hymns around communion time. I was back on the same main road on Saturday for Clare Farm. The small thatched church was full, eleven men, eight women and the rest were children. A good celebration.

I was delighted to see Munster put on the style in the Heineken Cup Rugby game on Saturday evening or night. Along with their physical game they showed a lot of skill and are now top of the group with a home semi final at Easter. It was good seeing Padraig Harrington making a comeback at Fancourt in the Southern Cape. A poor finish on the 17th and 18th holes on Friday and Saturday cost him dearly. I did not see how he finished on Sunday.

St Simon’s and Padua had full churches on Sunday with energetic participation. The dirt road to Padua, 13km, is in very poor condition. The round trip of 106km is demanding.

Mutare had a lot of rain last week. Humidity was very high on Monday. The only bright spot in my golf game was a two club at the 11th par 3.

Stanley, the carpenter, came from Rusape to Mutare early on Tuesday morning. We went to the hardware stores to buy materials for the porches. It was both satisfying and frustrating. Some of the shops had given quotations the previous week for materials they did not have in stock. It meant retracing our steps on a number of occasions. After about three hours we had got most of the materials we needed. We bought Saligna doors(made from gum trees-eucalpytus), which should last a long time, if they are kept varnished. Maintenance is low on the list of African priorities.

The A Level results were published last week. Kriste Mambo and St. Joseph’s High School performed very well. Sadly, the Primary School teachers are on strike this week with the resulting disruption of the school programme. Teachers salaries are very low about $350.00 a month. In some secondary schools, parents augment the teacher’s salaries by voluntary contributions. It leads to a two tier system and basic inequality in the system.

I hope all is going well for the farmers with the lambing season.

Love and best wishes.

NB The following from a recent Irish Times is a good summary of what happened in Ireland from 2001 to 2011. It is the most honest presentation of Ireland’s situation that I have read in print:

It is worth remembering that the IMF-EU-ECB “intervention” in Ireland arises because Ireland went broke.

When a negative gap of more than €20 billion between State income and expenditure emerged in 2009, the public sector pay bill became an unavoidable target, given that it comprised a substantial component of State expenditure. Public servants had seen their annual incomes increase generously from 2001. Various rounds of benchmarking had resulted in pay awards of about 9 per cent, costing an additional €1.2 billion a year. The reforms on which benchmarking was supposedly contingent never materialised or were rejected by public servants. Instead of numbers reducing by 5,000, they increased by 38,000 in the five years after 2001.

Like the Normans, they were invited here, although they come bearing cash rather than weapons and they come to dig us out of a hole of our own making and not to drive us off to Connacht.

The impact of the current austerity on Irish society flows from choices made in Ireland by Irish governments. It was the democratically elected government of Ireland from 2002-2007 and the democratically re-elected government of Ireland from 2007 to 2011 that implemented the popularly endorsed policies which got us into this mess, not the ECB or the IMF or the European Commission.

Thanks for your message and the home news.

Gentle rains came to Rusape last weekend. Much needed for the crops.

The ANC, in South Africa, celebrated its Centenary the previous weekend. A huge gathering with President Zuma giving a lengthy speech. While much was said about the achievements of the ANC in gaining Independence, little was said about the level of violence and corruption in the country and the lack of basic education and health care. Teachers, who left Zimbabwe during the violence of the first decade of this century, left teaching posts in South Africa to do other work, including domestic work or educating the children of the better off South African families. The standard of education is very poor.

I forgot to mention in my last message that six Carmelite Sisters made their final professions on Jan 6th, at the Motherhouse in Mutare. The ceremony lasted two and a quarter hours. It was a marathon session in extreme heat with poor ventilation in the low ceiling church.

St. Simon’s church was built about thirty years ago. The doors, made of light panels, were exposed to the elements, extreme heat and heavy rains. With the advice of the local construction teacher and a carpenter we are planning to put porches on the double door entrances and install solid doors. I did the pricing in Mutare on Monday am. Timber, asbestos and steel supports are all expensive. The materials alone will cost about $2,000.00. It should be a solid job and add to the appearance of the church.

During my spare time I began reading “An Irish Reader in Moral Theology – The Legacy of the last Fifty Years edited by McDonagh and MacNamara. It is a collection of thirty nine essays, already published in various theological magazines, reaching to 469 pages. An interesting comment by McDonagh in his introduction:“ We had hoped to include some articles by moral theologian Sean Fagan S.M. but due to ‘circumstances outside our control’ this was not possible. There was last minute ecclesiastical interference in the publication of Volume 1, Foundations, which resulted in the second volume being delayed and printed by an alternative publisher. Volume 3 may appear next year?

The weekend ministry was leisurely and fulfilling. Mass at a small outstation on Friday while the thunder rumbled in the background. I was at St. Bernard’s on Sunday, celebrating the sacraments with old Ambrose and bringing him his monthly supply of groceries. The little church, being extended, was full to capacity with great participation. There were two visits to elderly women after Mass. Both were frail and fragile, worn out by hard lives.

I watched Leinster play Glasgow in the Heinken Cup on mid Sunday pm before setting out for Mutare. It was a dour game but with a good result for Leinster.

The weather and the course could not have been better for golf on Monday. Ideal for the game, which had its moments.

Love and best wishes.

The Baptism of Jesus brought the Christmas season to an end on Monday. I celebrated the feast of the Epiphany at Fatima outstation on Sunday. The dirt road was in very poor condition. The homily was an overview of the Christmas season. We opened the Christmas cake for the feast of the Epiphany in Rusape. I brought a wedge of it to the brethren in Mutare at the weekend. It tasted delicious.

A new school year began on Tuesday Jan 10th. The roads were busy with so many pupils going to boarding schools, some of them as young as nine or ten. Classes can be very large. In Kriste Mambo, they have two first year classes of fifty five pupils preparing for their O Levels in four years time.

Big news in Zimbabwe last week was the survival of an Australian bungee jumper, whose cord or rope broke as she jumped one hundred and twenty metres from the Victoria Falls into the Zambezi river gorge on New Year’s Eve. Crocodiles inhabit the area. The persons ankles are tied together during the jump, which made it difficult for the young woman to swim to the Zimbabwean side of the river, where she was rescued by the crew and some medical staff. About 150,000 people have made the jump over seventeen years.

While getting the tyres changed and the wheels balanced on my truck some weeks ago, the technician remarked that the steering knuckles were worn or loose. I bought the spare parts in Toyota on Monday am at a cost of $478.00 and had them installed by the regular garage. Toyota charge $60.00 an hour for labour while the other garage charges $42.00. The wear and tear on the dirt roads caused the problem. You can imagine what the rough surfaces do to ones back!

About an inch of rain fell in Mutare on Sunday pm. The level of humidity on Monday was oppressive and not conducive to good golf. The perspiration rolled off us but we completed the eighteen holes.air track tumbling

I was glad to read in the Irish Times that farm incomes had increased substantially in 2011. Long may it continue. A pity that the news of increase in income was marred by the fact of twenty two fatalities in farm related work.

Meryl Streep is portraying Margaret Thatcher in the film, The Iron Lady. I doubt if it will be on my list for summer viewing. One of my least favourite politicians. More alarming news from the UK is that dementia may begin as early as the mid forties rather than in the sixties. One medics comment was as follows: “ What is good for the heart is good for the head as well.”

One of the projects for the coming months is writing the story/history of the outstations. I provide the note books and biros, while Fr. Desmond has written a list of questions for the project. Hopefully, it will be completed by Easter, which gives them three months.

Love and best wishes

It was good talking to all the family in Ballinlig on Christmas Day and in the New Year and hearing that all were well. Michael, Marita and Aoife had the week off work while Joe and Martin were busy preparing for the lambing season in January.

I like the idea of Christmas Day falling on a Sunday and the first of Jan on the following Sunday. It reduces the work load and does not interrupt our four week cycle of masses.

