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70/4 Ranchi Jesuits, Sadbhavna P.B. - 4, Ranchi - 834001, Jharkhand APRIL 2011

APPOINTMENT BY FR. GENERAL

Father Dermot Preston New Provincial of the British Province

STATUS oF THE SCHOLASTICS 2011

Diaconate Ministry

Minj Ajay Arun Catholic Church BardihToppo Suman P. Catholic Church RengarihSurin Elias Catholic Church TongoChermako Sylverius Catholic Church Sogra

Theology

Aind Suresh Marcus RTC, TarunodayKujur Ajit Kalyan RTC, TarunodayXess Ravi Bhushan RTC Tarunoday

Regency

Bara Rajesh Arun St. Xavier's School DorandaKandulna Justin Loyola School Khunti (Hostel)Mosahari Rosario AssamDungdung Edwin R. Apostolic School SamtoliKerketta Mukul Kishore NagarMinj Kulwant St. John's Ranchi (Hostel)Tirkey Bipin St. Ignatius' Gumla (Hostel)

Philosophy

Balmuchu James Peter Satya Nilayam ChennaiKerketta Arvind Satya Nilayam ChennaiKerketta Rakesh Satya Nilayam ChennaiKujur Ravi Hemant Satya Nilayam ChennaiLakra Shailesh JDV Pune/ DNC PuneBa'a Roshan JDV Pune/ DNC PuneKerketta Ajit JDV Pune/ DNC PuneMinj Anuj Kumar JDV Pune/ DNC Pune

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M.Com Studies

Minj Claber Minj St. Joseph's College of Commerce, BangaloreMinj Sandeep St. Joseph's College of Commerce, Bangalore

College Studies

Kerketta Libin B.Com Loyola VijaywadaKujur Johny B.A. St. Xavier's College RanchiMinj Nirmal B.Com Loyola College ChennaiTigga Gabriel B.A. St. Xavier's College RanchiKujur Sandeep B.Com Loyola Vijaywada

FR. PROVINCIAL'S PROGRAMMEAPRIL-MA Y 2011

2 April Sat Extended Consult of the Rectors, Superiors & Treasurers in Manresa House.Time: 2.30 P.M.

3 April Sun Gumla, Lohardaga, Mandar, Patrachauli5 April Tue Meeting Finance Committee 9.30 A.M.6 April Wed Rengarih, Jharain Sogra Samtoli7 April Thu Meeting Tarang Bhariti 10.00 A.M.9 April Sat Meeting with Beni Bacanni11 April Mon GB Meeting SXC. Time: 10.30 A.M.12 April Tue Jamshedpur14 April Thu Province Consult, 9.30 A.M.15 April Fri Soso, Bardih18 April Mon Bundu, Dorea20 April Wed Kochang, Rumtukel, Sarwada25 April Mon Inauguration New St. John's School Community26 April Tue Inauguration Lievens Institute of Film & Electronic Media, Satya Bharti.

Time: 9.30 A.M.29 April Thu Muri (Afternoon)29 April Fri Bingaon, Maranghada Khunti30 April Sat Keondtanr7 May Sat Final Vows Frs. Lourduraj & Ranjit W. Lakra, Manresa House. Time: 6.00 P.M.13 May Friday Province Consult

INFORMA TIONt Rev. Father General has announced the Convocation of the 70th Congregation of Procurators next Year

(July 6, 2012)t The Society in Numbers: The Statistics of the Society of Jesus worldwide as on Jan.1, 2011. The total

number of Jesuits is 17.906: 12.737 priests, 1.535 brothers, 2.850 scholastics and 784 novices, with adecrease of 341 members from 1st January 2010. (www.sjweb.info).

t New E-mail ID of Fr. Vinod S. Soreng: vinod.sushil@gmail.comt NEW MOBILE NUMBER of FR. L. FRANCKEN, S.J - 8521455650t SCHOLASTICS' GET-TOGETHER will be held in Bardih Parish on 18-22 May 2011t RANCHI PROVINCE DA YS will be held on 23-25 May 2011.t SUMMER COURSE PROGRAMME will be held from 1st May -15th May, 2011. The candidates

should arrive latest by 6.30 p.m. on 1st May, 2011. The candidate willing to join Ranchi Province mustmeet the Director personally either before their matriculation and intermediate exams. This does not apply tothe Apostolic candidates and those who have met him already on the vocation tour.

t Novice Lucky Bineet Tirkey left the Novitiate on Mar ch 23, 2011.

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NEWS FROM INSTITUTIONS AND FORMATION HOUSES

MANRESA HOUSE, RANCHI

Hoffmann Law Associates (HLA) is proving itself a greatblessing to many people who come to seek legal adviceand assistance in court cases. On 3rd March it acquiredanticipatory bail for two Tribal thinkers and writersFr. John Lakra, Br. Michael Kujur (MAP), and theirpublishers Frs. Florence Kujur, Ranjit Lakra and AlexTirkey. Hats off to our resourceful lawyers associatedwith the HLA. The dreams of Fr. J.B. Hoffmann havealready begun to materialize.

