I would like to take this opportunity to pass on some information and make some comments about aspects of Diocesan life.

Visit to Ecuador:

I enjoyed my two weeks with Fr Colin MacInnes in Balerio Estacio, Guayaquil. The people of the various communities which make up Fr Colin’s two parishes made me most welcome and it was good for me to participate in the parish Masses and social gatherings. Because they are poor and living conditions are more difficult life is a constant struggle for many, but there is great spirit among the people and a desire to do their very best for their children.

During my stay I concelebrated the Mass of Dedication of a fine new  parish church with the Archbishop of Guayaquil, Monsignor Antonio Arregui, Fr Colin and his assistant, Fr Augusto, and  various members of the Missionary Society of St James who work in Guayaquil. The name given to the new Church is El Anuncio del Reino (The Proclamation of the Kingdom), which is the 3rd Mystery of Light of the Rosary and in many ways sums up the desire of the Church in that humble parish and across Latin America to be missionary and to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to the people of today.

Archbishop Arregui is most appreciative of the help his Archdiocese continues to receive from the foreign missionaries and those who support them and their parishes in their missionary activity. The work done by Scottish priests in Guayaquil has been outstanding – Fr Martin Chambers and Fr Eddie Vessey have worked there also in recent years and are leaving behind parishes which have been built up in faith and in service with much support from the people of Scotland, and there is a strong sense of the links that continue to be forged between the Church in Ecuador and in Scotland.

It is good for us to sense our communion across the world in the Body of Christ and to express it through our commitment to the mission of Christ and the service of the poor.

Religious Life in the Diocese:

In the next couple of months there are a number of celebrations which highlight the presence of those who offer their lives to Christ in the varied forms of religious life, which is such an important part of the Church’s mission of prayer and service.

In recent years a community of hermits has been established at St Mary’s Monastery Dalsmirren in Kintyre, and some individuals have lived the life of vowed hermits in other parishes. A lady who has returned recently to Scotland, Anne Renfrew, who has already lived a good part of her life as a hermit, and now wishes to do so in our Diocese, will make her perpetual vows to God to follow this path of life in communion with the Lord and the Church at Mass in St. Mary’s, Arisaig on Friday 7th August. We offer Anne the support of our prayers, and thank her for coming to be a witness to prayer and the giving of one’s life to God in our community.

The following day, Saturday 8th August, we will celebrate the Centenary of the Death of Blessed Mary MacKillop with Mass at St. Mary’s, Fort William, at 11am. Srs Therese and Audrey of the Sisters of St Joseph (Blessed Mary’s Congregation) in Caol extend an invitation to everyone to attend and to come afterwards to the finger-food lunch and ceilidh in St Andrew’s Church Hall.

We are grateful for the presence of the Sisters of St Joseph in Caol and for their ministry across the Diocese in making Blessed Mary’s spirituality and mission better known and for their gentle encouragement that we learn from her example and are helped by her prayers. It is a fine opportunity for us then to celebrate the gift of Blessed Mary’s life to the Church firstly in Australia, but then across the world through the work of her sisters, and not least today in Argyll and the Isles, where her roots and the faith she received was formed.

At Mass in Eriskay on Sunday 28th September, Sr Mary Cathie MacInnes will make her final profession as a religious of the Sisters of The Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. We recall with thanksgiving the work of the Chigwell Sisters in the Western Isles and it is a cause of great joy for us that another woman from our community has chosen to dedicate her life to the Lord in the Sisters’ Mission today in countries across the globe.

In praying for Sr. Mary Cathie we ask God’s blessing upon her and her congregation and pray also that the call to religious life may be heard by other young women in our diocese and that they may give of their lives generously in the Lord’s service.

Year of the Priest:

Having travelled a bit recently I have noticed in different churches publicity and appeals giving prominence to the Year of the Priest, and much encouragement to the faithful to pray for priests. Reflecting on this it may be an idea to designate particular days in the coming months when a special effort could be made to have a Day of Prayer in our parishes for priests and in particularly those of our diocese – these days could be marked by some of form of devotional prayer, a time of exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, or an extended reflection on the Saint of the Day during Mass.

I am inclined to think of choosing the Feast-Days of particular saints whom I see as having something to say about priesthood and how it is lived – here is a suggested list:

Tuesday 4th August – Feast of St John Vianney
Wednesday 23rd September – Feast of St Pio of Pietrelcino
Wednesday 7th October – Our Lady of the Rosary
Wednesday 11th November – St Martin of Tours
Thursday 3rd December  - St Francis Xavier.

In praying for the priests of this Diocese I would  ask a special prayer at this time for Canon John Angus MacDonald, who has retired from active pastoral ministry. On behalf of us all I thank Canon John Angus for his years of service as a parish priest, for the thoughtful care he has offered to countless people, for his work in the Diocese on the Finance Board and other committees, and for organizing the Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes on a number of occasions, as well as his contributions to Gaelic Liturgy and Religious Broadcasting. We wish you well, Canon John Angus, and pray especially for your good health – may God’s peace be with you.

Caritas In Veritate – 3rd Encyclical Letter of Pope Benedict XVI:

As you are aware Pope Benedict’s Encyclical Letter on Integral Human Development in Charity and Truth was promulgated from Rome on 29th June. As the title (Charity in Truth) suggests the Pope meditates and informs us on the essential link between Charity and Truth. Here are a few of his words:

“Truth needs to be sought, found and expressed within the “economy” of charity, but charity in its turn needs to be understood, confirmed and practised in the light of truth. In this way, not only do we do a service to charity enlightened by truth, but we also help give credibility to truth, demonstrating its persuasive and authenticating power in the practical setting of social living. This is a matter of no small account today, in a social and cultural context which relativizes truth, often paying little heed to it and showing increasing reluctance to acknowledge its existence.” (No.2)

Continuing the  teaching magisterium of Pope Paul VI and John Paul II Pope Benedict upholds the strong links between life ethics and social ethics:

“The Church forcibly maintains this link between life ethics and social ethics, fully aware that a society lacks solid foundations when, on the one hand, it asserts values such as the dignity of the person, justice and peace, but then, on the other hand, radically acts to the contrary by allowing or tolerating a variety of ways in which human life is devalued and violated, especially where it is weak or marginalised.” (No. 15)

Within our own country and communities we should continue to be concerned about the number of abortions carried out – although the numbers are smaller in the Highlands and Islands the lack of children in our communities is being keenly felt and the promotion of abortion is a contributory factor to this.

Also the recent news about the proposed reduction in the use of the Range Facilities in South Uist and the devastating effects that will have on employment in the Uists cause us to question the justice of these proposals – the editorial in this week’s West Highland Free Press made an apt and relevant point:

“Here are communities who have for decades conceded land and sea rights to the cause of national defence, and who have been good hosts to the military presence on their shore and in their waters. They deserve now to be treated as fairly and as honestly as they have always treated the Ministry of Defence.”

I would ask your continuing support for the Church’s teaching and ministry with regard to both social and life ethics, and a willingness also to apply principles to the reality of life today in our own communities.

Thank you for your welcome in the various parishes and religious communities of the Diocese. I look forward to future visits. I hope that what is left of the summer will be pleasant and that those who visit our churches and communities may be uplifted by the example of our faith and Christian witness.

With my best wishes and blessing,

Yours sincerely,

Rt Rev Joseph A. Toal
Bishop of Argyll and the Isles.