We welcome Henry back from his holiday in Ireland! Its great to have him back in the community looking so well and energised by the Irish rain! Henry arrived yesterday morning from Accra and the community gathered in the evening for a prayer and celebration to welcome him back. We thank Paul, Brian and Jordaan (our social committee) for the meal they prepared. We thank Br Tom Early and the brothers at Drimnagh castle for the hospitality they offered Henry during his stay in Ireland. 
Could there be more to this life we call mine
We measure success by the things we accrue
This is your lifetime It could end at anytime
We all must do what Christ did.
Recently Vodafone bought out Ghana Telecom. Until June of this year when Ghana Telecom was operating the system we had a relatively uninterupted service and even when there was a problem the people at Ghana Telecom responded immediately and usually had the problem fixed within a matter of hours.
As someone once said ... when the elephants march in triumph, its the ants going about their work that get crushed!
They had not gone out to the tent, yet the spirit came to rest on them also and they prophesied in the camp. 
During the last school holidays in April we made an unsuccessful attempt to invite children from the neighborhood to come for classes on Fridays to our community since our teaching ministries had stopped. This time round not willing to give up we made a second attempt.
The five Fridays were spent well with effective learning experiences for both students and ourselves. We taught them Mathematics, Science and English as well as involving them in some interactive activities such as sports, discussions and art work.
We thanked the children for participating whole heartedly and for their good conduct during the program and they too expressed their thanks some with cards and some with words of mouth. We read from their faces a willingness to participate again in the same program if there was to be another opportunity.
An unreflected life is not worth living. September 22nd was set aside to allow novices to sit back and see how life has been for us in the novitiate as far as Peace is concerned. Peace is only a five lettered word yet its complexity is beyond measure.
To me this is a perfect way of nurturing peace in community. Reaching this level is also not easy unless I give out my life to others. Jesus also fulfilled the scriptures by denouncing retaliation. So for peace to prevail, the love of Christ should come first for enhancement of rapport amongst the community members.
My prayer now is that God should make me an instrument of peace so as to preach it even if it be only in smaller dimensions. Above all there is need to be prayerful and the need for self reconciliation; otherwise peace will remain a word without meaning.
Padre Pio – Mystic, Confessor, Stigmatic. For 50 years he suffered the five wounds of the crucifixion. A true victim with Christ. A credible sign to our time. A channel of grace.
Francesco was born on 25 May 1887 at Pietrelcina, the son of Grazio Forgione and Maria Giuseppa De Nunzio. On 6 January 1903, at the age of sixteen, he entered the novitiate of the Capuchin Friars at Morcone, where on 22 January he took the Franciscan habit and the name Brother Pio. At the end of his novitiate year he took simple vows, and on 27 January 1907 made his solemn profession.
After he was ordained priest on 10 August 1910 at Benevento, he stayed at home with his family until 1916 for health reasons. In September of that year he was sent to the friary of San Giovanni Rotondo and remained there until his death.
Filled with love of God and love of neighbour, Padre Pio lived to the full his vocation to work for the redemption of humanity, in accordance with the special mission which marked his entire life and which he exercised through the spiritual direction of the faithful: the sacramental reconciliation of penitents and the celebration of the Eucharist. The pinnacle of his apostolic activity was the celebration of Holy Mass. The faithful who took part witnessed the summit and fullness of his spirituality.
For Padre Pio, faith was life: he willed everything and did everything in the light of faith. He was assiduously devoted to prayer. He passed the day and a large part of the night in conversation with God. He would say: “In books we seek God, in prayer we find him. Prayer is the key which opens God's heart”. Faith led him always to accept God's mysterious will.
The love of God filled him, and satisfied his every desire; charity was the chief inspiration of his day: to love God and to help others to love him. His special concern was to grow in charity and to lead others to do so.
The virtue of fortitude shone in him. He understood very early in life that his would be the way of the Cross, and he accepted it at once with courage and out of love. For many years, he experienced spiritual sufferings. For years he endured the pains of his wounds with admirable serenity.