On 17th the founder of the Friendship HouseBangalore Mr. Tom Garette along with Fr. John S.J. fromU.S.A, had a flying visit to see their extended mission inMandar escorted by Fr. Emile Dungdung S.J.

After the Common Wealth Games it was the turn ofManresa scholastics to prove their sportsmanship. Withthe oath-taking ceremony of Sch. Cyril (MAP),representing other players of the tourney, the communitygames started off with a bang during the Holi vacation.Seeing the young Jesuits sweating on the playground, noneof us could remain unimpressed by the high calibre of theirapplication to the competitions. The three-day games andsports event culminated in entertainment programmes on19th March.

A million thanks to the beadle Sch. David Bara andhis team who led a jihad against the cockroaches andmanaged to kill the entire tribe ruthlessly in our refectoryand kitchen. As of now their mission appears accomplished.- But do cockroaches ever get exterminated?

Satya Bharti Ranchi, as preparation for theforthcoming Easter, presents a series of Sadri and Hindisymphony for the risen Lord: Kabur Khuli Gelak, lyricby Fr. Jaywant Soreng S.J., and Yesu Ji Uthlak byBr. Tarcisius. The CDs in Sadri are available @ Rs.70/ inour Shop. Thanks to Asst. Director Fr. Lourdu Raj S.Jfor sound engineering and mixing that enabled the releaseof CDs well ahead of time.

Returning home is a thrilling experience. Ourscholastics had similar sentiments and excitement as theystarted arriving in the province from common houses andstudy centers beginning with the DNC Philosophers.Welcome come back home, dear brothers.

Fr. Sanjay D. Ekka

ST. IGNATIUS' COMMUNITY , GUMLA

Br. Blacius attended the workshop of Jesuits' Social Actionof South Asia on RTE held in Vinayalaya, Mumbai from1st to 10th March. The purpose of the workshop was toget to know about the RTE and to evaluate the work weare doing on the same. On 23 and 24 game lovers from allover the state of Jharkhand came for the SAI teamselection for hockey and football.

Golden Jubilee of Fr. P.P. Van Nuffel: On 25th

March, 2011 Fr. P.P. Van Nuffel celebrated golden jubileeof his priesthood in a convivial company of Fathers, nuns,staff and students. The Jubilee celebration was organizedin the evening in the renovated hall. Before he cut theribbon and declared the hall open he was escorted to thehall from his residence by the school band contingent. Thehall is named "Fr . Van Nuffel, S.J. Hall" as a sign ofappreciation for his innumerable contributions to the Gumlamission. There was a solemn thanksgiving mass presidedby him. Thereafter followed the festive meal for allparticipants and guests, and a short but sweet culturalprogramme.

Fr. P.P. Van Nuffel has been in Gumla since a verylong time and done a lot for the Gumla Jesuit community,school and for the crying needs of the people in the region.He was director of St. Aloysius' Apostolic School for 10years, and headmaster of St. Ignatius' High School for 23years. When he was still the headmaster, his focus was onthe value education of the youth and started the "JeevanPravesh" and the AROUSE, the latter as a social centrefor the uplift of the downtrodden of the region. The TribalMuseum is his unique contribution and gift to the tribalcommunity. He also runs scheme of scholarship for thepoor students and family sponsorship programmes forsome families. At present there are around 190 individualsand families who are benefiting from these schemes. Todate he still is the director of AROUSE.

AROUSE: AROUSE has hosted very vibrantprogrammes and activities for varieties of beneficiaries. Ithas conducted training programmes and leadershipworkshop for 170 youths of the Nehru Yuva Kendra forthree days each from 2nd to 8th March. The following dayanother group of 35 youths from the same Nehru YuvaKendra came for the second phase of training programme

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for 15 days. The syllabi of these entire training programmesinclude all aspects of life - leadership, livelihood,governance, etc. On 11 and 12, March 35 marketingstudents from the XISS came for exposure visit toAROUSE. On 7th March, Fr. Thomas Barla gave trainingprogramme to elected members of PRI of the Chainpurand Dumri blocks in Chainpur. There were 65 electedmembers (Ward Member, Mukhias, Panchayat SamitiMembers, and Zilla parisad Members) in this trainingprogram. On 13th March, International Women's Day wasobserved here in the AROUSE premises. Participants from15 SHGs and Balwadi centers performed cultural dancesand street plays to amuse the audiences. Mrs. Bobi Bhagat,the Zila Parishad member was the chief guest on theoccasion.