The few days in Harare were relaxing even if the weather was very hot. I got quite a bit of sun burn on the lower parts of my legs. We always wear shorts playing golf. It was our first outing at Borrowdale Brook, about half an hour?s drive from Mt. Carmel. The course is surrounded by bungalows and Spanish type mansions. Obviously built in better economic times. Hard to believe that such a place exists along side or not far away from so much poverty. For Seniors the green fees were only $5.00. The fairways, in places, were covered with white clover. Something I have never seen before in Zimbabwe. In other places, they needed a bit of maintenance. We played at Windgate on Wednesday, which was in excellent condition. We took the brethren from Mt. Carmel to nearby Borrowdale for lunch. The restaurants were packed. No booking. Consequently, service was slow but we were in no hurry except for one of the brethren, who is a slave to his watch.

I was glad to be back in Rusape before the downpour on Thursday pm. In typical tropical zones, it was accompanied by heavy thunder and lightning. The 102 mm rainfall was followed up by another 15mm on Saturday night. It is great for the crops except for those who have recently applied fertilizer. Much of it will be washed away.

I had a busy and long day on Sunday, going to St. Joseph?s at 7.30am and returning from St. Andrew?s at 3.00pm.

I brought some of the ?Seeds for Zim? to St. Andrew?s for a local family. After Mass I visited an elderly woman who has terminal cancer but is hanging in. Her speech is gone. She has arthritis in her hands and is unable to lift them to her mouth. I celebrated the sacraments with her and her elderly husband. From there, we made our way to Ambrose, the impaired man, who had prostate surgery over a year ago. He was sitting on the hard rock underneath the shade of his hut. We brought the monthly supply of groceries plus ten kg of maize seed and two 50kgs of fertilizer. The latter, a gift from our New York brethren. He was delighted. Santa had come to him. The maize, well cultivated, should produce about a tonne.

Driving on the wet dirt roads takes more of my energy than ministry. After the floods, some places are very difficult. It sometimes raises the question, how long more can I do this? By the time I return to base, have a shower and a good meal, the energy is restored and the question is put on the back burner for another day. Such was yesterday. I was back on the road for Mutare by 3.45, getting in on time to watch Man City lose an important Premiership game of soccer against a lower ranked team, Sunderland.

BBC and SKY gave blanket coverage to London ringing in the New Year with spectacular fireworks, showing the world how well they can do things in preparation for the Olympics, not to mention the Queen?s Diamond Jubilee. Merkel and Sarkozy?s New Year messages indicate hard times ahead. When will it end??

We played golf in Hillside on Monday. The ground staff are cutting the rough. Hopefully, they will tend to the fairways in the coming days or weeks.

I weighed in on Jan 4th. The pounds or kgs had increased quite a bit from the end of November. However, I am encouraged by the words of my former Terenure College pupil, Dr Donal O?Shea, in a recent Irish Times article: ?It?s important to stand on the scales once a fortnight for adults and know your weight, and if you have a few pounds to lose after Christmas, lose them over the first four months of the year, not the first four weeks ? if you lose it over the first four weeks your body will put in place every mechanism it can to get energy back on board.? It makes good sense to me.

Love and best wishes to all for the Coming Year.

I hope this message finds you and yours well as Spring emerges in the West. Our poor old world is badly in need of Easter hope and joy. Ongoing economic uncertainty in the West plus the popular uprisings in Africa and the Middle East, not to mention nuclear fallout in Japan.

NATO management of the war in Libya is anything but convincing. It could go on for months.

Here, we are on the cusp of the dry/cold season. There is uncertainty regarding the elections. Armed soldiers roam the streets as the country celebrates Independence on April 18th.The physical presence of the army is a show of strength and a reminder of who is in charge. However, the recent popular uprisings in other places and the strong speech of Hilary Clinton after the removal of the ex leader in Ivory Coast should send warning signs to all tyrants and dictators, that their reigns could be short lived.

When such events happen, I?m reminded of Poet Laureate, Seamus Heaney?s lines in The Cure at Troy : ?Once in a lifetime / The longed-for tidal wave / Of justice can rise up / And hope and history rhyme.?

Or Kennelly:

Though we live in a world that dreams of ending that always seems about to give in something that will not acknowledge conclusion insists that we forever begin.
That is also the message of Easter.
Thank God, I?m feeling great, having lost about 3kgs in recent times. My aim is to lose a further 3kgs between now and mid July and face my GP with confidence in a slimmed down condition.
Wishing you and yours the peace and joy of the Risen Lord.

Love and best wishes to all.

I do hope Joe and Annette enjoyed their week in Spain. They went with a group, organised by Age Active Ireland. Michael was in Singapore on some training experience. He wrote on March 23rd: This Friday night I have to go to Galway(collecting for Lourdes pilgrimage with handicapped) and then I am back to Cork on Saturday night in order to fly out to Singapore on Sunday morning for work. I have to go to Singapore in order to train to enable me to release the product. It is a full weeks work. I am sure I will be hit by jet lag. Luckily, I will be travelling Business class. I have never had that experience before so I am sure it will be a more comfortable trip than in economy class. St Patrick’s day was pleasant and the weather held up to ensure all parades were well attended.

Summer time in Europe means that there is only one hour difference between Zimbabwe and the homeland. It is good for viewing evening sports. The European Cup in Soccer starts at 8.45 rather than 9.45pm.

It was another good weekend for Irish sport with twenty one year old, McIlroy, leading the pack at Augusta and Leinster beating Leicester at Aviva Stadium in Dublin in the Heineken Cup QF?s. A manly and skilful performance. While Aintree enjoyed brilliant weather for the English Grand National on Saturday, we were enduring the first blast of winter. I took old Sr. Thomas to St. Barbara?s Mission on Friday pm for an anniversary Mass for a family member on Saturday. The day was misty and wet. Parts of the dirt road were in poor condition. The 122km journey, 34km on dirt road, was taxing on energy. It rained heavily on Friday night. Rainfall this year is about 800mm/32inches. The temperature dropped from the mid C20?s to low teens on Saturday. I lit the fire in the TV room after breakfast for the first time this year and spent most of the day in the comfort of a timber fire.

The Sacred Heart Sodality had a weekend retreat here, given by one of the diocesan priests

There was no electricity from Friday night. We started the generator for the Grand National at 5.15. I have never seen Aintree looking so well with temperatures in the high teens or low twenties. A magnificent scene. With forty horses starting the four and a half mile race, it was great to be able to watch it live. Sadly , two horses died or had to be put down. The winner was suffering from dehydration and was unable to make it to the winner?s enclosure. He was doused with buckets of water to cool him off. Leinster provided some skilful and robust rugby for the home fans at 7.00pm, beating Leicester 17-10.

I had Mass at Fatima on Sunday followed by a home visit to a 93 year old woman, where we celebrated the sacraments. I made my way to Mutare in good time to watch the final round of the American Open at Augusta. McIroy, who had led for three days, went into the final round four shots ahead, fell apart at the tenth hole and never regained his composure. At twenty one he has many good years ahead of him.

An Irish Times report ran as follows: McIlroy will have to reflect on, to use an Americanism, a zany 45 minutes of golf which started on the 10th hole ? where he hit one tree with his drive and later another with his greenside recovery ? en route to a triple bogey and continued on into Amen Corner where he three-putted the 11th and four-putted the 12th before putting his drive on the 13th into Rae?s Creek.

Unbelievable, grotesque and bizarre to watch; but, on this course, far from unprecedented.

The catalyst for it all going wrong was probably that tee-shot on the 10th.

?I don?t think anyone has been over there in those cabins before,? McIlroy acknowledged of a shot which ricocheted off the tree?s trunk and came to rest between two cabins, known as Peek and Berckmans, which hardly any of us on the course knew existed. ?It?s going to take a few days, but I?ll get over it.?

This week saw the completion of the work by the plumber, the carpenter and the plasterer. That brings closure to sanctuary renovations at the outstations and renovations at St. Simon?s. Altar, ambo and chair are now in place at all our outstations.

The report on AIB losses, Euro10.4 billion in 2010, makes for sad reading and the in-debtness of the taxpayer for the mistakes of the Celtic Tiger era. Water charges and rates will be introduced in the coming years.

