Author: ANTONINO

Festa do Senhor das Milagres in Machico (October)

One of the most important religious festivals on the island is the “Festa do Senhor das Milagres”, which is celebrated annually in October in Machico

The occasion commemorates the floods of October 1803, when the chapel of the Senhor das Milagres was destroyed and a precious image bearing the same name was lost out to sea. According to legend, the image was recovered three days later by an American fishing vessel and returned to the cathedral in Funchal.

IN 1813 after the restoration of the destroyed chapel the image was sent back to Machico, where it resides in the rebuilt chapel of “Senhor das Milagres”.

The festival is marked by a solemn procession of people bearing the image to the mother church in Machico where it resides until the following day. Thousands of people bearing candles and lighted torches quietly proceed through the streets and there is an absence of loud music and other festivities which are typical of feast days in Madeira.

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FROM MY HEART TO YOUR HEART – I am the Jesus you say you love

– Brought to you by Fr. Bernardino Andrade (bernardinodandrade@gmail.com)

There is a story that comes out of the Second World War that will haunt you if you think about it. It is about a little Jewish boy who was living in a small Polish village when he and all the other Jews in the vicinity were rounded up by Nazi troops and sentenced to death.

This boy joined his neighbours in digging a shallow ditch for their own graves. Then they were lined up against a wall and machine-gunned. But none of the bullets hit the little boy. His naked body was splattered with the blood of his parents, and as he fell into the ditch he pretended to be dead.

The grave was so shallow that the thin covering of dirt did not prevent him from breathing. Several hours later, when darkness fell, this 10-year old boy crawled out of his grave. With blood and dirt caked on his little body, he made his way to the nearest home and begged for help.

A woman answered the door and immediately recognized him as one of the Jewish boys marked for death by the Nazis, so she screamed at him to go away and slammed the door.

Dirty, bloody, and shivering, this little boy limped from one house to the next, begging for help. But he always got the same response. People were afraid to help.

Finally, in desperation, he knocked on a door, and just before the lady of the house could tell him to leave, he cried out, « Don’t you recognize me? I am the Jesus you say you love! ». The lady froze in her tracks for what seemed like an eternity to the little boy.

Then, with tears streaming down her face, she threw open her arms. She picked up the boy, and took him inside to safety.

Sometimes we need to be reminded that when we do it unto the least of these, we do it unto Him. Christian Discipleship is a call to availability. It is also a call to sensitivity.

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade

Scripture Readings 15th October 2017, 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Isa 25:6-10; Ps 22(23) r.6; Phil 4:12-14, 19-20; Matt 22:1-14

After the desolation of the earth and the final judgement, Isaiah describes in mouth-watering detail the great banquet the Lord will provide. It will be on Mount Zion and all peoples are invited. Not only will all sorrows be wiped away, but also the ultimate worry – death – will be destroyed.

The familiar psalm expresses our personal confidence that the Lord is preparing a beautiful surprise for us to enjoy after death.

Our readings from Paul’s letter to the Philippians conclude with Paul again thanking them for their continued support and the money they had sent him. God’s help enables him to be content whatever his problems, but their thoughtfulness is especially welcome now that he is in prison. He ends his letter with a fond farewell: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit”.

Matthew compares the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast – the heavenly banquet to which all are invited. But if we accept the invitation we must prepare adequately and be willing to participate fully. Otherwise we may still be thrown out. Our membership must be visible to others. We must do more than just belong. Like the Philippians we must share what we have with the community we have joined, and with those in need.

Psalm Response: In the Lord’s house shall I dwell for ever and ever.

Isa 25:6-10; Ps 22(23) r.6; Phil 4:12-14, 19-20; Matt 22:1-14

FROM MY HEART TO YOUR HEART

– Brought to you by Fr. Bernardino Andrade (bernardinodandrade@gmail.com)

NO STRINGS ATTACHED

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This was in the city of Half Moon Bay, California; a beautiful city with a beautiful beach and all the characteristics of a countryside city. Farming, flowers, cows and dairies were still the main scenery of that place. Also in this city there were many poor Mexican undocumented families with lots of children.

A young couple, with a few children, had the routine every Saturday morning of going together to a local restaurant and enjoying a non-expensive but delicious breakfast. No school, no work and no hurry. Just enjoying a nice meal in the presence of the family. The father of the family decided to consult with his family and share the same experience with the rest of the community. – Love is not love until it is shared.