Gram Utthan Kendra (GUK): Villagers havetremendous amount of latent talents, potentialities and skillsthat need to be realized and actualized for their living andraising the living standards. For the same purpose GUKhas also imparted different training programmes to differenttarget groups in the month of March. There were twotraining programmes of Village Health Promoters (VHP)in GUK for 10 days each in which a total 66 VHPs tookpart. GUK is conducting tailoring training programme in10 places where 98 girls and women are acquiring skillsand knowledge of tailoring this year. There was anorientation programme for them in GUK from 14 to 17March before they could leap into real training. Water islife for all living beings. But there is scarcity of water. To

facilitate water in villages GUK conducted 10 days of handpump repair programme in SOSO from which 16 menenhance their skill. 20 nuns in-charges of different healthcentres of the diocese went for exposure visit cum tour toKolkata on 12 - 16 March. They came back with renewedvigour and energy to serve the needy.

Fr. Alphonse Aind

PREMAL JYOTI, AHMEDABAD

The month of March 2010, left us some significantmemories. Holidays have become important factors forthe Premal Jyoti community. Thinking that with the holidayswe can refresh our body and mind after we were tired ofsiting three hours of writing our second terminal exams.Soon after the house picnic we had recollection by Bro.Malcom. It was a very unique recollection with aninspirational movie, reflection and sharing. The wholemonth, the scholastics were busy preparing for theirexams. The second years' exams were held from 22- 29th

March, whereas the first year students have started on 1st

April. Theirs suppose will be over by 9th but then due tothe Cricket World Cup, the second exam was postponedto 11th April, so Sch. Subodh had to cancel his train ticketand book again. Third year students will begin theirs from13th April only. The second year students helped thecommunity in a small way by arranging the books of thecommunity library. This might be the last news sent to theRB from us for the academic year 2010-2011.

Sch Gabriel Ekka

NEWS FROM PARISHES

KANKEThe Lenten season began in earnest with Ash Wednesday.On this day, for the convenience of the faithful two Masseswere celebrated, one in the morning and the other in theevening. The church was full with the faithful in both theMasses. On 7 March Fr. Emmanuel had gone to Khuntito see his elder sister and other family members. He stayedovernight with them and came back safe and sound on 8March. But after reaching Kanke, when he was sitting inthe verandah, suddenly he fainted and was unconsciousfor some time. Luckily our cook was there. He awakenedFr. Praful and Fr. Patrick who were resting after their lunch.Thinking it could be a stroke, we informed St. Anne'sSisters, our good neighbours who came with their vehicleand immediately rushed Fr. Manu to the Sarawgi clinic onthe Kanke road. Doctor attended to him and foundeverything normal. There was no sign of stroke or any

other complication. For further treatment he suggested ablood check up and C.T scan. Both test-reports werealso normal. Now Fr. Manu is perfectly well. Fr. Patrickalso had a treatment for his toothache and got a set of newteeth. We hope with the new set he will feel comfortableand enjoy what the teeth are for. On 18 March Fr. Prafulhad gone to his village to celebrate the feast of St. Josephwith his villagers. St. Joseph is the patron saint of thevillage and the village chapel. The villagers were veryhappy to have him for the occasion. On 27 March heappeared for his Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) entrancetest in St. Xavier's College, Ranchi. He found it very tough,but still hopes to get a seat for his B. Ed. The same day inthe evening he gave a recollection to the parish youth. Quitemany boys and girls had come for that and nourishedthemselves spiritually.

Fr. Praful Ekka

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SARWADA

Jesuits working in the Munda zone came to Sarwada topraise God and to share the joys of Birthdays ofFrs. Frederick Kujur and Brice Bilung, on 6th and 23rd

March respectively.60 students of St. Xavier's High School, Sarwada

accompanied by Fr. Frederick and two teachersparticipated in CLC annual meet at Khunti from 4th-6th

March. Since this was a reunion of the CLC students' unitsits impact seems to have been transformative and lastingon the members. From 7th - 9th March, Fr. Frederick madeevery effort to impart to his students the right informationon challenges the adolescents face to.

Fr. Brice had a tough time in running the school ashis total teaching staff was engaged in the Indian Censusof 2011. He felt exhausted, physically weak, but continuedin his demanding duties. However, on 12th at 2 past night,he shouted desperately for somebody's help. He wasfortunate enough to get help from Fr. Victor and St. Anne'ssisters immediately. Diagnosis indicates that he is sufferingfrom low blood pressure.

Fr. Victor, aged 76, interrupted his Lenten tours andrushed to see the doctor for some swelling and pain on hisfeet. No local medicine and treatment was of any help.Presently he is at Manresa House Ranchi for furthertreatment and rest.

Fr. Frederick Kujur

KOCHANG

Imparting good and quality education has been a dream, agoal, a commitment and a challenge to the Jesuits workingin remote places like Kochang - a place far way fromKhunti district headquarter. It a place inhabited by theMunda tribe, an area covered by beautiful naturallandscape but always neglected by the successivegovernments for its development and wellbeing of thepeople of the place. In such a place stands a missionaryschool- Stockmann Memorial School- named after anearliest Jesuit missionary who arrived in this part of MundaDisum in the latter half of the 19th century. This school hasa vision to provide good education to the poor andneglected people to overcome their seclusion from rest ofthe world. Keeping such a noble goal in mind, at the outsetof the academic session 2011-12, there was a joint meetingof the staff, students, guardians and the managing committeeof the school in the first week of March. It was quiteencouraging to see the response of the guardians whoturned up in good number to reflect together on how toimprove the standard of the school. It is a good sign thatpeople are well aware of the importance and relevance ofgood education.