Love and best wishes.

1. What are the biggest challenges facing golf clubs?
2. Have you initiated any co-operation (equipment, personnel) with nearby clubs?
3. Has your club experienced any further fall-off/or stabilisation in membership for 2011 (please indicate percentage)?
4. What promotions have your club put in place to attract new members/retain existing members?

Answers:

1. Competing against the Nama golf industry and those in receivership with their unfair trading in green fees and services. Decrease in number of golfers both at home and visitors from Britain and further afield.
2. We have a group of eight golf courses and 10 hotels called Golf in the Heart of Ireland, which is for promotional purposes.
3. Due to the conservative style on which our club is run with no large banking debts and reduction in running costs we have been lucky to hold our own with regard to memberships for 2011.
4. We reduced our membership rates for 2011. The club received approval for the National Quality and Standards framework by F?ilte Ireland which enables large promotional exposure with F?ilte Ireland , and also a substantial website of the golf course with up-to-date promotions displayed to attract numbers.

Another month almost passed. The heat at the beginning of last week was oppressive. It was building up for the rains, which came at midday on Wednesday. We had four great afternoons of rain, which will have done the late maize crop a power of good. I did some preparation work on retreat material, Anger and Conflict Resolution, which I have in early May in Harare. I had a head cold at the same time. Phone contact was made with the people in Dzvairo on Friday. The roads were impassable due to the heavy rain. In a sense, I was relieved as I did not feel up to driving in such difficult conditions with a lingering head cold. Saturday was restful. It poured rain in the afternoon. I was so happy not to be out at the outstation. The quadrangle at St. Simon?s was almost overflowing with water. I had an easy Sunday with Eucharist only at Padua. The dirt road was much improved since my visit to Fatima six weeks ago. The church was packed. The people in great mood even if the rains had not been kind to them. Much withered maize was in evidence.

There was a bad outbreak of malaria in the Nyanga area, Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe, over the past couple of weeks. Hopefully, it doesn?t reach here.

The Moriarty Report on the allotting of a phone license to a guy with strong political affiliations has been published. The Tribunal cost millions of Euro. The law fraternity, barristers and lawyers, had a bonanza. While costing the taxpayer a lot of money, the Tribunals have named and shamed politicians and big business people. Some have even gone to prison

I was glad to read in the Irish Times that the Irish bishops are introducing the new Roman Missal at the end of November, 27th, on the first Sunday of Advent. Most of the changes affect the celebrant. There are minimal changes in the responses of the people. It is difficult to imagine that it took nine years to agree on a translation from the original Latin. Cardinal Pell, AB of Sydney, who chaired the committee, is quite a scholar but is a hardliner in theology. He would not be in favour of using inclusive language in the liturgy. However, on recently downloading and reading the post synodal apostolic exhortation on ?The Word of the Lord?, September 2010, I was surprised to see that inclusive language was used e.g. ?the unseen God from the fullness of his love, addresses men and women as his friends, and lives among them, in order to invite and receive them into his own company?.

The people of Japan live with the uncertainty of nuclear leaks from day to day, while the people in Libya must be looking forward to the end of the evil regime of Gadaffi. It may be slow in coming.

Only the remnants of my head cold remain. After taking it easy last week, I?m back to my daily walk schedule, morning and late afternoon. I played some mixed golf on Monday but felt good after the outing.

Love and best wishes.

Reading into the wealth of theological vocabulary the liturgy has to offer

JOHN McAREAVEY

RITE AND REASON: The new Missal texts are good

IN RECENT weeks I have been involved in explaining changes to the Roman Missal to various groups. I welcome this opportunity to explain the context of some of the changes.

The text of the Mass that is currently in use has served the church well. Many priests and people have used no other translation and, understandably, are attached to the rhythm and content of the Missal and many are unsettled by the prospect of change. However, for the congregation, there will not be many changes in the new text.

The decision of the Vatican Council to use the vernacular in the liturgy ushered in a new era: given that modern languages change, both in meaning or connotation, it is inevitable that liturgical texts will have to change from time to time.

In the past 40 years the limitations of the present text became apparent. During the work on the new translation I was often surprised that significant elements of the Latin text were simply not rendered in English. For example, the invocation of the Holy Spirit (epiclesis) before the words of institution of the Eucharist reads as follows:

Let your Spirit come upon these gifts to make them holy, so that they may become for us the body and blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.

The original Latin text includes the phrase ? Spiritus tui rore sanctifica ?, literally, ?bless by the dew of your Spirit?. ?Dew? is a metaphor with strong resonances in the Bible.

Dew was and is important in Palestine because it is at its maximum during the almost rainless four months of summer. Therefore, it is a vital source of water in a land and at a time when water is very scarce indeed.

As a figure of speech, it represents abundant fruitfulness ( Gen 27:28 ), refreshment and renewal ( Ps 110:3; Hos 14:5 ), what is beyond human power (Mic 5:7 ) and a silent coming ( 2 Sam 17:12 ).

But perhaps the most interesting and evocative use of ?dew? comes in Isaiah 26:16: ?Your dead shall live, their bodies shall arise. O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy! For your dew is dew of light and the earth will give birth to those long dead.?

?Your? dew here refers to God, not to the dwellers in the dust. The image seems to foreshadow the resurrection of the dead, with the dew of God?s light seeping into the darkness of the underworld.

This is why it is such a deeply biblical image of the Holy Spirit (?who raised Jesus from the dead?). With its combination of gentleness and power, the image fits well with the working of the Spirit involved at the epiclesis.

The proposed translation of this text is: Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray, by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall.

The Irish translation currently in use managed to convey the sense of the Latin text both accurately and in beautiful Irish: Naomhaigh, mar sin, na bronntanais seo le dr?cht do Spioraid . . .

Restoring the reference to ?dew? is not just about accuracy; it releases the Scriptural resonances of a potent image into the imagination and faith of those who will pray this text.

The challenge faced by the translators of the new text was to produce a text that was faithful to the original Latin and, at the same time, was suitable for worship today.

Many issues have been raised in recent weeks about elements of the proposed new text. Since last year the Church in Ireland has undertaken a programme of catechetical preparation to assist priests and parishes to adapt to the changes.

I believe that the new texts are good; they represent a development; they capture more of the wealth of theological vocabulary and, therefore, help us enter more fully into the riches of the liturgy itself.

I had an unusual experience on Tuesday last before returning to Rusape. The daughter of a former garage owner, where we had our trucks serviced, died at the age of 50. Fr. McGrath invited me to participate in the funeral service. A word commonly used here for any form of liturgy. The ceremony took place at the funeral home. I did a reading from Ecclesiasticus ?There is a time for everything? and a general prayer. The congregation, mostly white, were from the tobacco industry where Pam had an executive role in the export business of the industry. Fr. McGrath led the service with a few hymns and a homily. The ceremony reminded me of one I did in Fremantle for a drug addict , whose mother came from Mullingar. It was difficult to know if there was a faith community present. A kind of uneasy feeling.

On Wednesday, I drove to Harare hoping the join the Mashona Irish for a game of golf on St. Patrick?s Day. However my friends from NI informed me that the golf would not be played until Friday. My journey was not in vain as I collected altar breads from the Franciscan Sisters in Waterfalls, had afternoon tea with a Franciscan priest with whom I studied in Rome and exchanged the lap tops, I bought some months ago, for desk tops, which are more robust and better for training courses for youth. I played golf on my own at Windgate on Thursday morning, covering the first nine in just one hour. My second nine was slowed down by the presence of three ladies groups but I enjoyed the outing. I took three of the brethren to Da Eros for a leisurely nice Italian lunch to celebrate St. Patrick?s Day. I returned to Rusape in the late afternoon.

It was a great week for Irish sport. Irish horses winning six of the seven races on the opening day at Cheltenham and finishing the festival with thirteen winners. The best ever performance. News of President Obama?s visit to Ireland was announced at the White House. That with the Queen?s visit will make April/May special.

