Congratulations to the new Bishop of Wagga Wagga

On behalf of the Australian Province, we would like to congratulate our brother Bishop Mark Edwards OMI on his appointment as the seventh Bishop of the Diocese of Wagga Wagga.

While the Oblates do not serve in the Diocese, we are delighted that the Oblate charism will be shared with the people of Wagga Wagga through Bishop Mark.

Please find attached the Melbourne Archdiocese Media Release. Link

Christmas Message

On behalf of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate,

I would like to wish you all a Holy and Blessed Christmas.

May this season, often filled with so many things, be a time of recognising that God is here amongst us.

I would like to thank you for supporting us this year. We give thanks for the blessing of this year, especially the 125th Anniversary of the Oblates arriving in Australian, and we ask God’s blessings on 2020.

God bless

Fr Christian Fini OMI

Fr David Shelton OMI, RIP

RIP- Fr David Eddie Shelton OMI

It is with great sadness that the Australian Province announces the death of Fr David Shelton OMI, on 12th December, 2019.

Fr David had been suffering from a form of Lymphoma; he had just been admitted for scheduled Chemotherapy and died quickly and peacefully in the hospital.

Fr David was a missionary from the Anglo Irish Province and a great gift to the Australian Province and Church. Fr David Shelton was born on the 25th June, 1941 in Stourport, UK, had one sister, and was educated at St Mary’s Colwyn Bay, Wales. He joined the Oblates in 1958 at Cahermoyle, Ireland, studied at Belmont and Piltown, and was ordained 11th February, 1968 in Birmingham.

His first obedience was to Australia, and he spent from 1968 to the end of 1970 as assistant priest at Hillcrest Parish, SA. In 1971 he went to Indonesia as one of the first 4 Oblate missionaries, with Kevin Casey, Pat Moroney and Pat Slattery, and worked in Purwokerto East and then Cilacap with Kevin Casey.

In 1983 he returned to Australia to be briefly the assistant priest at Our Lady of Fatima, Rosebud (Victoria) then assisted at Sefton (NSW) till early 1987 when he went to be an assistant priest at Dernancourt, Adelaide for 2 years. Six years as Sorrento parish priest followed, then a year assisting at St John Vianney’s, Springvale North, then some short supplies in various places before settling in WA as prison chaplain based at Fremantle.

Fr David excelled in this ministry for well over 20 years with his great compassion and care for the poor, often building relationships with prisoners and assisting them and their families. Fr David had two big interests – tennis and Formula 1 racing. He traveled around following F1, to Melbourne for the Australian grand prix, and overseas. In March 2016 while he was leaving the Australian grand prix, he suffered a major heart attack and was out of action for the remainder of the year

. Fr David had a big heart, did little acts of kindness, was great with the down and out; he was loyal, with a wicked sense of humour, and loved food and drink.

The Australian Province thanks God for the gift of Fr David Shelton OMI.

(Requiem Mass details Mazenod College Chapel Friday 20th December at 11:00am Burial at Springvale Cemetary followed by refreshments )

Spanish Martyrs Feast Day

On 28th November, we commemorate the martyrdom of 22 Spanish Oblates and 1 Spanish layman in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War. Today marks 83 years since these seminarians and the layman were killed for their religious beliefs.

During the Spanish Civil War, there were anti-religious tensions, which led to the persecution of many priests and religious. The Oblate seminary in Pozuelo, near Madrid, became a target of these revolutionaries. Over three separate occasions, the Spanish Oblates were taken away from the seminary and were shot dead. On December 17, 2011, Pope Benedict beatified these Spanish Oblates and the layman.

An Oblate priest said that these “martyrs were killed as a community. They never became priests and they never became missionaries. But today they are witnesses. They are witnesses of genuine faith and of the Christian life.”

God our Father, we thank you for lives of the 23 Spanish Oblate martyrs who have joined the company of saints in heaven with you. We thank you for the gift of their courage and faith to spread the Good News of your Son, Jesus Christ, even in the face of persecution.

Help us to experience the courage to express our faith that these men were able to demonstrate through their love for you, especially in times where we feel persecuted or judged for our Christian beliefs and values.