Golden Jubilee of Sr. Pratima D.S.A. on March 5was a day of celebration and thanksgiving, a festiveoccasion for the entire parish. Superior General Sr. MaryLinda, Provincial superior Sr. Nirmala Jyoti and 50 otherSt. Anne's sisters added extra solemnity to the Jubilee. Onsuch a joyful occasion Fr. Victor Surin - the Dean ofSarwada Deanery- presided over the Jubilee ThanksgivingEucharist while Frs. Anil Horo, Ignatius Dungdung,L. Francken, Joachim and Anthony were theconcelebrants. Fr. Victor appreciated Sr. Pratima for hersimple life and dedicated service as a religious to the peopleof Chotanagpur.

As the Lenten Season started, the Parish Priest anda few others are busy in their Lenten Pastoral tours todifferent village units. However, the traditional tribal PhaguaHunting Festival interrupted the schedule for a few days,but soon it was resumed as the feast got over.

Fr. Joachim Jojo

BINGAON

In the month of March, there were a few memorable eventsin Bingaon Parish. With the theme "The Fire Must Burn" -around 500 Mahila Sangh members of Khunti Vicariategathered for XV Annual Mahila Sangh Rally on 5-6 March.On this occasion Fr. Joachim Dungdung as resourceperson challenged the participants to become fire everburning shedding light in the world.

Two Jesuit novices Kuldeep Ba'a and Saban BinodXalxo arrived Bingaon on March 11. Both are sent todifferent villages to prepare the parishioners spiritually forEaster. Br. John and his team members from Kolkata -Brs. Bimal, Marianus and Asit - were in Bingaon to preacha three days' Charismatic retreat for the parishioners. Theresponse of the faithful was very encouraging. Many feltspiritually renewed.

Fr. Patras Ekka was busy in the school conductingfinal exams while Frs. Anupchand and Elias were engagedin visiting families and people's representatives recentlyelected in local Panchayat elections in order to conscientizethem about their rights and responsibilities. On March 27,one-day seminar was held for pramukh, mukhias,panchayat samiti members, ward members and villagepresidents of 7 Panchayats of Karra Block. The objectivewas to prepare these local representatives carry out theirduties more responsibly and effectively. There was anoverwhelming response: 210 participants enriched andenlightened by this seminar. Fr. Peter Mahendra Tigga andcouple of others were present as resource persons. Theydeserved special thanks for making the seminar moreenlightening. We are grateful to XISS community forsupporting and sponsoring the seminar.

Fr. Elias Kullu

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ASSAM MISSION

BALIPARA/ TEZPUR

Blessing of the New Curia cum the Gana Chetna Samajbuilding in Tezpur on 21 March: 21st March is thered-letter day in the history of the Assam Mission whenRt. Rev. Michael Akasius Toppo, Bishop of Tezpur cutthe ribbon of the new building at Hazarapar at Rail gate atTezpur town at 11.00 a.m. and blessed the Curia cum theGana Chetna Samaj building. Fr. Xavier Soreng, NewProvincial of Ranchi Jesuit Province, cut the ribbon of theCuria building whereas the ex-Provincial Fr. Ranjit PascalToppo cut the ribbon of the Gana Chetna Samaj trainingcentre. Bishop Michael Akasius Toppo blessed the newbuilding. Soon after the blessing ceremonies a short varietyentertainment programme was arranged on the first floorof the new Gana Chetna Samaj training hall. The highlightof the programme was the Bihu dance by the Chapagurimembers and also the Nepali dance by one of the SHGs.The dignitaries were offered shawls as a token of loveand appreciation. Several speakers expressed theirheartfelt gratitude for opening a training centre for our tribalsand other NGOs in the heart of Tezpur for the socio-economic development of our people. Many people havehigh hopes from this centre that we will be able to serveour people more and in a better way. Fr. John Ekka, theTreasurer of the Ranchi Province and Fr. Pradeep Kujur,the Temporal Administration Coordinator, were alsopresent for this occasion. Most of our Jesuits of the AssamMission were present for the occasion. Fr. Hector D'Souza, Thomas Mathew and William D'Souza representedthe Kohima Region, who came down from the Palizzi area.Local nuns (Ursulines, Sacred Heart, FMA) and somepriests of the diocese were also in attendance. Some 150people from different SHGs from different areas likeManas Bansbari, Missamari, and Balipara were also wellrepresented. At the end of the programme all were servedwith a sumptuous meal that was prepared for the occasion.We are very grateful to Fr. George Soreng, the Directorof the Gana Chetna Samaj for his sustained hard work,meticulous planning, arrangements and fine supervision tocomplete the building within stipulated time.Meeting with the New Provincial: On 21 March ourmarathon session began at 3.00 p.m. giving information toour new Provincial Fr. Xavier Soreng about our AssamMission. The meeting began with a short introduction byFr. Xavier Lakra, the Mission Superior, about the AssamMission then he invited the Fathers to share about theirdifferent centres' various ministries and challenges. Fathers

presented detailed information about diverse apostolatesthey are engaged in, various challenges and hardships theyface and what progress they have made. The sharingsession was very informative, enriching, inspirational andinteresting and it ended only at 8.45 p.m.

