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YEAR OF THE PRIEST
(JUNE 19, 2009 - JUNE 19, 2010)
Bishop Sarhad Yawsip Jammo
New
Temple, New Offering, New Priesthood:
The
coming of the Lord into our world and his self-insertion
into the history of our humanity is not just a “happening”
among other relevant or less relevant events, but it is
the radical and uniquely pivotal and central act of divine
intervention. A defining moment of that intervention, and
a major lordly sign of the establishment of
a new covenant between God and
his people, was the cleansing by Lord Jesus of the
temple of Jerusalem, in the wake of the Jewish Passover
celebrations:
“… The Jews …
said to him: ‘What sign can you show us for doing this?’
Jesus answered and said to them:
‘Destroy this temple and in
three days I will raise it up’…But he was speaking
about the temple of his body. Therefore, when he was
raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had
said this, and they came to believe the scripture and the
word Jesus had spoken.”
(John 2: 18-22.)
The
offering of gifts and sacrifices to divinity was a
worshiping act that was practiced by all cultures of
antiquity; its main purpose was tripartite: a) Praise and
thanksgiving to God; b) Atonement for men’s sins; c)
Memorial celebration of redemptive events. Furthermore,
the proper offering of
sacrifices entailed two requirements: the provision of
sacred altar and temple, and a consecrated class of
priests. Thus, for Jesus to envisage the
destruction of the temple of Jerusalem, with its
sacrifices and priesthood, should entail likewise the
provision for the new People of God not only of a new
temple, but as well of a new sacrifice, and a new
priesthood.
The New Temple:
Two locations identify and embody the features of the New
Temple: Golgotha,
where a cross carried a slain tortured body with the
pierced side of Jesus the Son of God, and a
tomb that became empty
when the dead body of Jesus was raised to divine glory.
Therefore, a cross with the
icon of the Crucified and glorified Lord connected to an
altar, signifying the empty tomb, are the visible features
of every church building, worthy to be a new temple
and properly host the offering of the sacrificed Lamb of
God.
The New Offering:
Lord Jesus, the night before he died, taught his disciples
how to celebrate his redemptive memorial, in the pattern
of bread and wine, ordering them to reiterate his own
sacrificial Eucharist until his second coming. Indeed, the
crucified Lord himself is the vicarious sacrifice for our
disobedience, and his blood is offered for the forgiveness
of our sins: “For if the blood of goats and bulls…can
sanctify those who are defiled…, how much more will the
blood of Christ… cleanse our consciences.” (Heb. 9:
13-14).
The New Priesthood:
“Do this in
remembrance of me”
(1 Cor., 11, 24 & 25),
Jesus ordered his disciples, providing his faithful
followers, everywhere under the sun, with those who are
qualified to be participants in his priesthood and
mandated to celebrate his eternal sacrifice for his
people.
For the world, nothing is
greater in meaning, value, and impact, than the sacrifice
of Jesus the Lord; thus, of all human endeavors, nothing
is greater in relevance and implications than the priestly
celebration of the divine Qurbana. O Priesthood,
how lofty are you!
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Congratulations!
By Tarik Attar
Life is a struggle: from the womb we
struggle to see the light. And once we’re out, we’re
automatically crying. As we grow older we grow more
tired and more restless. At times we find ourselves
saying “I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.”
But what are we really rebelling against? Life is a
struggle; we struggle out of the womb, and we struggle
against ourselves and the world, physically and
mentally.
Life is a lively poem, filled with
happiness, sadness and suffering. Life is a motion
picture with an un-edited script that is truly a reality
show. Drama, action, a little bit of suspense and the
right characters are all what make movies great. Our
lives are a movie, filled with family dramas, action and
suspense. What a great movie God is watching. He sees
the beginning and the end all at once, He is the
original movie maker, who doesn’t give us a script, but
gives us a glimpse of the ending.
Our emotions and desires all lead us to one
thing, and that is to come to the understanding of God
in our lives. We know suffering exits, because there is
happiness. We know something is bitter because we have
tasted something sweet. God is a great poet, artist, and
movie maker; He allows the opposite to exist in every
respect. Where there is sickness, health, where there is
fire, water, and where is joy, despair. We are all
dependent on these cofactors; without them our lives &
freewill are compromised. So, what kind of answer will
satisfy our asking of this question of life’s struggles?
Are we looking for an idea, or a solution, or maybe a
clue, a sign to point to something else?
If we are
constantly whining about the pain, then the tears from
our eyes will keep our vision impaired. We don’t need to
tell the sick, “you are sick,” Or the hungry, “you are
malnourished!” But we need to give them reassurance of
the better things to come.
God gives us the Real Answer, He gives us a
real solution, he gives us everything he has, his only
Son, and he gives us the real presence (Holy Qurbana)
until the end of time. He comes down and not just to
answer the question in person, but takes on the question
on the cross. He gives us death so we might be born
again in the resurrection. In the midst of darkness God
will gives us light, so we can see His Son. We are
conceived to be born out of the womb, to make not just
empty choices but to make the choice, the choice to be
with God, or without God, and God respectfully accepts
our choice eternally.
As we enter life through the womb , we also
enter the journey of life to only graduate and receive
our certificate in heaven, handed to us by Christ
himself. Education is a great tool that helps us live
our daily lives. Just as we have goals to become
doctors, lawyers, and engineers, we must also have a
goal set for the eternal life. We need good schools to
help us become more informed people to be successful in
our society, and we need the church to help us become
better people (saints), so we can be a holy people. On
our graduation day we receive our earthly diploma and we
are congratulated by our parents and friends. We want to
also receive our heavenly diploma, where we will hear
God our perfect parent along with the Saints and angels
to say: “Congratulations! You made it!”
