Confirmation and visit to All Saints parish

Prayerful wishes to pope Leo XIV

On the fifth sunday of Easter I visited All Saints parish in Am­ster­dam South-East (Bijlmer), an English spea­king parish with parishioners mainly of Ghanese and Nigerian origin. During Mass I spent holy confirmation to thirteen parishioners, young or a bit older, and to three man I comissioned the task of being extraordinary ministers of the holy communion. But there was more...

Prayer for our new Holy Father

During Mass of course we prayed for pope Leo XIV, who on this day celebrated Holy Mass at the begin­ning of his Petrine ministry, as a vicar of Christ. In spirit of gratitude we prayed that the Lord may bless him and strenghten him to fulfil the deman­ding and challen­ging office of being the bishop of Rome and the shepherd of the universal church. May God continue to bless him and guide him through his Holy Spirit.

Program of the parish visit

The Mass in All Saints parish was a feast, with participation of the choir and the associations of the parish, all dressed in their own vest­ments. Fr. Emmanuel Anoh sma, the priest of the parish, concelebrated together with Fr. Milten­burg WFr, who is wor­king in Nigeria as a mis­sio­na­ry priest. After Mass I blessed the new parish-kitchen where they will start again to provide food for poorer people. This started as a soup kitchen some seven years ago. I was there to inaugurate it. Now having a new kitchen, they will start again with this beautiful work. Subsequently, the associations of the parish came forward to present themselves and tell about their specific apostolate: prayer, sin­ging (two choirs), devotion to the blessed Virgin Mary, work for the community, the board, biblestudies etc. It was beautiful to see so many groups in the parish being actively involved and deepe­ning their faith. All Saints parish is full of life!

The day was con­clu­ded with a festive meal together with those who received confirmation and the new Eucha­ristic ministers.

Be open tot the holy Spirit!

FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER C Gospel: John 13, 31-33a.34-35)
H. CONFIRMATION ALL SAINTS PARISH

Dear candidates for holy confirmation, dear brothers and sisters,

Glorified

Judas went out of the upper room of the Last Supper to betray Jesus his Lord, but Jesus com­ments that He is glorified? How could He say “glorified” if He is stan­ding before His passion and cross? This is because the Lord looks further: He sees the whole Paschal mystery, He foresees His resurrection.
This is what we should do as well: look further, don’t see just the misery you are in, your suffe­ring and setbacks; see the future the Lord has prepared for you: eternal life, eternal joy, fulfil­ment.

A beautiful day

What a beautiful day this is! I may give you, dear candidates, Holy Confirmation. You receive the Holy Spirit to be able to make good choices in your life, to act wisely and with pru­dence, to be a good person, to serve God and honour Him through your life.

Not automatically

This is not always easy, nor does it happen automatically. You should not think: now I have received the Holy Spirit, nothing can happen to me, the Holy Spirit will make sure nothing goes wrong. No, it is not like that!

Your soul

God created you with love and the most beautiful gift He has given to you is your soul. That you have a human soul means that God has destined you to live forever, to be happy forever. That is what God wants for you!
It also means that you are free, that you can make your own choices. So you are not a puppet held on a string by God, a puppet that can only do what God wants you to do. No! It is not like that! You are a free human being! That is the beauty and that is also the dan­ger of your life; with your free will you can make the wrong choices and do wrong things.

A fresh start

But even then there is one thing you should never forget: God is forgi­ving, He is a very good father, full of love for you. Have you made a mistake? Do you regret it? Then go to the priest, go to confession and hear the priest say to you in the name of Jesus: I absolve you from your sins... All is forgiven you, because God is good and merciful, He doesn't stay angry, He understands you, He knows that you mean well, that you want to be good, that you want to become a better person and grow as a person. But gro­wing takes time!
Always keep good courage!

No regrets?

The Holy Spirit will help you and make you strong. Only if you think: I am going to continue doing the wrong things, I have no regrets, I don't want to start again, then the Holy Spirit cannot help you. But if you are weak again and again you make the wrong choices, don’t be afraid! You actually want so much to make a new start, you are figh­ting the wade: that is what is important, so don't be afraid! Go on, do your best, don't let down your spirit!
God loves you, if you take this well and you don't give up courage, than your mistakes and sins make you more humble and simple and if you are humble and simple like a child, God loves you even more.

Pray!

So always keep going! Pray for the Holy Spirit: come Holy Spirit, give me strength, give me insight, make me stron­ger, give me faith, give me hope, grant me your power.

Camillo de Lellis

A long time ago there was a boy called Camillo, Camillo de Lellis. He had a good mother, but his father was not such a good example. From him he learned to gamble and fight and more of these things, Camillo often had quarrels and fights. Camillo was big and strong, but gambling everything he had, he had to go roa­ming and beg­ging. At a convent, he was able to earn a penny by hel­ping there and in the priests and brothers there he met faith and charity. One day he was on the road and a priest said to him, ‘God is everything, the rest is nothing; remember to save your soul, because your soul does not die’. Unable to forget those words, Camillo had time to reflect on them along the way. Then the Holy Spirit entered his heart: Camillo broke down in tears: ‘Lord, I have sinned, forgive me because I have done so wrong’. Camillo devoted himself to God and founded even a religious order to take care for the sick. Camillo always wanted to care for the worst sick himself, because he said, ‘I have also been very sick, I was spiritually ill, my soul was sick’.

Camillo was so committed to the poor and sick! That did to him a lot of good. He became a great saint: Saint Camillo de Lellis.

A little more...

This is also true for us. Of course, going to Holy Mass on Sundays is good and important, but we need more as Christians: it is importanglorifiedt to get spiritually nou­rished not only through prayer (very important), but also through your involve­ment in the life of the church, in the parish community, in the community of the diocese and in charity. Being involved in the life of the church and our commit­ment to charitable works, is a spiritual help, you help others and it enriches your own life.

So, dear candidates, I am glad to anoint you with holy chrism and put my hand on your head as a sign that the Lord is with you with His gifts, with His Spirit and that He encourages you to do the good work. May God bless you!