After the tea break we had been to the Kanak LataUdyan some 4 kms away from our present location atTezpur. It is situated at the bank of the Brahmaputra Riverand an exotic picnic spot. We had very little time to enjoythe panoramic view of the sunset.Budget session: On 22 March, at 9.30 a.m., the budgetsession started at the new Curia building for the Jesuits ofthe Assam Mission. Frs. John Ekka and Pradeep Kujurwere the ones to guide and challenge us during the session.The meeting went on till 1.00 p.m. In his interaction Fr.John reminded us quite many times that the budget shouldbe made properly.Visit to St. Xavier's Junior College at Sonabheel: At2.30 p.m. the troop left for Sonabheel to see St. Xavier'sJunior College construction works which are in full swing,and also to plan for the new Degree College building. Theformer Provincial Fr. Ranjit and the new Provincial Fr.Xavier took a very keen interest to measure the plot of theland and to plan for the new degree college building. Afterthat there was a short meeting of the Jesuits and with thebuilders to discuss the approximate cost and the date tostart the construction work of the degree college.Meeting St. John's school Hostel boys and girls atBalipara: That same evening at 6.00, the hostel boys andgirls of St. John's school welcomed our New ProvincialFr. Xavier Soreng in their campus with a varietyentertainment programme. They presented the Nepali andBoro dances to welcome the guests.

The hectic days of his visit to the Assam Missionclimaxed with the holy Eucharist presided by the ProvincialFr. Xavier Soreng. In his sharing he expressed his deepsatisfaction of the variety of works undertaken by ourJesuits in different centres. He encouraged us to continueto do good for our people. He said that he came and sawthe Assam Mission and he knew little more about its goodprogress realized during these 13 years. His visit concludedwith the agape meal at Xavier Sadan, Balipara, hosted byFr. Theodore. It was indeed a historical time of grace inthe annals of the Assam mission. And, on 23 March at7.30 a.m., the Ranchi team left for Tezpur airport on theironward journey to Ranchi. - After the blessing of the Curiacum Gana Chetna Samaj, Frs. Xavier and George haveshifted to Tezpur house and they are living there.

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Construction works:

St. Xavier's Junior College Western Wing construction isin full swing. June-end is the finishing target, but with thespeed it is moving it seems it will be ready by the end ofMay.

Construction of the Holy Cross Convent at Baliparais also in full swing. The contractor hopes to hand over thepremises by April-end. The construction of the CommunityHall has just begun and has already picked up themomentum. The masons are busy constructing the first floorso that during the rainy season also they can continue towork and try to finish the work by July-end.

St. Xavier's Junior College has finished the examsof the first and Second year students. Fr. James had goneto Binaguri to meet the Grihini girls who are sponsored byour outreach programme, and also to Kathalguri to meetSr. Carmel, SCJM in view of planning for the forthcomingannual meeting of our teachers of the Jesuit schools to beheld at Balipara from 28-29 April. Sch. Ravi Xess hasgone to visit his hostellers' family members spread out invarious directions. Meanwhile Fr. John Berchmans,together with Mr. George Kandulna one of the professors,was busy doing his homework mainly contacting thePrincipal of Tezpur College for the affiliation of our St.Xavier's Degree College with Tezpur College. The principalof Tezpur College has willingly accepted the request andhas invited us to get the affiliation with their college.

Miss Annie Chirakal, the auditor of the Ranchiprovince, was with us for 10 days. She checked ouraccounts together with Fr. Ignatius Kujur, the treasurer ofthe Assam Mission, and she even called some of the Fatherswhose accounts were not in order.

Fr. Xavier Lakra

ST XAVIER'S COLLEGE, SONABEEL

The College needs ownership of the land to get an approvalfrom the Assam Council of Higher Secondary Education.On 1st March, therefore, Frs. John and Xavier had adiscussion with Fr. Ravi Sagar SJ at Guwahati. We alsomet Mr. A Brook the chairperson of the MinorityCommission of Assam. We consulted him about thepossibility of opening the degree college. Everybody issupportive of the idea of starting the classes for DegreeCollege from the session 2011-2012. Fr. John B.Dungdung is upbeat and has been working on the necessaryand basic preparation for starting the classes of degreecourses in Arts and Commerce streams.