Ireland put in a brilliant performance against England in the Six Nations Rugby game at Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday, beating them 24-8. The score could have been higher. There were twenty thousand Brits present, hoping to win the Grand Slam. That is all six games in the championship. Ireland subdued them with full blooded opposition. No rendering of ?Swing low sweet chariot?. I stayed up late on Saturday night to watch France beat Wales.

The St. Josephs men?s confraternity(123) met at the weekend for their annual retreat. They come in from all the outstations. I gave some of them a lift on Sunday on my way to St. Bernard?s, where I visited Ambrose, celebrated the sacraments with him and gave him his supply of groceries. He seemed a bit subdued.

North Africa/Middle East is like a cauldron, ready to explode. I fear that Gadaffi will not go easily and that it may be a long haul for the coalition partners. ZANU PF held a large gathering in Mutare last Saturday, opposing the sanctions. No danger of a popular uprising here. Older people have too many memories of the brutality of the Liberation War.

Younger people experienced the beatings during the 2002 and 2008 election campaigns.

I enclose a copy of the talk given by the AB of San Francisco re: the new missal. It is quite good.

Mum?s anniversary is at the weekend.

Love and best wishes.

??????..O.Carm.,

NB an excerpt from cousin Sue?s letter on St. Patrick?s Day in San Franccisco..

We had a nice St. Patrick’s day at school. Our Irish cafeteria cook (the one that grew up in Mt. Argus parish, Dublin) made shepherd’s pie, colcannon, and scones for the faculty for lunch. We usually just bring food in a bag for school, so it was a very nice treat. The kids got their green jello and were also very happy. We had Friday off school, a kind of unexpected holiday due to some kind of glitch in the calendar the Archdiocese made for the schools last year. We all had one too many days so they gave us Friday off. It was such a treat to have that day. March is the only month of the year that has no three-day weekend holiday. Anyway, despite the horrific rain on Friday (there was even a tornado warning for San Francisco!) I went to see Kit(the last surving first cousin of my late father) and took her to lunch. She was as usual, bright and cheerful and completely lucid. She even insisted on driving(95 year old) in the horrible rain! She ate a good lunch, but told me she didn’t want to eat too much since she would be going out to dinner that night with a neighbor. She told me you sent her a long email and that she had not gotten through it all yet. She continues to be unbelievable.

Tuesday, 22nd, was Unity Day. Doctors were off. However, all shops/businesses were open with the exception of the banks. As a result, there were crowds at all the cash outlets, getting some money out for Christmas.I tried without success to get some money changed. Some shops will take Euro or Sterling and give a better rate of exchange than the banks. I bought a fine boneless Horseshoe ham, seven and a half kgs, about 15lbs.

I played golf with the brethren on Monday and Tuesday and enjoyed the outings. Ambrose was discharged on Wed morning. He was not very happy with the care or lack of it in the hospital. I took him and his son back to St. Simon’s for lunch before taking them out to their humble home in the bush. We provide him with some basic groceries, thanks to a donor in Dublin.

I celebrated the Vigil Mass and preached in St.Simon’s at 6.00pm. Christmas is not a big event in Zimbabwe.The church was about two thirds full. It was the same on Christmas Day in both St. Simon’s and St. Joseph’s. However, a full church gathered at the outstation, St.Andrew’s. A lot of people go to the country for Christmas, bring some gifts and take back some maize and other basics to sustain them in the weeks ahead. I took the theme from this year’s Liturgical Calendar: Reconciliation, Justice and Peace. Many Catholics buy a Liturgical Calendar or Guide for the readings at Sunday and weekday masses.They are well acquainted with the Bible. After Eucharist in St.Andrew’s, I gave a lift to an old couple. The man is 87 and walks 7km to church. He has about 2km to walk from where I drop him off. It was 2.30pm by the time I got back to St.Simon’s.Time to unwind before dinner.Ten of us, eight Carmelite sisters from local convent and farm, plus two of us, enjoyed a delicious meal of turkey, ham, vegetables and a few glasses of wine. Apple tart, custard and ice cream. A local white farmer’s wife gives us a nice rich fruit cake. It is almost like a plum pudding. I doused the Ballinlig plum pudding with local whiskey but it failed to light. Bad whiskey! We enjoyed it very much. St. Stephen’s Day. I had a memorial Mass in the location/settlement area for a 32 year old woman, a victim of AIDS, whose funeral I officiated at some time ago.

Communication wise, I had a frustrating time from Dec 23rd to 29th. Several good friends sent emails and attachments with pictures, music, reflections etc. They jammed the email access, with some messages coming in as often as nine times. The ordinary email phone access in Rusape was too slow to download the material. Thank God for broadband. They have radio broadband in Mt. Carmel. I was able to clear the back log in a few minutes. Good to be back in contact with you and the outer world ..

We had a good Christmas. Sunday 27th was the Feast of the Holy Family. I garnered a few thoughts from Pope Paul V1′s reflection: Holy Family at Nazareth, place of prayer, gentleness and work. I had mass at St. Simon’s. The church was packed. The folks who had gone to the rural area had returned.

It was a real struggle for them, as transport was not able to deal with the crowds waiting patiently for hours to travel home.

Next stop Nembaware, 74km each way, with a little over fifty on the dirt road. As it had not rained for over a week , I was able to take the normal route. Once again, the church was packed. The locals had carried out the plan for the sanctuary, with altar, ambo and chair nicely constructed in local stone. A teenage builder had done the work assisted by many locals.The pointing between the stones could be a little sharper. I congratulated them on the fine work. Another sanctuary completed.

Instead of going to Mutare on Monday 28th, three of us went to Claremont Golf Course between five and six thousand feet above sea level. The scenery is spectacular with the course surrounded by the Nyangan Hills. The course manager apologized for the state of the greens. The broken down lawn mower was being repaired in Mutare so the greens had not been cut for the Christmas weekend.Green fees were $5.00, caddie fees $5.00 plus tip. Nyangan fresh trout and French fries with three soft drinks and tea for three, amounted to $19.00. Great value.

We returned to Rusape for evening meal.The smoked Horseshoe boneless Ham tasted terrific. What was left over, we sent up to the novices. There is a lot of carving on a seven and a half kg ham.

Fr Paul Horan and I made the two and a half hour journey to Harare on Tuesday 29th.,with the intention of staying until Saturday, Jan 2nd. Each of us had some business to do. We combined that with some golf.

Mt. Carmel Student House was built in the 50′s as an orphanage by the Nazareth Sisters. It was acquired by the Carmelites in the early 90′s, renovated and extended. It sits on about four acres of land, some of which is used as a vegetable garden and the rest as lawn with two tarmac tennis courts. Fr. Louis, a French Canadian, keeps the place spick and span. It is a very relaxing environment. Windgate Golf Course is only fifteen minutes drive. We played there on Wed.morning.

With love, best wishes and God’s blessings on all of you for 2010.

We got news on Thursday last that the father, of the young lady who had graduated recently, had died suddenly. He had done the translation for me at the Mass of thanksgiving for her graduation on the previous Saturday. He was a primary school teacher in St. Joseph’s and had been on sick leave for sometime. The funeral Mass was at his home in Vengere on Thursday evening. The body was then taken to Gurure his home rural area. It is a custom here for people to return to their area of origin to be buried. A big shock for all the family.

Monday this week brought the news of Fr.Mulcahy’s death R.I.P.The oldest Carmelite in Ireland and a revered character.We offered Mass for him at the Priory on Tuesday morning.

The week end was busy. At long last we had the blessing of the church at Nzvimbe.

The building was well advanced when I had to leave hurriedly in June 2008 during the violent election campaign. After returning in September 2009, it took some time to settle in and pick up where I had left off. There was building and painting work to be done at St.Simon’s for the ordination of two Carmelites and painting at St.Joseph’s for the Confirmations in October. The floor, ramp and Blair toilets at Nzvimbe were completed in due course. Transport of cement on the dirt roads during the rainy season is a major problem.Saturday, May 8th, was blessing day.