They borrowed a hall from the City and started going to the supermarkets asking for eggs, bread, milk, vegetables, and anything else they could get. Then they started inviting people to join them every Saturday to also enjoy a nice breakfast. The young father and some volunteers prepared the food, and any person could take a plate, sit down and eat. The hall was big enough where the children could run, play, make friend and just be children. There were also tables with lots of bread and cakes, and also vegetables donated by the supermarkets for people to take home. This was something that I had never seen before.

The food was good, the company was excellent, but what impressed me the most was that there were no lists, nobody asking for documents, not even anybody asking for their names. There were just people eating together, enjoying the company of one another and building relationships.

A new program had started and its name was NO STRINGS ATTACHED.

This program had lots of influence on me when I started in my parish the project «People Helping People». No names, no lists, just people in need and people helping them. Very often bureaucracy kills programs, kills dreams and kills people. People Helping People should never be a program or an institution. People Helping People should be a way of life 24 hours a day.

CASA = HOME

Last Sunday, I had in this city of Funchal, an «impossible» experience. It is called CASA = HOME. In Portuguese it means «Support Center For the Homeless». In this world, and country, where the rules become heavier and heavier (no papers no food) I had the privilege of eating with the homeless the best food that can be served at any table. However, you don’t have to be a homeless to eat there. Just show up or ask somebody to bring you food and that will be available for you. No questions asked. No strings attached.

A few fine hotels in Funchal share their left overs with this association called «Casa» (Home). Some volunteers pick up the food, bring it to this place where people are waiting for their meals. The little inconvenience is that it has to take place after 10:30 PM when the hotels finish serving meals to their guests. People can bring their Tupperware and bags and take home how much food they want. Again… «No strings attached» or «No questions asked». Nobody asks for their names, addresses, IDs or whatever.

Along with «No Strings Attached», it is the most revolutionary association I have ever seen in my life. On the other hand, I have heard yesterday that some Catholic Associations just received instructions to be stricter in their rules in helping the poor in order to prevent abuses. Mother Teresa says that «When you start by judging you have no time to love».

«Casa» started to help the homeless but anybody even if he is a millionaire is welcomed. No questions asked. Like People Helping People, «Casa» is a combat against bureaucracy, against social inequality and against a society of waste.

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade

Scripture Readings 8th October 2017, 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Isa 5:1-7; Ps 79(80); Phil 4:6-9; Matt 21:33-43

First Isaiah was writing before 700 BC, when Assyria threatened and eventually overwhelmed Israel, the northern kingdom. Isaiah insists that only being faithful to God will protect the nation from disaster. The unproductive vineyard is the house of Israel, where, in spite of the care lavished on it by the Lord, there is bloodshed and injustice.

The psalm beseeches the Lord to protect his vine, Israel. Transplanted from Egypt, it has been severely damaged, but Israel promises not to forsake the Lord again.

In his affectionate farewell to the Philippians, Paul urges them to “rejoice in the Lord always”, not anxious, but thinking about all that is good, letting the Lord know all their needs. They should imitate Paul in the way he relies on the Lord. Then God’s grace will bring them peace. Our God is the God of peace. He not seeking to catch us out, but longs for us to accept the peace he offers and to rely on him totally.

This parable in Matthew’s Gospel about a vineyard owner follows immediately after last week’s story of the two sons. Matthew has brought Isaiah’s tale up to date with the murder of the prophets and even the Lord’s son. As with Isaiah’s prophecy, Israel would again be devastated, in AD70.

Psalm Response: The vineyard of the Lord is the house of Israel.
Isa 5:1-7; Ps 79(80); Phil 4:6-9; Matt 21:33-43

FROM MY HEART TO YOUR HEART

Brought to you by Fr. Bernardino Andrade (bernardinodandrade@gmail.com)

JUMP MY SON… JUMP!…

The building was engulfed in fire. Coming from one of the windows everybody could hear the cries of a panicked eight-year-old child. From the streets the firemen, after preparing a safety net to catch him, kept shouting: «Jump… we are here to save you… please jump… You will be safe».

The cries of the child kept growing in volume and in panic. After trying a few times without any success, the firemen had the good sense of asking the child’s father to help them to convince the child to jump. The father was horrified but anyway he tried: «Jump my son jump… you will be OK… a safe net is here to catch you. You will be OK ».