As all the classes are suspended for final exams thestaff and the management continue with their reflection onIPP Principles. Through these sessions they are more andmore convinced of the Jesuit vision and mission oneducation. The Jesuit legacy on education well expressedin IPP, if implemented in our educational institution, cantransform our final product into men and women ofcompetence, conscience, compassion and commitment.For next year's session the college is trying to bring in the3 areas of student-teacher interaction, class room teaching,cooperative learning session and mentoring session to helpthe students grow as men and women for and with others.

As the college has decided to bring in 'Mentoring' ina big way in interaction between the staff and the students,the staff tried to understand the finer points of Mentoringthrough role play and feedback. All the teachers took activepart in reflection and decision. Thus the staff is getting readyto conduct mentoring sessions in the coming academic year.On 21st March, Fr. John B. Dungdung representedSt. Xavier's College at the inauguration of Gana ChetnaBuilding at Tezpur.

The next day a budget session was held for the wholeAssam Mission. The proposed budget for each apostolatewas discussed and finalized. It was quite tedious but anenriching experience.

At 03:00 p.m., Fr. Xavier Soreng paid a quick visitto the College site at Solabasti. As he arrived there thehostellers welcomed him with garland and gamchha. Aftermeeting them he went to see the construction site of thedegree college. Construction of the part of the degreecollege has been finalized, and the work will start soon.

Outreach Programme

Some more non-formal education centers have beenidentified at the request of the people. Mr. Junas Ekka hasbeen supervising the survey and possibility of opening acenter. Through the outreach programme network thecollege is in contact with those tribal students who areappearing for class X and XII finals. Definitely the numberof our tribal students has increased. The college expectsto get more tribal students coming to join the college.

On 27th February, the Kachubil unit of LNN held itsmonthly meeting. After their faith sharing, the group focusedon the existing government and private schools in itsneighbourhood. The group plans to visit the local and districteducation department and make them aware of the sadplight of the schools and request them to appoint somemore teachers according to the need the schools.

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On 13th March the LNN unit of Bakola held itsmonthly meeting chaired by Mr. Junas, the member of thecentral committee. The faith sharing session was veryinspiring. Many members, literate and illiterate, shared theirexperiences of God's hand in their lives. As a concreteexpression of their faith, they discussed some communitydevelopment programmes.

On 20th March the youth of Balipara had theirmonthly meeting. Despite rains around 100 boys and girlsparticipated. Out of 24 units 15 were represented. Afterhearing the report of each unit Fr. James encouraged themto realize the power of youth in every unit. His reflectionswere based on how to channelize youth-power for the all-round growth of the church. He also stressed on havingthe unit meeting every fortnight. They should come forwardto help the needy and the powerless. Sr. Pratibha HC readout the whole Lenten and Easter programme to the youthand requested them to cooperate, so that the Lenten andEaster liturgy may be celebrated meaningfully.

Fr. James Lakra

PENGREE

Visit of Mr . Grattan Boylan to St. Xavier's SchoolPengree on 14-16 March.

Another milestone in the history of St. Xavier'sSchool Pengree was added when Mr. Grattan Boylan, anIrish benefactor, landed at Pengree on 14th March, alongwith Fr. Xavier Lakra, and Sr. Pratibha H.C. of Balipara.Fr. Xavier picked him up from the Dibrugarh airport andbrought him to our Jesuit residence Pengree at 7.00 p.m.Our hostel boys and girls, staff and the Fathers welcomedhim with washing the hands and singing and offering thegamchha. The next day 15th March, we had a grandreception of Mr. Grattan starting with the drill display bythe St. Xavier's school students. It was a wonderful andfantastic display by the students. After this there was avariety entertainment programme by the students ofdifferent classes. These programmes were also veryentertaining and refreshing.

In between many students, both boys and girls, clungto Mr. Grattan and interacted with him on various topics.Mr. Grattan was really impressed by the courage of these

students and also the liveliness with which they were re-sponding to him. He found time to go to different sectionsof the students and intermingled with them. The final itemof the day was a football match between the two teamsbut fortunately the match drew by one-one.

On Wednesday 16 March, after the AssemblyMr. Grattan visited the Staff members and inquired them ifthey were happy. The teachers asked for an increase intheir salary! Mr. Grattan met the students of Class IX andasked what they would like to become when they hadfinished their High school. Many students expressed theirdesire to become doctors and engineers, and some saidthey would like to become teachers, priests and nuns. Thedreams of the students sound quite noble and excellent,and the way to their goals is very steep, all the sameMr. Grattan wished them all the best in their studies andtold them to keep trying to reach their goals.

By 9.00 a.m. Mr. Grattan left Pengree to go to theDibrugarh airport along with Fr. Xavier and Sr. Pratibha.It was a very memorable day for the students and for thestaff members as well. Now the school building is completewith the ground, first and second floors. The Management,Staff, students and parents' body sincerely thank Mr.Grattan for his visit, for his inspiration and support to buildthis St. Xavier's School, Pengree.

