The Service of the Candle
In our Maronite Church this week, we begin the three weeks of Commemorations as we prepare ourselves for the most solemn part of the year, Lent. We start this period with the Commemoration of the Priests. The priest is the faithful and prudent manager whom our Lord Jesus Christ has entrusted to be in charge of His flock to give them their allowance of spiritual food at the proper time. The priest is the one chosen by God and the judgement of the priest will be much greater than anyone else, because he is the one to whom much has been entrusted, and even more will be demanded.
When I think of the priesthood, I think of the candle and specifically, the service of the candle. Like a candle whose flame burns brightly and melts the wax to provide light, the priest too, when filled with the grace of God should shine brightly and radiate the light of our Lord Jesus Christ in this world. Through his service, the priest dies to this world and melts like a candle to bring the light of Christ to the people of God. Prayer is the fuel for this ser-vice! For this reason, we need to pray for priests so that they can say no to the temptations of this world and tru-ly represent Christ who has entrusted them to be the spiritual leaders of his flock.
If we want healthy spiritual leadership in our parish and in our church, then we must pray for it. By praying for priests, we build up their spiritual armour and aid their mission so that they are transformed into Christ, the eternal High Priest. We must never forget that a priest is also a human being. This means that he has weaknesses and he is far from being perfect, however he is uniquely, ontologically configured to Christ and for this reason he must be the prudent and faithful servant. When my time is completed in this world and I will face the Lord, the first question He will ask me, Tony Sarkis, have you been faithful to the parishioners of Our Lady of Lebanon parish, have you led them with prudence and wisdom? If my answer is “no”, then my fate will be that of the
unfaithful slave. Please pray for me and all priests so that our service can truly be like the service of the candle which melts away to provide the light of Christ to the world. We especially remember the deceased priests who have served this parish, Monsignor Michel Boumelhem, Fr Sarkis Charbel , Fr Elias Ayoub and Fr Antoun Bou Antoun.
This week our Fersen and their leaders went on their annual camp. Over forty Fersen children and their leaders together with their chaplain Deacon Danny reflected on the year of Martyrdom and Martyrs in the Maronite Church and lived the theme of Courage, as did the Teens last week. A big thank you to Eliana Gerges and all the leaders who have been preparing for months, working very hard to make the camp a fun as well as a deeply spiritual experience for the children. Congratulations also to the Teens who attended last weeks camp. The reports that I have received were excellent and the behaviour of the Teens was exceptional. These reports make me very proud. Thank you so much to our youth leaders who are truly faithful and prudent managers within their ministries.
نبدأ في كنيستنا المارونية هذا الأسبوع سلسلة أسابيع التذكا ا رت الثلاثة فيما نحضّر أنفسنا لأكثر أج ا زء السنة مهابةً؛ الصوم الكبير. نبدأ هذه الفترة بتذكار الكهنة. الكاهن هو الوكيل الأمين الحكيم الذي ائتمن ربنا يسوع المسيح على قطيعه ليعطي كل فرد حصته من الطعام الروحي في الوقت المناسب. الكاهن هو الرجل المختار من الله، دينونته أكبر بكثير من دينونة أي شخص آخر، لأنه هو المؤتَمَن على الكثير، وسيُطلب منه حتى أكثر. عندما أفكر بالكهنوت، أتصوّر الشمعة، خصوصاً الخدمة التي تؤديها. على مثال الشمعة التي تحترق شعلتها لتشعّ، وتذوب لتمنح النور، هكذا الكاهن أيضاً، عندما يكون ممتلئاً من نعمة الله، عليه أن يشع بنور ربنا يسوع المسيح في هذا العالم بشكل ساطع. عبر خدمته، يموت الكاهن عن العالم ويذوب كالشمعة ليحمل نور المسيح إلى شعب الله. الصلاة هي وقود هذه الخدمة! لذلك نحتاج إلى أن نصلي من أجل الكهنة لكي يستطيعوا أن يقولوا "لا" لتجا رب هذا
العالم، ويمثّلوا حقاً المسيح الذي ائتمنهم على أن يكونوا القادة الروحيين لقطيعه.