He sincerely thought of himself as useless, unworthy of God's gifts, full of weakness and infirmity, and at the same time blessed with divine favours. Amid so much admiration around him, he would say: “I only want to be a poor friar who prays”.
From his youth, his health was not very robust, and especially in the last years of his life it declined rapidly. He died on 23 September 1968 at the age of eighty-one. He was declared a Saint on 16th June 2002.
(Account taken from the Vatican website)
On the 22nd of September, Cornelius celebrated his 30th birthday! It was also the day we spent the morning reflectiing on the theme of peace and reconciliation.
The morning concluded with a reconciliation service. 
The ecstasy of receiving the little chickens in our community and celebrating the dream, dreamt in the first community meeting in March through Brian, gives me time to look at the Brothers commitment to a new way of living pledged in the Sustainable Development Workshop.
After the foresaid workshop, we confessed our part in hurting mother earth, expressed thanks for creation and promised to take the responsibility to care for it, and to commit ourselves to a new way of living.
I believe the poultry project is one of the signs, including the other little ways in which we remain committed, like disposing of garbage, recycling, attempting to make the novitiate a plastic free area and many more simple ways, not forgetting the animals we share the compound with.
Impossible to tell apart, is the generosity the brothers showed when we had an adventure and a familiarity expedition to Paga (Upper East of Ghana), on 19th August when we managed to catch sight of Crocodiles as well as crossing into Burkina Faso.
I feel the initiative of helping students and giving the inhabitants loans absolutely well thought-out.
After months of waiting on promise after promise from one of the local inhabitants of Tamale, the 15th of September was like a dream come to reality. It was the time for us to kick off our long awaited poultry broilers project. This suggestion was brought up by Brian Chipango one of the novices from Mater Dei and supported by myself and Chris.
This expression made sense to me as we sat around in the chapel on 9th September, 2009 to express our sorrow and sympathy to Paul who had lost his eldest sister, Pauline a fortnight ago. Pauline who was only 33 years old leaves behind a young husband and two children. She died giving birth to her third child who also passed away.
I would also like to commend Paul on how he conducted himself during this time of sorrow and agony. It is my conviction that in one way or the other, we the novices have learnt something from him. And as a community, we extend our sincere condolences to the entire Mbithi family and assure them that we will remember them in our prayer. (Otieno)
The United Nations General assembly has declared September 21st to be the International Day of Peace; a day to be observed as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence.
21st September is the 1st day of Shawwals ‘Idal-Fitr or ‘Id al-Saghir (Muslim calendar), Muslims come together to celebrate after the fasting month of Ramadan. Here in Tamale the Muslim community gathers on an open ground. After prayer the Imam delivers a speech and amid rejoicing and kisses of peace the faithful go their own ways to celebrate this great day with family and friends.
Again September 21st 2009 marks the one hundred years since the birth of noble man and forefather and now declared founder of Ghana-Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. Masses of Ghanaians are jubilating as they are privileged to have a public holiday in honor of the Icon and the person who lived the black star. Hope remembering him will challenge all to live the ideals and principals that he stood for.
The International Day of Peace ("Peace Day") provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date. It was established by a United Nations resolution in 1981 to coincide with the opening of the General Assembly. The first Peace Day was celebrated in September 1982.
Anyone, anywhere can celebrate Peace Day. It can be as simple as lighting a candle at noon, or just sitting in silent meditation. Or it can involve getting your co-workers, organization, community or government engaged in a large event. The impact if millions of people in all parts of the world, coming together for one day of peace, is immense.
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Br. Frank can only be compared to the black star in the Ghanaian flag. Ghana being the first African country to gain her independence from the British imperialists was meant to be an epitome to other African countries. Each African country had to learn something from Ghana in order to gain freedom.
We will also remember his enthusiasm and energy for all things including playing pool. Who can forget the little gleeful dance when a ball was potted with much elegance and flair!