Pengree has a very gigantic look of three storiedschool building now fully shaped. Telesphore is happy tofinish up the brick and cement works of the building. Plasterwork is over, white sanitary and electric wiring are yet tobe done. The school has now 20 computers for thestudents' hi-tech knowledge. All these computers aresponsored by the EDUCO, an Irish - India Charitableorganization for the development of the poor children.Xavier had prolonged discussions with and proposals toMr. Grattan for the development of Adivasis in Pengreearea. Educo also provided 10 sewing machines for Pengreefor our people to help them earn some livelihood. Thusnow Pengree is provided with some vital facilities by whichthey feel somewhat empowered.

The students' playground is also ready. A full sizefootball ground is attracting many matches in the near future.Three volleyball and a basketball courts will be ready withina short time.

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Upper Assam is getting continuous rain for a fort-night. Due to nonstop rain winter is lingering and we arestill under the quilts and wrapped in sweaters. Due to rainthe building work is a bit disturbed. On the other hand it isrefreshing to see greenery coming up in the tea gardens allaround having very fresh cool oxygen for breathing, whichis good for health.

Frs. Dominic and Telesphore had gone to Balipara/Tezpur for the Curia building inauguration and Budgetsession for the Assam Mission. Telesphore spent almost aweek in Tezpur doing accounting work.

Fr. Telesphore LakraKATHALGURI

On 24 March, Frs. Mukul, Lawrentus and Ajay travelledat night from Balipara to Kathalguri for the 'gami' mass ofthe late Mr. Bosco Chermako. The two St. Anne Novicesare doing their pastoral ministries in the different villagesof the parish by conducting prayer sessions, preparing thechildren for the sacraments of the reconciliation and firstcommunion. They will be there till Easter Monday.Construction works are also in good progress.

Fr. Mukul Lakra

MANAS BANSBARI

Two St. Anne's second year novices are busy visitingdifferent units of our parish, animating people for thesacraments of reconciliation, the first communion andteaching them prayers. Fr. Ajay is trying to complete theschool building construction by the end of April. Slowlybut steadily the dispensary is picking up by the St. Anne'sSisters. Everyday many patients suffering from variousailments are coming for the medical treatment.

Fr. Ajay Tirkey

MUSHALPUR

Two Jesuit novices Lazarus Basumatary and Noel Ekkafrom Ranchi are in Mushalpur and they are staying in someBoro villages. Lazarus, who is a Boro himself, is trying todeepen their faith by teaching them prayers and giving theminstruction for confession, communion and confirmation,whereas Noel is giving a good company to Lazarus. St.Xavier's Middle school construction is in good progressunder the supervision of Fr. Vital. Fr. Pradeep, togetherwith the Sisters, is trying to bring about quality educationand he is demanding the quality teaching from the staffmembers also.

Fr. Vital Ekka

GREGORIAN UNIVERSITY , ROME

There were a number of major academic activities in theUniversity in March. On 10 March, the annual SolemnAcademic Act was held on the theme Marriage andFamily in a Multi-religious and Multi-cultural Society.Each Faculty takes turn to organize this annual event andthis year, it was the turn of the Faculty of Canon Law.Under the guidance of the New Rector, the Academic Actwitnessed a substantially greater and more activeparticipation of both the students and the staff. On 11March, the three Commissions created by the Rector toevaluate the pedagogy, quality of doctoral studies and thespace of the University presented their reports to theSenate. There is a general expectation that something newand concrete would emerge after the rigorous evaluationof the central aspects of the University. On March 21, thestudents, the staff and the co-workers came together foran Evening of Solidarity with the people of Japan. Thefirst part was dedicated to solidarity session where the

Japanese community shared their experiences of anguish,hope and despair and, the others expressed their onenessand communion with the suffering people. The second partwas dedicated to the Eucharistic celebration. As liturgicalChaplain, I had carefully planned every detail of the Masswith the help of a group of students. One part of theEucharistic prayer in Japanese and the Prayers of theFaithful in different Asian languages made the Eucharisticcelebration apt and deeply meaningful for the Evening ofSolidarity. Apart from the usual academic activities at theUniversity, Fr. Linus was invited by the Doctrinal Fathersto address a youth group of a Parish near Turin on 27March. He introduced them to some of the interestingaspects of tribal way of life and socio-political situation inJharkhand. Some of them might visit Jharkhand duringcoming months.

On 18 March, Fr. Bruno Toppo, our AssistantTreasurer, arrived in Rome via Brussels. He had a hasslefree journey, except that he was asked to throw some of