The boy didn’t move. He just cried. Answering to his father he said: « But Daddy, I can not see anything. The only thing I see is smoke and it is very hot. I can not see you ». At this moment the father had the inspiration to tell his son: « It doesn’t matter if you can’t see me. The important thing is that I can see you… I can see you, my son. Jump my son… jump! ».

Listening to these words the boy lost his fear and jumped into the darkness. A few seconds later he was completely safe in the arms of his father who now cried of joy.

We all pass through some horrifying fires and violent storms in our lives. But on the other side of the storm we have a Father, a loving God, who tells us: «Jump! Do not be afraid, I am here to catch you. Jump my son… jump » !

« PEOPLE HELPING PEOPLE » IS A JUMP IN THE DARKNESS

After the terrible floods that destroyed part of Madeira Island in 2010 we got more in touch with the reality of the poverty that affects so many families. Some people live in poverty and some in misery. In the words of Pope Francis: « Misery is poverty without any hope ».

Because our main point of reference are not rules but the suffering of the people, without any plans and no budgets, we embarked on something that we had never done before. We started taking people who live and sleep in the streets and giving them a decent place to sleep and to live like human beings. When they look for a job, at least they can say that they have a mailing address. The majority of the money that supports this cause comes from the generosity of the tourists that attend the English Mass at Penha de França.

MOYNIHAN’S FUNDRAISER DINNER

Sometimes we feel like the frightened boy. Sometimes the only thing we see is suffering people and an empty bank account. But then something happens where we listen to God saying: «Jump, my son, jump. That battle is not yours. That battle is mine. Jump». That’s what I felt last September 16th at Moynihan’s Restaurant. A Fundraiser dinner took place and it was a huge success. The restaurant took a small amount to help with the expenses and donated all the rest to the poor. People Helping People got the amount of 710,00 Euros. Amazing!

We want to thank all the people involved, especially Sinead and Tadhg Moynihan, Avril, Alan and Anne O’Brien, Dr. Vittorio Ventura, Manolo Borrero and the list would be longer if I had written their names. But there is no doubt that the employees who worked so hard to provide such a wonderful meal with so much extra work and extra kindness deserve a big applause and especially our prayers.

Love and Peace,
Fr. Bernardino Andrade

Scripture Readings 1st October 2017, 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Ezek 18:25-28; Ps 24(25); Phil 2:1-11; Matt 21:28-32

The priest Ezekiel appears to have been among the first Israelites taken to Babylon in captivity in 598 BC. He had strongly urged Israel’s leaders to be faithful to God and his covenant, instead of resisting their enemies. But in vain: Israel’s further rebellion led to the final destruction of Jerusalem in 586. Ezekiel insists that children are not punished for the sins of their fathers. Each generation and each person must accept responsibility for their own behaviour. Why choose sin and death: “I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, says the Lord God, so turn, and live”.

The psalm is a personal prayer for guidance and pardon, while meditating on God’s goodness to the just.
Paul urges the Gentile Christians in Philippi to strive for unity, putting their own interests behind those of the Christian community. The hymn glorifies the way the already existing Christ obediently humbled himself to become man so that “every tongue should acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord” – the basic definition of a Christian.

In Matthew’s gospel Jesus has entered Jerusalem and cleansed the Temple. Now, challenged by the Jewish leaders, Jesus asks which is better – to refuse a command and then do it, or to say ‘yes’ but disobey? Israel frequently broke their Covenant with God, so sinners will enter God’s kingdom before the Jews.

Psalm Response: Remember your mercy, Lord.
Ezek 18:25-28; Ps 24(25); Phil 2:1-11; Matt 21:28-32 ;

FROM MY HEART TO YOUR HEART

– Brought to you by Fr. Bernardino Andrade (bernardinodandrade@gmail.com)

WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN JESUS

There was a Church where the pastor and the minister of music were not getting along. As time went by, this began to spill over into the worship service:

The first week the pastor preached on commitment and how we all should dedicate ourselves to the service of God. The music director led the song “I Shall Not Be Moved”. The second week the pastor preached on tithing and how we all should gladly give to the work of the Lord. The music director led the song “Jesus Paid it All”. The third week the pastor preached on gossiping and how we should all watch our tongues. The music director led the song “I Love to Tell the Story”.

With all this going on, the pastor became very disgusted over the situation and the following Sunday told the congregation that he was considering resigning. The musician led the song, “Oh Why Not Tonight?”.