Two open trucks and two pick up trucks left Rusape at 9.00am with about one hundred people from St.Simon’s and St. Joseph’s on board. Conditions were ideal. Clear clue sky with temperature about 20C. The 80km journey took about two hours as we navigated the uneven dirt roads.Parishioners from a local outstation, St. Anthony of Padua, arrived either by foot or the elders on a pickup truck.

The ceremony began at midday with all the people assembled outside, facing the church entrance. Bishop Muchabaiwa led the prayers, followed by the blessing of the outside of the church, then the interior when the entire congregation entered.

The church, 25x15meters, was full. The combined choirs were in great voice. A beautiful celebration of the Eucharist. I offered Mass for all who had contributed in any way to the construction and completion of this sturdy building over the past five to six years.

RusapeThe locals provided food,sadza(ground maize) and mashona chicken, for the entire congregation.Mashona chicken are free range in contrast to broilers.The people who travelled with us from Rusape for the ceremony could not believe that we would go so far,160km round trip, to celebrate Mass on a monthly basis.

We were on the journey back to Rusape by 3.30pm with grateful hearts for all that has been achieved.

I had to cover much of the same journey on Sunday as I went to celebrate Eucharist at Fatima outstation.

The local news on TV is very parochial.Much time is given to what the Zanu politicians have to say. Road accidents are another daily feature. During the close of Holy Week and the end of Easier Week over one hundred people died on the roads. As I returned from Mutare on Tuesday p.m. there was debris near the junction of the Nyanga Road exit at the beginning of Christmas Pass. I learnt later on the news that a speeding bus had run into a parked truck on a wide and straight patch of road. Five people were killed and thirty eight injured.On Wednesday 12th, one of our elderly priests, Fr.Toner, was driving on Seke Road, near Hatfield. Harare when his side of the car was struck by a small commuter bus.He has five broken ribs and is unconscious at the time of writing. It seems that he was attempting a U turn on a major road.

Love and best wishes to all.

Fr Paul Horan has just attached some photos of the blessing of the Church in Nzvimbe. I’m availing of the opportunity to send a message of thanks to all the people who have supported this project and especially the parishioners in Knocklyon.

The building was well advanced when I had to leave Rusape hurriedly in June 2008 during the violent election campaign. After returning in September 2009, it took some time to settle in and pick up where I had left off. The floor, ramp and toilets were completed in due course. Saturday, May 8th, was blessing day.

Two open trucks and two pick up trucks left Rusape at 9.00 am with about one hundred people from St. Simon’s and St Joseph’s on board. Conditions were ideal. Clear clue sky with temperature about 20C. The 80km journey took about two hours as we navigated the uneven dirt roads.Parishioners from a local outstation, St. Anthony of Padua, arrived either by foot or the elders on a pickup truck.

The ceremony began at midday with all the people assembled outside, facing the church entrance. Bishop Muchabaiwa led the prayers, followed by the blessing of the outside of the church, then the interior when the entire congregation entered.

The church, 25x15meters, was full with the combined choirs in great voice. A beautiful celebration of the Eucharist. I offered Mass for all who had contributed in any way to the construction and completion of this sturdy building over the past five to six years.

The locals provided food,sadza(ground maize) and mashona chicken, for the entire congregation.

We were on the journey back to Rusape by 3.30pm with grateful hearts for all that has been achieved.

May the Good Shepherd reward all who are good to us.

Love and best wishes.

Bob Kelly O.Carm.

1. The beginning and location:
Nzvimbe church is about 80km south of Rusape off Dorowa Murabinda Road: The church started in 1994 with only four members:Mr. and Mrs. Mabika, Mr. and Mrs. Mushori.

Fr Michael Leonard (Killaloe Diocese,Ireland) was the first priest to visit this small station.He introduced catechism lessons through Mr. B. Mudziwapasi, who is an ex teacher in the area.The lessons proved good and a after a while, twenty eight people were baptized. Nine couples were married in church. From there the church grew.

Later on, came Fr Simplisio Manyika O.carm., and Fr Michael Cooney(Killaloe Diocese, Ireland). The latter introduced Fr Bob Kelly O.Carm., to our station in September 2001

2.Request for a church:
In 2004, after ten years, a new committee with Mr. B.Mudziwapasi as chairperson, Mr. E.Mushori, secretary and Mr. S. Munodawaca,treasurer was formed.

In March 2004, Fr. D.Bvirakare and Sr. Thomas……advised the committee to write an application to Fr Bob Kelly, through the chairperson Mr. H.Ndorwi of St.Simon Stock Parish, Rusape.The application was accepted.

3. Building of the Church:
In 2006, the chairperson Mr.Mudziwapasi was called to Rusape for the good news of building the church.Church members supplied bricks. Fr.. Bob bought the materials required.I am very much pleased with the quality of the building work. It took almost one and a half years to complete this beautiful building. Everyone is now very happy. Thanks to Rusape Town Council and our Councillor, Mr. R. Mushori,who assisted in the pegging of the church site and area. Mr. Mushori and his family are also church members.

4.Comments:
First and foremost, I , the Chairperson,on behalf of the church members would like to Thank God for this great gift to us. Secondly, I would like to thank Fr.Bob Kelly for providing the materials for us. May God bless him. I don’t want for forget to thank the following people for their input:Mr.H Ndorwi for forwarding our application to Fr.Bob. The first builder, Mr.Magoto, who did a nice job.Mr. Chirariro who did the roofing.Mr. Gwandingwa who made the church plan. Mr. C.Mutambira, a church member, who did most of the finishing:plastering, floor and sanctuary including altar, ambo and chair. We also added a toilet to the plan with all the cement provided by Fr. Bob.

5. The End:
I am very pleased to let you know that the church was blessed and officially opened on 08th May, 2010 by Bishop Alexio Muchabaiwa of Mutare Diocese.

Compiled by
Mr. B Mudziwapasi(Chairperson).
08/05/2010.

Glad to hear the farmers are selling off the lambs. The combination of rain and heat should bring good growth to the pastures. Lucky the stone came in the window behind you.

Another month and time moves on swiftly.

A weekend of different experiences. I was booked for a memorial Mass on Saturday at midday, which turned out to be a mass of thanksgiving for a graduation.A young lady from the settlement area, Vengere, had graduated with a B.Sc. in agricultural science.The family arranged Mass at the home. Her twin brother is in fourth year of Medical School. How a family in such humble circumstances could manage to send two of their children to College, while a third is at second level, is amazing. It gives some hope.The young lady,Suzan, is about to start a Master’s degree later in the year.

Leinster went down tamely to Toulouse on Saturday p.m. in the Heineken Rugby Cup semi final.The opposition had too much muscle and strength.

Sunday, I had Mass at St.Andrew’s. I gave a lift to a six/seven year old orphan girl back to her grandmother’s place.It is a very sad scene. Her parents died. She was placed at the orphanage in Rusape. An aunt came and took her to her home. Within a short time the aunt died. She was left in the grandmother’s care along with a number of other orphans. She goes back to the orphanage during school holidays and cries her heart out when returned to her grandmother. For legal or beaurocratic reasons, it is not possible for her to return permanently to the orphanage.So sad.

The outstation is well organized with good local leadership.I gave a lift to an old lady who has arthritis. The church was full with great participation by the congregation.After Mass, I gave the old lady a lift back to her home and retraced my journey to give an eighty seven year old and some others a lift to their drop off points. The old gentleman was so grateful. He finds the seven kms walk each way a bit much. As a result of the recent heavy rains, the dirt road to his place was very badly broken with gullies and big stones in some places.Much care needed in driving.

I made my way to Mutare on Sunday mid afternoon, hoping to watch Munster play Biarritz in the Heineken Cup semi final..

Unfortunately, the game was not shown live but was put on at 1.00am on Monday,while the result was announced on the 9.00pm news. Monday’s Irish Times brought the news of McIlroy’s victory in golf :GOLF: “ON THE eve of his 21st birthday and ahead of this week’s Players Championship, Rory McIlroy produced an imperious final round 62 to claim his first win on the PGA Tour at the Quail Hollow Championship in Charlotte, North Carolina.