إذا أردنا قيادة روحية سليمة في رعيتنا وكنيستنا، علينا إذاً أن نصلي للحصول عليها. بالصلاة من أجل الكهنة، نبني درعهم الروحي ونساعدهم في رسالتهم ليصبحوا المسيح، الكاهن السرمدي الأعظم. لا يجب أن ننسى أبداً أن الكاهن إنسانٌ أيضاً. هذا يعني أن لديه نقاط ضعف وأنه غير كامل، مهما كان مميّ ا زً ومطابقاً في جوهره الوجودي للمسيح. لذلك عليه أن يكون الوكيل الحكيم الأمين. عندما ينتهي وقتي في هذا العالم وأ واجه الرب، السؤال الأول الذي سيطرحه عليّ هو: يا طوني سركيس، هل كنت أميناً على أف ا رد الرعية في رعية سيدة لبنان ومارست قيادتك لهم بتبصّر وحكمة؟
إذا كان جوابي "كلا"، فإن مصيري سيكون مثل الخادم الذي لم يكن أميناً على خدمته. أرجو أن تصلوا من أجلي ومن أجل جميع الكهنة لكي تكون خدمتنا حقاً مثل خدمة الشمعة التي تذوب لتعطي العالم نور المسيح. نذكر خصوصاً الكهنة المنتقلين من بيننا والذين خدموا هذه الرعية، المونسنيور ميشال بو ملحم، الأب سركيس شربل، الخوري الياس أيوب والخوري أنطون بو أنطون.
هذا الأسبوع شارك فرساننا وقادتهم بمخيمهم السنوي. أكثر من أربعين طفلاً ومسؤولاً تأملوا مع مرشدهم الروحي الشماس داني نوح بسنة الشهادة والشهداء في الكنيسة المارونية وعاشوا شعار الشجاعة، كما فعل الم ا رهقون )الطلائع( الأسبوع الماضي. شُكر كبير ل إيليانا جرجس وجميع المسؤلون الذين حضّروا لشهور وعملوا بكدّ ليجعلوا المخيم خبرة ممتعة مفعمة بروحانية عميقة للأطفال. تهانينا أيضاً للم ا رهقين الذين شاركوا في مخيم الأسبوع الماضي. التقارير التي تلقيتها كانت ممتازة وسلوك الم ا رهقين كان ا رئعاً. هذه التقارير تجعلني فخو ا رً جداً بكم. أتقدم بشكري الجزيل لمسؤولي الشبيبة الذين هم حقاً وكلاء أمناء وحكماء في رسالتهم.
You Are ….
Welcome to the Second Sunday after the Feast of the Glorious Epiphany. In this week’s Gospel passage, we continue to see John directing his followers towards Jesus, “the Lamb of God.” Andrew and an un-named man follow Jesus until he turns and starts a conversation with them. This classic scene reminds us of our vocation. Having experienced the attraction of Jesus, Andrew goes and informs his brother Simon Peter, who then comes to meet Jesus. This encounter between Jesus and Peter changed the history of the world.
The first words that Jesus spoke in this passage was a simple question: “What are you looking for?” or “What do you want?” Jesus asks about our desires so that he can respond to them. It is so important that we know and understand what we want. To be able to do this we must understand who we are. When I understand who I am, in my strengths and my weaknesses, in my good and my bad, I can come to Him and know exactly what I want from Him because there is one thing that is for sure, He knows exactly who I am. Therefore, I should not be afraid to come as I am with all my hopes, with all my fears and with all my desires and He will say to me: “You Are” who you are, and I love you abundantly.