We are sure that he will bring the same enthusiasm, cheer and joy there that he brought to us here.
Like the disciples in the sea, we too are afraid of encountering storms which might be a threat to our lives. In the world today, the greatest fear is the fear of nuclear destruction that could destroy our planet. My heart freezes when I hear of the atomic bombs that can hit the whole world within seconds and reduce it to a formless void, back to where it has tried to come out from over billions of years ago. When I learnt that the earth’s resources have been consumed until there is no more left in the store to keep it going beyond 50 years, I was filled with terror of encountering a major storm, a disaster, a crooked future with no hope. I think millions of people who are on this earth and are aware of these fundamental facts feel the same way too. Our hearts are all crying out for someone to help, like the disciples in the sea. The question remains “who will?”
However there is hope as God himself tells us in Joshua 1:9, “be strong and of good courage, do not be dismayed nor be frightened for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” If we take the words of God seriously, we have all the reasons not to fear. Scripture scholars put it that, the word or message ‘do not be afraid’ appears in the entire bible 365 times meaning we need to have courage all days throughout the year. Therefore let us put all our trust in God. Christ himself calls us close to him in Mt 11:28.
Let us then place all our worries and fears to him in prayer. Prayers of letting go our fears and asking for courage to move drastically towards saving our planet earth and its people, of changing the minds of people from making nuclear weapons to studying about earth conservation, from inventing poisonous substances that contribute to global warming to preserving life and nature, from destruction of the earth’s resources to construction for the future generation, from exploiting and oppressing human race with corruption and injustices to empowering them with knowledge and dignity. This way the world will be a better place for you and for me and for the generation to come.
“I’ m going to get stuck into this thing called Religious life or get out of it all together”. Br. Bryan de Paul Noonan said this statement on his 33rdrd Birthday as recorded in the Tribute. What a prophetic statement he made? Indeed he fought a good fight until when he met his death here in Tamale1
The trio left a legacy which is still present in the minds of people whose lives have been influenced by what they did and how they lived.
Anyway it is my conviction that the spirits of these three men are much alive in our midst. It is therefore an invitation to each and every one of us to shape our lives to be what we would like to become. (Otieno)
19th August, 2009, surely will be a day I will live to remember and ponder about during my stay in Ghana, not because I had a picnic just two days after celebrating my birthday, not because it is the first time I touched a crocodile, not because it is the day I visited briefly the land of Burkina Faso after crossing the border with Ghana, but because the foundation of my faith was shaken and broadened.
My brothers and sisters, what I mean here is this; African Traditional believers having their shrine in a religious and formation house compound! With the unwelcome perceptions we Christians have towards these traditional religious as barbaric, outdated, paganistic, and fetish, I think if my local ordinary was to hear this he may drop dead.
In a Christian prospect, I believe these Religious Brothers have, undoubtedly learnt to live far more beyond the law, and in their own way and language are struggling to respond to Jesus’ call “Unless your virtues go beyond those of Scribes and the Pharisees, you will not see the kingdom of heaven” To me this is where the theory of co-existence is magnificently translated into reality! It is possible, the divisions among our religions we can eradicate, and this we can do without turning over each other’s coat, just like these Brothers are enjoying their harmonious living with the other religion. It starts with you and I, lets get out and act even in our small capacities, ‘the seed will grow’ or who shall we wait for? (Nicholas)
“Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you.” As the story enfolds in the book of Genesis, Abram went as the Lord had directed him. He was forced to leave the place he had established his home, the people he had got used to and many other things you can name. I see the person of Abram in the eyes of Br. Denis Vaughan who openly accepted the call to come to the novitiate here in Tamale, Ghana.
The novices too were pleased to see the gap left by Br. Prince, who is now in Ireland, filled.
We celebrated 5 birthdays this last two months here in the novitiate. We gave thanks to God for the lives of Jordan(26th July), James(28th July), Sydney(7th August), Nicholas(17th August) and Sunday(18th August).