But yesterday’s spellbinding final round 62 upped the ante to a completely new level as he closed out his first win in America with a 15 under par 273 winning aggregate. He also lowered the course record by two shots.” A great performance by the young man!

I got a tummy chill at the weekend, sat between an open window and a door after perspiring on the journey from Rusape to Mutare. Was unable to play golf on Monday. My energy was very low. I took it easy at the Priory.

Mary Robinson paid a visit to Zimbabwe last week in her role of empowering women.The group was addressed by Mugabe. Robinson was very circumspect in her TV interview, saying “she noticed some tensions in the country.”

Love and best wishes.

It was good talking to the folks in Ballinlig on Sunday and hearing that some of the lambs were ready for sale and the cattle were being let out to pasture.

On Friday last, there was heavy rain in the late afternoon accompanied by strong winds. The temperature dropped. Saturday was similar with rain without wind. I had a memorial Mass out at a family home in Tsanzaguru. The table was set up on the verandah at the front of the house.However, as the rain increased, we had to move inside.The living room was crowded as well as the adjoining rooms. We got through and left immediately after Mass.As usual, the women were cooking the meal out of doors during Mass.

RusapeSunday was dry but very cold. The temperature in the quadrangle was at 20C but the harsh cold wind was biting. I had Mass at St. Joseph’s. The people were slow in coming. Many of the women had gone to Mutare by bus for a confraternity meeting at St.Joseph’s Sakuva. About a thousand gathered from the missions and out stations from Friday p.m. until Sunday morning. They love those gatherings as it is one of the few opportunities when they get away for a weekend.I had an easy weekend.

I went to Mutare on Sunday afternoon in time to watch Chelsea demolish the opposition in the English Soccer Premiership.My truck was booked in for a ten thousand km service on Monday morning. The cost $325.00US. Inflation is running high.

Monday was ideal for golf. The first time since last September that I did not use sun block.The ground was easy on the feet after the rain and the fairways and rough had been cut.Tees and greens were also in good condition. My first nine holes were good.

Following the Icelandic ash, Europe is now in crisis with the Greek economy in freefall. One wonders where it will end. We had our last committee meeting on the Child Protection Document on Tuesday. Thank God, our work is done. A meeting of all the clergy in the Diocese will be held on May 11th to finalise the document. It will them be printed and reviewed after a year.

We have reached saturation point on the coverage of the British election on SKY TV. The media are promoting the debates by the three leaders as if they were the best TV in the world.The result may be a hung parliament with no party getting an overall majority.

Love and best wishes to all.

How lucky you are not to be travelling at this time of ash!

Last week went quickly as I spent Tuesday working with the committee on the Child Protection Document. I picked up a chest cold which was reluctant to let go but which lowered the energy level.Class with the prenovices on Wed. was leisurely as two of them were away on a church music course. We finished the morning by collecting a load of fire wood from the Carmelite Sisters Novitiate for the Sisters in Rusape.With the onset of the cold season, a fire will be necessary in the near future.We are at the end of the rainy/hot season. We had an inch of rain today, Tuesday, 20th. The days are shortening, with light from 6.00am until 6.00pm.

The weekend also was leisurely as I had no outstation on Saturday and only Mass at St..Simon’s on Sunday, which was Independence Day. I took the opportunity to quote from the Mugabe’s speech of thirty years ago” The wrongs of the past must stand forgiven and forgotten. The people of Zimbabwe should strive to adapt themselves intellectually and spiritually to the reality of political change and relate to each other as brothers bound to one another by a bond of national comradeship.”The opposite has been the experience of the people. Almost twenty thousand were put to death in Matebeleland during the period after Independence, 1980.The Fifth Brigade, as it was called , were trained by the North Korean Communists.

This time he was back to his usual self of denouncing the US, Europe and of course his old enemy, Britain. Nothing changes. The blaming game is alive and well. Not much to celebrate after thirty years of destructive government policies. Recovery seems even further away than in the developed world.

There was a gathering of Cana/Charismatics groups at the Emmaus Spiritual Centre,Rusape. It is difficult to distinguish one from the other.They had sessions from Friday until Sunday p.m.. Monday was a bank Holiday for Independence.

Love and best wishes.

Thanks for message and the prayers.Glad to hear that all went well at Lourdes and that the farmers have spread the fertilizer. The rise in temperature and the rains should boost growth after a late start.

The relaxed and enjoyable days in Harare were followed by a busy weekend. We drove from Harare to Rusape on Thursday am. Friday I was on my way to Nzvmbe. It was good to see the locals had completed the cement floor of the church and built a nice ramp at the entrance. The Blair toilet was half built. It is a dry toilet with a chimney which is closed at the top. Any flies that go into the toilet usually go up the chimney and get trapped. This prevents many infections. There were four toddlers for Baptism. A lot of driving in two days;two hundred kms from Harare to Rusape,160km to Nzvimbe and back. Half of the latter on dirt road. Even though I was tired, I stayed up to view Leinster defeat Claremont in the Heineken Cup Rugby game, 29-28. It was a very physical encounter.

There was no public water supply last week and no electricity from 6.00am until 10.30pm on Friday. I went to the Carmelite Sisters farm to collect twenty containers of spring water on Saturday morning. Ziweya is an outstation about 20km out of town.The locals were slow in coming. The paper work for baptisms, e.g. date of birth, parents’ names were not written up. I had to postpone the baptisms until the next visit. When I returned to St.Simon’s there were two Marymount sisters waiting for me. The gear box in their truck had collapsed. They needed a lift to Mutare. We had a quick lunch and set out on the 220kms round trip.More driving! 100km=60miles.

More rugby on Saturday pm. Munster played Northhampton at home in Limerick. It was a great game with the home side winning comfortably in the end.

I had a double header on Sunday.I had celebrated group baptisms in St. Joseph’s at the Easter Vigil. The homily was on the readings of the Sunday. My second stop was Tsanzaguru about 25km. There were twenty five for baptism, the oldest a 53 year old man down to a baby. The paper work was well done. A homily on baptism on this occasion. It was after 2.00pm when I returned.The rain poured down as I drove to Mutare in mid afternoon.

The golf course was sodden after the heavy rains. I reverted to some of my bad habits of driving into the rough. On reflection, I think I was tired after all the driving of the previous weekend. I had also picked up a bit of a chest cold.The temperature changes rapidly from high twenties to low teens after the heavy rains.I stayed on in Mutare to work with the committee on the document “Child Protection Policy”.

Love and best wishes.

I hope this message finds you well as we are united in celebrating the Paschal Mystery during this Easter Triduum.

Last week was busy but informative. The three day Seminar ran from 8.30am to 4.00pm. Afterwards, I went to Hillside Golf Club each day for a forty minute brisk walk with one of my Irish confreres. It was good to see the grounds staff cutting the rough, shaving the greens and the tee boxes.The course should be in better condition for our next outing.The Club had borrowed or leased a stronger tractor to cut through the dense rough.While it was doing the job, it was also emitting a wave of black smoke. The Club’s own tractor, an old Ferguson 35( about thirty or forty years old )was not up to pulling the power driven cutter. As the rainy season comes to an end, this will be the last major grass cutting exercise at the Club.

The Seminar ended on Thursday at 4.00pm A committee of six was formed to produce a document on Child Protection before the end of May.I reluctantly allowed my name to go forward. It will mean a number of meetings to put shape on what we discussed and agreed.Fortunately, DOMCAP(Diocese of Mutare Catholic Aid Programme )will fund the project and provide secretarial services.

I received an email from the travel agents in Harare informing me of a change in my travel plans. Instead of flying out on the night of June 23rd, I will now fly out in the morning and arrive in Gatwick at 6.00pm, when Aer Lingus flights have gone. I will overnight in Gatwick. No big deal. Anything is better than passing through Johannesburg during the Soccer World Cup.

This is a beautiful time of the year in Zimbabwe as the temperature eases downwards to mid 20C(70F) during the day and about 8 or 10C at night. Limitless blue sky is the order of the day.