As it came to pass, the pastor did indeed resign. The next week he informed the Church that it was Jesus who led him there and it was Jesus who was taking him away. The music leader led the song, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus”.

Is there anybody you have trouble getting along with?

REFUSE TO BE THEIR PRISIONER

When Bill Clinton met Nelson Mandela for the first time, he had a question on his mind: «When you were released from prison, Mr. Mandela,» the former President said, « I woke my daughter at three o’clock in the morning. I wanted her to see this historic event.»

Then President Clinton zeroed in on his question: «As you marched from the cellblock across the yard to the gate of the prison, the camera focused in on your face. I have never seen such anger, and even hatred, in any man as was expressed on your face at that time. That’s not the Nelson Mandela I know today,» said Clinton, «What was that about?».

Mandela answered: «I’m surprised that you saw that, and I regret that the cameras caught my anger. As I walked across the courtyard that day I thought to myself, “They’ve taken everything from you that matters. Your cause is dead. Your family is gone. Your friends have been killed. Now they’re releasing you, but there’s nothing left for you out there.” And I hated them for what they had taken from me. Then, I sensed an inner voice saying to me ” Nelson! For twenty-seven years you were their prisoner, but you were always a free man! Don’t allow them to make you into a free man, only to turn you into their prisoner! “. You can never be free to be a whole person if you are unable to forgive. You see that, don’t you?».

There are many people who are imprisoned by their own anger, their own hurt, their own inability to let go of the past and move on. Here’s the other thing we need to see about forgiveness: THERE IS ONLY ONE PLACE YOU CAN FIND THE ABILITY TO FORGIVE. It is at the throne of Christ.

Love and Peace,

Scripture Readings 24th September 2017, 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Isa 55:6-9; Ps 144:2-3. 8-9. 17-18 r.18; Phil 1:20-24, 27; Matt 20:1-16a

Earlier in this chapter Isaiah invited us to the joyful banquet the Lord has prepared for us – “the supper of the Lamb”. Today’s reading urges us to “seek the Lord while he may be found”: hidden and unimaginably different from us, yet he is near and wanting to give us his forgiveness.

Psalm 145, a hymn of praise to God’s mercy, recalls when the Israelites worshipped the golden calf: the Lord is “slow to anger and abounding in mercy”.

For the next four weeks the second reading is from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, probably written about 57 AD from Ephesus. Paul writes to thank the Philippians for the money they had sent him while he was in prison, and to encourage them to support each other in their pagan surroundings. Paul is very clear about his future life with Christ immediately after death. Sharing in Christ’s suffering means also sharing in the joy of the union with Christ which such suffering brings. Paul is torn between wishing to be gone and so be with Christ, or staying alive suffering in the Lord’s work.

In Matthew’s gospel even those rejected by others are swept up into the Lord’s vineyard. Justice to those hired first is balanced by mercy to the latecomers.

Psalm Response: The Lord is close to all who call him.
Isa 55:6-9; Ps 144:2-3. 8-9. 17-18 r.18; Phil 1:20-24, 27; Matt 20:1-16a

Scripture Readings 17th September 2017, 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 27:30-28:7; Ps 102: 1-4. 9-12 r.8; Rom 14: 7-9; Matt 18:21-35

The Wisdom book, Ecclesiasticus, was written in Hebrew about 200 BC by Ben Sira, a Jewish sage. There are many allusions in the new Testament to the later Greek version. At a time of increasing pagan Greek influence, Ben Sira showed that Israel’s religion was still a firm basis for moral living. He gives many practical examples, helping Christians of every age to apply moral truths to their own times. His strict condemnation of nursing anger and resentment is all too relevant for us today.

Psalm 102(103) is a hymn of thanksgiving and tender piety for God’s generous mercy – because of our frailty. How blessed we are that God “does not treat us according to our sins”.

The last of our Sunday readings from Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome emphasises that we belong to the community of all believers, both those alive now – and in the future – and those who have died. Our lives have influence on others. Linking both to Sirach and Matthew in the next verse Paul says “Why do you pass judgement on your brother?”

In today’s Gospel Sirach’s advice to forgive is graphically illustrated: Jesus tells Peter we must always forgive. We are saved by forgiveness – ours as well as Christ’s.

Psalm Response: The Lord is compassion and love, slow to anger and rich in mercy.
Ecclesiasticus (Sirach) 27:30-28:7; Ps 102: 1-4. 9-12 r.8; Rom 14: 7-9; Matt 18:21-35