May we continue to serve the wider De Mazenod Family, following the example of the Spanish Oblate martyrs and the Oblate priests of our community who continue to serve us.

We ask this through Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Link to more information and a short video.

125th Anniversary Reflection - Part 5

Reflection

The Oblates of Mary Immaculate are celebrating 125 years of serving the Church in Australia.  It is an opportunity to give thanks for the past, to acknowledge the many blessings in our Province today and to prepare for another 125 years of service in Australia. The De Mazenod Family Gathering is an opportunity to build and strengthen connections between the Oblate ministries and explore structures for a Lay Association.  Please keep the De Mazenod Family Gathering (14-18th August) in your prayers and continue praying for Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life.

The following reflection is part of this journey, a series of reflections on our history written by Fr Austin Cooper OMI.   

Oblates in Australia:

While Fremantle Oblates faithfully provided the round of services expected, changes were taking place. The church continued to grow as a popular venue for marriages from far beyond the parish; it also developed further as a centre for reconciliation.

Since 1894 Oblates have served as chaplains to the Prison.  In 1991, when the jail was relocated to the new maximum-security Casuarina Prison, Fr. David Shelton continued as chaplain to this and other prisons.  

Fremantle Hospital, is another facility serving a wide-ranging area, with Oblates such as Fr Tony Colbert faithfully providing a round-the-clock availability of pastoral care over many years.

Oblates also have a presence in Catholic Education with schools in Vitoria, Brisbane and Western Australia.

In 1989 a quite new venture came to Fremantle further enhancing its development as a centre: Notre Dame University was established in several handsome historic buildings throughout the city. The Oblates at St. Patrick’s were supportive from the first: Fr. John Archbold served as chaplain for some years, a role the Oblates maintained until recently. Since 1994 the Oblates have offered an annual scholarship and close relations continue between the University and St. Patrick’s. Another example of the Church reaching  out to the community.

To this end, quietly, in 1971, Brother Ignatius Hannick OMI, assisted by stalwarts like Leo Cooper, began providing emergency sustenance to needy people doing it hard on the streets of Fremantle. Over time, this service spread from the cold, windy presbytery veranda, to secure parish premises, providing services during regular hours and serving meals 365 days of the year.

A governance structure was established and ‘St Patrick’s Community Support Centre’ was created.  This has now grown to become the major Oblate Missionary Outreach in Western Australia. The Centre is well recognised for its excellence, with multiple accreditations from Government and welfare sectors.

Housing 125 -150  homeless persons and providing some 25,000 substantial meals each year, the Centre also offers services across physical, mental health, financial counselling and general rehabilitation programs

Constitutionally, the Oblate Parish Priest of Fremantle is the President of the Board of Governance. This ensures the ethos of the Centre remains true to the Oblate and Catholic traditions.

In a similar vein, on the other side of the continent, the intrinsic Oblate Missionary focus was creating other Social Outreach programs to assist the disadvantaged.

In Victoria, in the seaside town of Rosebud, Fr Tom Shortall OMI saw that some holidaying youth had been abandoned by the community. He responded to this need by setting up a coffee shop and drop-in centre in the Parish. Called “Rosie’s”, it ran from 1975 -1984. Other Rosie’s popped up throughout Victoria and in 1987, another Oblate priest, Fr Paul Costelloe OMI, took a van around the Gold Coast during ‘Schoolies” week providing support and friendship to school leavers.

Rosie’s outreach centres can now be found in many areas of Victoria and Queensland as they reach out to those most in need; the lonely, abandoned and marginalised. Just as in 1826 when Eugene De Mazenod first reached out the poor in his local French communities.  

Meanwhile at St. Patrick’s Fr John Hannah (PP 1987-1996) petitioned for the Church to be raised to the status of a Minor Basilica. He also had an icon woven in Ireland as a reredos for the Basilica.