Africans love processions etc. Palm Sunday allows them to express themselves in movement and song. I was at Padua outstation 56km(35 miles) from Rusape. The faithful gathered under two huge trees, the school assembly area, where there were rows of small walls for seating. I did the blessing of the palms and a short homily. We processed about 200meters to the church, while the congregation waved their palms, sang and ululated. The passion was read by three young men. I had a story about a young French nobleman, from a background of privilege, Eugene de Mazenod, who entered a church in the south of France about two hundred years ago on Good Friday. He gazed on the crucifix and prayed. He was overcome by a realisation of God’s mercy and God’s special love for the poor. In the south of France, at that time, the people were poorly educated. They did not understand the language of the Church or the Government. Eugene decided to found an Order:The Oblates of Mary Immaculate to minister to the people in their own language, a hybrid French, a dialect disdained by the educated and upper classes.

I was on the road to Mutare on Sunday p.m. to play golf on Monday and to celebrate the Chrism Mass on Tuesday. For some months, I was driving off the tee far to the left, often into the rough or into the trees. I decided to have a lesson with the professional. He took me for a half hour on Monday at 10.00am. I had developed some bad habits, which may take some time to correct. The lesson was worthwhile.

It is 2.30pm on Tuesday 30th March. I have just returned to the Priory in Mutare from the Chrism mass at Danganbvura, a settlement area about ten km out of town.

The bishop spoke for forty six minutes!

I offered Mass for aunt Oliver Joseph and will offer Mass for Dad on Holy Thursday. Twenty five years have passed since his death.

Love and best wishes for a blessed Easter.

Thanks for your message and the news that the farmers are selling off some of the cattle from the sheds. It will ease the pressure on the silage and the grass when the rest are let out.

Not a great St. Patrick’s Day or week. A poor performance by the Irish horses at Cheltenham. A rather dismal display by Irish rugby team against Scotland in Croke Park. The Pope’s letter to the Irish Church at the weekend. Not much to lift one’s spirit.

Weekend ministry was fulfilling. I had planned to visit an old person in the bush on Thursday last but the rain poured down. On Saturday am I went with Sr.Thomas. There were three people in the house. Two in their 80′s and a lady in her 60′s, who has foot or leg problems. I had visited the latter’s mother in June 2008, the Sunday before I had to leave. Her mother died shortly afterwards.They were very grateful for the visit. After lunch I made my way to Clare Farm, 45km on the road to Mutare.The little thatch roofed church is very basic but the small group of people are faithful. It was my first time there since my return in September. They were very welcoming.

There was a choir competition in Chinmanimani about four hour bus drive from Rusape on Saturday. The combined choirs of St. Simon’s and St. Joseph’s had been practicing for some weeks. They came ninth out of twenty and were disappointed with the results.

I was looking forward to the last rugby game and victory against the Scots in Croke Park on Saturday p.m.. Very disappointing. Too many basic mistakes.Difficult to explain after two good games against Wales and England.

The St. Josephs’ men confraternity gathered at St.Joseph’s Church for their annual weekend retreat. About one hundred turned up from the outstations. I gave eight men and their luggage a lift to St.Bernard’s on Sunday morning. After Mass, I visited Ambrose nearby and celebrated three sacraments with him. He was in grateful mood for everything he had received.

We had a three day seminar on Child Protection in the Pastoral Centre, Mutare from March 23rd to 25th. It was sponsored and organised by Catholic Relief Services.The facilitator was a Methodist. She was very competent with a mixture of input and group work. Sex and sexuality are taboo subjects in Zimbabwe. However, all kinds of abuse: physical, emotional,sexual and neglect, are common in families and by members of the extended families.Orphans, in particular, are highly vulnerable.

The news of Bishop Magee’s resignation being accepted by the Vatican came on the evening news of Wed. 24th. Of course, he should have resigned last year when it was clear that he had not cooperated fully with the investigation into two cases of clerical abuse in his diocese.

Tomorrow,March 26th, is Mum’s anniversary. I will offer Mass for her at the Priory before returning to Rusape.

Love and best wishes.

A report by the International Red Cross and UNICEF, on SKY TV, March 11th, painted a grim picture of food and other shortages in Zimbabwe. It is estimated that 2.8 million people are hungry and suffering from malnutrition – a high percentage of these are women and children. A third of children are orphans. The year ahead will be difficult as the maize crop has failed due to the drought. It was stated that HIV/AIDS patients need to eat well daily, otherwise the medication has a detrimental effect. The New Zealand cricket team has cancelled their visit to Harare because of an outbreak of cholera. The matches may be played elsewhere.

This message brings my best wishes for St. Patrick’s Day and Easter. I hope it finds you and yours well after the long severe winter. I keep up to date with the Irish news courtesy of the Irish Times News Digest. According to the economists, the turn around in the economy may be slow in coming.The turn around of trust in politics, banking and church leadership may be even slower. It is a painful time.

I have been unable to keep up to date with Schools’ rugby results as the Irish Times does not seem to have the same coverage as in the past.

The following is an account of my pastoral and other activities since Christmas

With love and best wishes.

Bob Kelly O.Carm.

At long last the tropical rains have come. I was in Denzva for Mass on Friday,where there is a temporary thatch roof supported by light poles. It is like an umbrella.We had just reached the truck at about 2.30pm when the heavens opened. It rained constantly from then until midday on Monday. The reservoir/dam, which had been very low, is now overflowing but our water supply is sporadic and uncertain. Not enough pressure to fill the tank, which is about fifteen feet high. It is back to the bucket and sponge instead of a shower.

I had a feast of rugby on Friday night and Saturday evening. Ireland left it late to beat England but it was a good victory.Three tries in any game is a good score. Sunday was a busy and long day with mass at St.Joseph’s at 8.00am and at Nembaware 12.00 noon.It took one and a quarter hours to drive the 54km(about 35 miles) journey, half of it on a very slippery dirt road. There were small numbers at mass in both places. I got back to Rusape by 2.45, had a quick lunch and set off in the rain to Mutare. My neck and shoulders were very tired from the shaking on the rough terrain.It rained heavily through the night.On Monday morning it seemed unlikely that we would have golf. However, by midday it cleared up. There was surface water on the fairways but we had an enjoyable outing.

Four attempts at getting diesel from Reddan fuel station failed. Their station in Juliasdale, 60km away from Rusape, is closing. However, we are fortunate there is another one 30km from here on the way to Harare.Water supply, electricity and phone services have been very erratic in recent times.

Monday was another dark day for Zimbabwe.The Government, ZANU PF, passed legislation in 2007, under the title Indigenous and Empowerment, that all businesses, valued over five hundred thousand US dollars, should be 51% owned by local people in five years time.On Monday they were trying to reactivate this legislation.The mining industry which is underdeveloped and undercapitalized will remain unproductive for years to come.Having destroyed the farming industry as well as tourism, the third plank of the economy, in the past, is now doomed to failure. There is an element of self-destruct in politics. It will be interesting to see if MDC(formerly in opposition but now in partnership with ZANU in government) can prevent the implementation of this crazy policy. While in Mutare I browsed through the book on Terenure College. It is very well written. A trip down memory lane!

Fr Kilmurray completed his visit and returned to Dublin on Saturday to severe winter weather.He would have got a flavour of tropical rain in Harare before his departure.

My summer schedule is falling into place. I fly home on June 23rd and return to Zimbabwe on September 9th.I have booked the Carmelite Cottage in Wicklow, beside the sea and a golf course, from June 25th to July 2nd. A wedding in Rathfarnham,Dublin, on July 2nd.I will fly to the US on July 8th to do Mission Appeal out of New York from weekend 10th/11th July until August 16th. My Carmelite confrere in New York will arrange the places where I will preach.The details will come later.

Love and best wishes to all.