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Ode
to Jesus
By Michael Asmar, 13
You are a man
of honor so kind and courageous
So cool and so awesome the way you lived through the ages
You came about to be
Through a girl who married just past thirteen
While living in
a place full of sinners and gossipers
You helped your father become one of those things you call
carpenter
A world full of hate, you couldn’t stand it
So you set out to be a preacher and very compassionate
With a life long journey ahead which would only last 3
years
You said goodbye to your mom and left your house with
tears
Knowing the journey would be hard
You made friends with some fishermen that were very smart
They knew
always where to go to eat and to sleep
They protected the man where they knew they had to keep
Jesus said bye, and they knew exactly where
Up in heaven where it was all nice and fair
But you came
back in only three days
And at that everyone was amazed
They started to believe
In a man even greater than Hercules
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The Artist
Retreat
From Friday
May 29 to Sunday, May 31, a group of Chaldean artists from
St. Peter Diocese attended a retreat at St. George Chaldean
Monastery near Lake Matthews in Riverside, CA. The Retreat
was led by Fr. Andrew Younan and the topic was beauty and
the nature of art and the artist. It was amazing to see how
many of our youth are such creative and talented individuals
who express themselves with a variety of art. Musicians,
painters, designers, photographers, poets, writers, and all
sorts of artists were welcomed. It remains a surprise to
find out what happens on the retreat, so please join us on
next years’ Artist Retreat!
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The Emmaus Retreat
Another Weekend, Another Great Success
For the fourth time in San Diego, the Emmaus retreat was
held once again at the Monastery of St. George in Riverside.
On the beautiful Thursday afternoon of June 18, a group of
about forty young people drove up for the retreat and a life
changing experience. Through different talks and activities,
the retreatants were challenged to take a closer look at
their lives and find where God was missing. Though the
people attending started out the weekend as strangers, they
came home with a new family, a family centered on Christ.
Please keep them in your prayers that the graces which God
began pouring into their souls this weekend may continue in
abundance.
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An evening with Tim & Valerie Staples
“The Sacrament of Marriage”
Tim
and Valerie Staples were invited by St. Peter’s moms group
to St. Michael’s Hall in El Cajon, CA, on June 19, 2009, to
do a talk on Marriage. Tim Staples is a convert to the
Catholic faith. He has given hundreds of talks all over the
country. He is a writer, speaker and radio show host.
Valerie is a full time mom, and director of prepaid legal
services. She is a facilitator of ENDOW (education on the
nature and dignity of woman) Catholic Scripture Study & is
also the president of the Goretti Girls, which is a group of
Catholic teens in San Diego.
They
spoke extensively of their commitment to the sacrament of
marriage and what it means. When we make our vows there is
the third person present-God! God gives us the Grace to
face any challenges in our marriages. Just as Jesus
kneeling at the garden of Gethsemete says yes to the cross,
we too are saying yes to the crosses that we will face in
marriage. There are joys and many sufferings in marriage.
The goal is to make saints out of each other and get each
other to heaven. Men are to die for their bride and women
are to be like our blessed Mother ready to do God’s will.
We are to give 100% of ourselves, not 50% or 90%, but
completely. They spoke of the gift of NFP (natural
family planning) and the blessings that has brought to their
marriage. We are to honor each other bodies even in
our marriages.
Jeandark Putris
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2009 Knights of Columbas Graduation Party
The
Knights of Columbus 11th Annual Graduation Party took
place Friday, June 26, 2009, at St. Peter’s Hall. Hundreds
of guests attended this joyful event while enjoying dinner
and music. Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo wrote a very inspiring
letter in the graduate yearbook congratulating the
graduates for their achievements and success: “your
graduation is a time to reflect upon who you are as an
individual, but this really means to reflect upon how you
can turn to others and share your gifts with them- first
in your own home, then with your Chaldean community, and
finally with the entire world.” At the event, he offered
his prayers and blessings to the graduates as they begin a
new phase in their life. He also congratulated the
families of the graduates and thanked them for their
support and encouragement, explaining that the
accomplishments and diplomas of their children in some way
is theirs too, and they should be proud of that.
Before
dinner, Mar Bawai Soro congratulated the graduates and
their families, and offered a blessing prayer. Thomas
Meram, Knights of Columbus (Mar Toma Council) Grand
Knight, had an opening statement in the 2009 yearbook
saying, “As you move on into a new chapter in your life,
know that God has a plan for all of us. Be thankful for
all the blessings God has given you, and the love and
support that you receive from your family, friends, and
community. With God’s grace, you can achieve great
things”.
The book
was prepared and designed by the Knights of Columbus Youth
Committee and was printed at the Chaldean Media Center.
Many graduates had the chance to apply for scholarships in
four different categories. Scholarship grants were all
donated by many generous sponsors, individuals and
organizations from our community. God bless them.
For
graduation party photos, please contact
NABIL TOMA from QUALITY VIDEO
PRODUCTIONS at 619-244-2598
For graduation party video, please contact HAITHAM YALDO
from
MOVIE REEL PRODUCTIONS at 619-277-7154
High School
Leadership Awards
High School Academic Awards
High School
Athletic Award
|
High School
Newcomer Award
 |
College
Leadership Award
 |
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