This was also the time during which St. Patrick’s developed a fine tradition of church music with a trained choir. Thanks to a generous gift by the Hughes family, in memory of Alice Hughes, between 1988–90 extensive works on the church organ were undertaken. Built by the Bellsham company, it incorporated some elements of the 1895 organ of Bishop Co. of London. Additionally, detailed rebuilding and enlargement was undertaken by the South Island Organ Co.  New Zealand. Completed in 1998, it is the largest parish church organ in Australasia. It makes the Basilica a fitting venue for concerts provided by the resident organist Dominic Perissinotto and visiting artists.

All these developments revive the vision of Fr. Thomas Ryan: “The Catholic faith is a thing of beauty, our tradition of architecture, art, music and liturgy are all manifestations of this”.

This tradition is alive and well at St. Patrick’s and is being guided and developed by the present Rector and Parish Priest, Fr. John Sebastian. Hailing from the Province of India, he provides another instance of the continuing contribution of the wider Oblate world to the life and ministry of St. Patrick’s.  

125th Anniversary Reflection - Part 4

Reflection

The Oblates of Mary Immaculate are celebrating 125 years of serving the Church in Australia.  It is an opportunity to give thanks for the past, to acknowledge the many blessings in our Province today and to prepare for another 125 years of service in Australia. The De Mazenod Family Gathering is an opportunity to build and strengthen connections between the Oblate ministries and explore structures for a Lay Association.  Please keep the De Mazenod Family Gathering (14-18th August) in your prayers and continue praying for Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life.

The following reflection is part of this journey, a series of reflections on our history written by Fr Austin Cooper OMI.   

Continuing “Fremantle and the Oblates”:

Some local autonomy, and an expanding mission, gave the Oblates renewed confidence. The first section of the new Church was opened in June 1900.  On Sundays some 1,960 people attended Mass and a total of 692 at four other centres: the Convent, Prison, North Fremantle and Cottesloe.

From 1910 Frs Smyth and Neville lived at North Fremantle. But these apparently prosperous years gave way to challenging times: in the 1919 influenza epidemic an Oblate served in Quarantine leaving only two serving the large scattered parish. Glendalough was soon to close and North Fremantle to be taken over by the Archdiocese thus reducing the Oblate Vicariate to one house. This led to some soul searching among Oblates. Did they have a viable future in Australia? The Vicariate Superior, Fr. Eugene Callan hoped a move to the East would help. The opening of Sorrento (Victoria) in 1926 did not prove an instant solution. Sorrento was not the holiday mecca of today but a quiet, remote village. Depression and the Second World War were further challenges. It is a great credit to the Fremantle Oblates that despite a contracted mission they battled on: they did not surrender, displaying the Oblate commitment to the virtue of Perseverance. Meanwhile local vocations were few: Andrew McCusker, (a Scottish migrant educated in WA) was the first to enter the Oblates in Australia and he had to travel to Ireland for his novitiate and seminary training. In the 1930s and 1940s the new novitiate at Lovely Banks, Geelong,  also saw four local novices survive. Three of these were Fremantle contacts: Frank Thornton, Henry McFall and Joseph McCann.

The war years saw further pressures on the Oblates. Two members of the Australian group served as chaplains – Frs. William Byrne and Thomas Purcell, while hostilities prevented obtaining further personnel from the Anglo-Irish Province. However peace brought swift changes. There had long been Italians in the parish, but post-war migration saw their numbers escalate. Fr. Pietro Abrano was the first of a succession of Italian chaplains, the long serving Fr. Gaetano Nanni being the last. Some nine other Italian Oblates served here between 1960 and 1987: an enrichment which an international religious group can provide. At one time there were 1,450 Italians in the Fremantle area.  

With the migrants came new styles of devotion such as the high profile annual blessing of the fishing fleet from 1948 and the devotion to the ‘Black Madonna’ (Our Lady of Tindari). Being a port city, seamen were a pastoral care and in 1947 Fr Dan Breslin began specific pastoral care for seamen which evolved into Stella Maris of which Mgr. O’Shea became chaplain in 1962.

Fr. James Sullivan was the parish priest responsible for constructing the new sanctuary of the church in a style dominated more by utility than a sense of beauty, thus fuelling a simmering tension with those who preferred the original plan. But Fremantle was a-changing: many people were moving out to new residential areas. Over time St. Patrick’s would need to re-invent itself.