The heat at the weekend was stifling. I had Mass at an outstation on Friday in a small galvanized roof church built on sheer rock.The people were slow in arriving. GOAL was distributing food a few kms from the church. On the way to the church, there were many people carrying the food in wheel barrows or scotch carts(pulled by cattle) and some on their heads: 50kgs of mealie meal, 5kgs of beans and two litres of cooking oil for each family.GOAL distributes the food on a monthly basis. Hopefully, the Government majority party, ZANU PF, will not interrupt the process as they did some years ago when Concern were involved in a similar project.Frs. Kilmurray and Troy arrived from Dublin via London/Joburg on Friday and made their way directly to Mutare.They had the weekend to relax before two long meetings on Monday and Tuesday with the brethren. I had a memorial Mass for a young woman, late twenties/early thirties, on Saturday morning. That was followed by the blessing of the headstones for her parents’ graves, who had predeceased her. She and her parents had separate individual graves, in which no one else will be buried. It has something got to do with ancient custom and the world of the spirits. A very complex world!

The electricity went off shortly after the rugby game between Ireland and France kicked off at 6.30p.m. on Saturday. Fortunately, we have the generator to give us light and power to operate the computer and TV. The game and the result were both disappointing.One comment from a man from the Midlands says it all:“I thought the French defense was just fantastic,” said Larry Flanagan from Moate, Co Westmeath afterwards. “We just weren’t good enough I guess. It was a terrible pity that D’Arcy didn’t get that first try when he kicked ahead. That would have given us momentum. But we weren’t good enough.”

Sunday was an easy day with Mass at St.Simon’s. The twentieth anniversary of the release of Nelson Mandela, from his twenty seven years imprisonment, gave me an opportunity to speak about peace and reconciliation.I applied to him the words from Eccleiasticus 44:1 – 15 Let us praise illustrious men, our ancestors in their successive generations. Some of them left a name behind them, so their praises are still sung.Their names live on for generations. I offered Mass for Oliver on his anniversary and remembered Michael and Maeve McLoughlin.Their families were celebrating their anniversaries in Dublin. I was with them in spirit and in prayer.

Our meetings were long, from 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. on Monday and from 8.00a.m. to 2.00p.m. on Tuesday.Suitable personnel for formation work in novitiate and house of studies is a major concern.The visitors brought out some mail, medication and a book recording the history of Terenure College, which is celebrating its 150th anniversary.Mass was celebrated and televised on the foundation day, Jan.10th, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. A lecturer in history in UCD, Fergus Darcy, wrote the book. It is a beautiful publication, running to between 550 and 600 pages with photos to record events over the years.

My daily circuit training is going well. Thirty five minutes morning and evening.I hadn’t lost any weight since before Christmas.I’m still 91kgs, about 200lbs.The effort to loose ten pounds between now and end of June has begun. I’m hopefull!!

Love and best wishes.

After a week, our phone was reconnected on Thursday 4th. A technical fault according to the phone people. It is just so frustrating to be out of touch, either by email or Internet. At least the TV news from SKY and BBC kept us abreast of the developments in NI. Thank God, justice and policing are now in the hands of the local politicians. Hard to believe that it took almost eleven years to agree on such a basic part of governing.The die hards are slow to let go of their privileged positions.

We expected to have a funeral on Thursday p.m. The woman was from an outstation. Local custom dictates that the body can only be in the house for one night. Otherwise, the family have to pay money to “the head man.” Unfortunately, when the body was taken to Rusape Hospital on Wed. p.m. there was no refrigeration in the morgue. The body had to be taken 80km to Marondera. It was late when they arrived on Thursday evening. It was agreed that we would do the funeral Mass on Friday at 10.30am and that someone would meet us on the dirt road. The burial has to take place before noon . Otherwise they have to wait until the mid afternoon. While I celebrated Eucharist under the tarpaulin, nearby,15meters away, four women vigorously stirred the sadza in a forty gallon barrel. There was great activity preparing the meal.

They were waiting when I arrived. We drove deep into the bush on very uneven terrain. I have never been so far away from even a dirt road. There was a gathering of about 200 people. Everything was ready, including a tarpaulin to protect padre from the sun. The cloth covering on the table was a zambyia with quotations in French from St. Luke’s Gospel about death and resurrection.A good start for the homily. I forgot to ask where they got the zambyia. A zambyia, a wrap around, is worn by women when they are seated on the ground. Sitting on the ground is the usual posture as they do not have chairs in their houses.

I had a good weekend with a memorial Mass on Saturday in Vengere township or settlement area, and at St.Andrew’s outstation on Sunday. We got a lot of mangos in the offertory processions:some for the orphanage, the convent and ourselves. I took the surplus ones to the Priory, Mutare. I was able to watch the play off of the Dubai Open on Sunday p.m., between Westwood and Jiminez, before leaving for Mutare.Ireland deserved their victory over Italy in the Six Nations Rugby in Croke Park, but they will need to step up the pace against the French in Paris on Saturday.

I had a pleasant game of golf on Monday with good scores on the first nine.

After class in Kriste Mambo on Wed. I went to Nyanga, about 60km from Kriste Mambo, to visit a couple in their 80′s.Years ago,they farmed extensively in the Sabi Valley. The husband was an accountant while the wife was a nurse.They were evicted from the farm by the War Vets. Later they had a fuel filling station and general store in Juliasdale, which they were forced to sell at a knock down price to a ZANU PF supporter some years ago. Like many other elderly whites, they are supported by their son who lives and works in Mozambique. He had to flee the country some years ago as he was body guard to TSvangarai, the leader of the Opposition.

With love and best wishes.

The difference in climate is immense -minus grades in Ireland while Zimbabwe grades move towards the high 30′sC. It is becoming difficult to sleep at night. On Sunday night, Jan 3rd, I slept with just the mosquito net to cover me. Even with that, I perspired quite a lot.

Christmas week was very relaxing. I had an early start on Monday,28th. Poor old Ambrose had problems with his catheter. I went out at 5.45am to take him to Rusape General Hospital. People were already working in the fields, cultivating and weeding. Sadly, we had no rain since before Christmas. Crops are stagnant and will wither unless rain, and plenty of it, comes soon.

Four games of golf in eight days is very unusual for me. Having played in Clermont on Monday,28th, we played again on Wed.30th and on Friday 1st Jan. in Windgate, Harare. The course is well maintained. The fairways are narrow with pine trees on both sides and a number of dog legs. We played before 9.00am, had the course to ourselves and completed the eighteen holes in three and a half hours.

We went to the travel agent on Tuesday 29th. The lady was not very positive about Air Zimbabwe. However, I still booked my flight for June 23rd, Harare/Gatwick. I have to make my own arrangements for Gatwick/Dublin but that should be no problem. I presume the agent gets a better percentage on higher fares. Collecting liturgical guides and altar breads was more of our business. There were no liturgical calendars, which a lot of people prefer to the liturgical guides. It took over an hour and a half to get some money changed in a bank, where one of the staff is a brother of one of my African confreres. I was standing in the heat of the midday sun, guarding my truck, while Fr Paul Horan waited impatiently in the bank. Imagine having to go to Harare to have foreign currency changed into US dollars!

Business done. It was back to Rusape on Saturday morning in time for lunch. Christmas is a very popular time for weddings. Because of the shortages, both of goods and money last year, many couples postponed their weddings. The reception was held on the church grounds with the local women doing the catering.The loud music was not conducive to a siesta.

I had Mass at St. Joseph’s on Sunday morning. A full church in joyful mood with plenty of song and movement. A good start to the day. We celebrated the Mass of Epiphany. All holidays of obligation are celebrated on Sundays.

I went to Mutare on Sunday pm, played golf at Hillside in the midday to mid afternoon heat on Monday. At the third hole there was a massive clap of thunder and a vicious flash of lightening. I dropped my umbrella with fright. We took shelter in a hut until rain, thunder and lightening eased off. Unfortunately, the rain was only sporadic.

I’m finishing off this message in Mutare on Wed.6th, where I came for the Simple Profession of two Carmelite Sisters. Rain came in abundance on Tuesday pm – about an inch fell in two hours. Good for the gardeners and farmers. Not so good for telephone , email or internet, which were not working this am.