Let us all come to Him this year and let it be a renewed journey of faith in the Lord. Let us truly come to Him with our all and not be afraid. Let us ask Him to invite us to see where He can be found, and to remain with Him. More so, let us ask Him to look at us in the same way that He looked at Simon Peter so that like Peter we too can change the world through Christ and through Christ alone.
On a parish note, I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to the members of the Sodality and their chaplain Father Youwakim who worked tirelessly last week preparing the feast of the Epiphany sweets and savouries. These hard-working men and women worked for hours, even on the day of the feast preparing and allowing us to experience this beautiful tradition. May the Lord’s presence in your lives always be everlasting so that you can continue to glorify Him in all that you do.
This week our Teens and their leaders went on their annual camp. Nearly seventy teens and over twenty leaders together with their chaplain Deacon Danny reflected on the year of Martyrdom and Martyrs in the Maronite Church and lived the theme of Courage. A big thank you to AJ Stephan and all the leaders who have been preparing for months, working behind the scenes to make the camp an enjoyable as well as a deeply spiritual experience for the teens. A special thank you to Matthew Semaan who was the key-note speaker at the camp.
Finally, next week we begin with the three weeks of Commemorations, starting with the Commemoration of the Priests. Before we begin our Lenten journey, it is very important that we reflect on the people who have past and commemorate their memory in the Church. When we understand and appreciate our past, we can truly look to our future with the faith, hope and love of those we were before us.
The Feast of the Epiphany – The Feast of Humility
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Happy New Year! Thanks-be-to-God for the many graces that He has bestowed upon us in 2017 and we ask His blessing upon 2018. I pray that this year will be a very fruitful year for you and your families as we all continue our spiritual journey towards the Kingdom that awaits us.
The Christmas and New Year period is always a wonderful time for families to get together and enjoy the season. It is also a period of rest, relaxation and fun. Many of our families take time-off during this time to enjoy the beautiful weather, but most of all enjoy each other. It is so important that we have this time to firstly refresh and rejuvenate ourselves for the year ahead and to experience memorable moments with our loved ones. I hope that everyone is enjoying the break and each other.
On Saturday, we began the Season of the Glorious Epiphany of the Lord. Through this feast we celebrate the baptism of the Lord in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. At this Baptism, we celebrate the appearance or manifestation of Christ among us as God’s Son and revelation of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The Feast of the Epiphany is the Feast of humility par excellence. Jesus, the Divine Son of God, humbled himself and was baptised by John the Baptist in the Jordan River like everyone else at the time. The Prayer of Forgiveness from the Maronite Ritual for Baptism proclaims it beautifully: “Although you had no need to do so, in your compassion you came and were baptized, sanctifying the waters of the Jordan. O Son of Majesty, you bowed your head before John the Baptist, while the Father called out from on high: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased!””
Jesus bowed His head and was baptised as the ultimate sign of humility by John the Baptist who was a symbol of humility himself. He lived an extraordinary humble life and prepared the way for Jesus, exclaiming “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (John 3:30). As we begin this New Year and celebrate the feast of the Epiphany, let us reflect on the humility of Jesus and John the Baptist and learn from them how to live a life that is pleasing to God. Let us think about the ways in which we can decrease so that He can increase!
The food that we prepare during this great feast is also very humble. Comprising of flour, water and oil (and sugar for the sweet-tooth), our beloved mothers and fathers kept the Maronite tradition of the Epiphany pastries, Zlaabyi and Awamet, alive in the parish. They have worked very hard on preparing these sweets and savouries for us to enjoy as we greet one another by saying “Deyim, Deyim”.
Last weekend I was very fortunate to attend the annual family retreat between Christmas and New Year. Twelve families attended the retreat this year and the theme was “The Family: a treasure for the Church”. Thank you to all who organised this retreat. Also, last Saturday our youth celebrated Christmas and New Year’s with their annual party in the church hall. It was a great night, and everyone enjoyed it. Thank you to our MYO team for organising it.