DIASPORA

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the articles in Brussels, which he was carrying as gifts fromRanchi for his Province men in Rome. Notwithstandingsans gifts, he was received very warmly by Justin,Christdhari (MAP), Linus and Prem. After two days ofrest and relaxation, they began their course on Sundayevening with an official meeting with R.P. General. Thecourse for 35 Treasurers from different parts of the worldconcluded on March 25. Immediately after the course, hemoved to the Gregorian community as a guest. The verynext day, I had to accompany a group of students for aone-day outing to the summer Papal Palace of CastelGandolfo, Marian Sanctuary of Ariccia and the Monasteryof San Nilo in Grottaferrata. Bruno was very happy tojoin us. The students too received him very cordially andmade him feel at home in every way possible. It was apleasant and enriching experience to be with the Gregorianstudents - Seminarians, Priests, Nuns as well as a groupof energetic young girls. On 27 March, I took him aroundto show some important places of Rome, which have deephistorical, cultural and religious significance. The climax ofthe day for him was the emotional pilgrimage to the Chapelof La Storta. He exclaimed with joy and satisfaction. "Now,Master, you may let your servant go in peace, […] for myeyes have seen your salvation" (Lk 2:29-30). On the eveof his departure from Rome, Justin invited him at ResidenzaSan Pietro Canisio for a farewell meal. We were happy toaccompany him along with Linus and Christdhari. He waswished every success during his further tour of Belgium,Holland, Germany and Switzerland. On his next stop, Fr.Aurel Brys was present to receive him warmly at theBrussels Midi Railway Station. Good Luck, Bruno.

Fr. Prem Xalxo

BRITISH PROVINCE, UNITED KINGDOM

It's spring time here in Great Britain. The long spell of winteris finally over. On March 27, the Britons and mostEuropeans have lost an hour of sleep after clocks wentforward by one hour, marking the official end of winter.The change officially takes place at 01.00 Greenwich MeanTime (GMT), after which clocks had to be moved forwardby one hour to 0200. There is an interesting historyattached to it. Daylight saving was suggested in 1784 by

American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin, toallow people to enjoy more light in the evenings. DaylightSaving Time (DST), also known as Summer Time in BritishEnglish, is the practice of temporarily advancing clocksduring the summertime so that afternoons have moredaylight and mornings have less. Typically clocks areadjusted forward one hour near the start of spring (the lastSunday of March) and are adjusted backward in autumn,which falls on October 31. Well, with changing colors ofthe trees and plants and the blossoming of flowers: thegreat daffodils, the tulips, the daisies, the violets, thebluebells and the cherry laurels of which we just read inthe textbooks, nature is at its best right now. With the springseason and a long summer in waiting it is a grinding periodfor the students: the time to complete the pending works,taking exams and facing the panels for a review of researchwork produced. It is a tough call but one has to respondto it in the best manner possible, if one wants to enjoy alovely summer which is unlike back home in India. It hasbeen a difficult month for Fr Vinod on the academic front.He had to present two research papers in the universityfor the research students. The papers titled, "Metaphorsin religious Language" (on March 3) and "Metaphoricaltruth and disagreement" (on March 24th) both of whichreceived sterner tests but over all a very constructivefeedback. He realizes that he needs to work a lot harderon quite a few areas that were pointed out during the courseof discussion with his fellow research students. He will befacing the panel of examiners for the evaluation of his worksthis year sometime in May.

Fr Amar Bage is as usual busy with his studies andfieldworks. He has been to a couple of English countrysidefor his fieldwork. He says he has been immensely impressedby the amount of development the English countryside(villages) enjoy in comparison with the villages in the sub-continent. What he enjoyed most during his fieldwork isthe eco-friendly environment around the villages, thebeautiful landscapes, the horses, the sheep and the cattlegrazing across the lush green outfield which is a sight tobehold. As a student of Social sciences in internationaldevelopment, this experience and exposure will help hima great deal for his work as a missionary in Guyana andpossibly sometime later his work in Ranchi province.

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Fr Raymond has just come back having concludedhis three-month stint at Jesuit Spirituality centre atLiverpool. Here is what he had to say, "My 3-month courseat Loyola Hall, Jesuit Spirituality Centre, Liverpool wasconcluded with much of my satisfaction. The aim of thecourse there is to provide training basically in spiritualaccompaniment in the Ignatian tradition. It draws heavilyupon the tradition of the Spiritual Exercises, the foundationaltext of the Ignatian Spirituality. Therefore, though the onlyJesuit participant in the group, I was not exempted fromhaving lived experience of making the full SpiritualExercises before embarking on the course. To see theparticipants from different continents, Christiandenominations and ways of life benefiting from Ignatianspirituality was a unique and joyful experience. The Centrealso lives up the spirit of collaboration - quite a few teammembers are non-Jesuits, committed and efficient! Monthof April finds me in Manresa House, Jesuit Novitiate,Birmingham. Once the Novices are back from theirexperiments, I will be with them in their sharing sessions. Iam also looking forward to meet some more Jesuits of theBritish Province during Fr General's visit to the Provincesometime in April. My second part of the course will be atSt Beuno's, another Jesuit Spirituality Centre in Britain fromMay to July, 2011." We wish Fr Raymond a very goodspring season and a lovely couple of months in Birminghambefore he heads for St. Beuno's for his next spiritual journey.

Fr. Vinod Sushil Soreng

MINIA (EGYPT)

It was an immense joy to receive Fr Aurel Brys at theCairo airport on 2nd March morning, on his five days' transiten route to Belgium. The plan had begun from the lastNovember when he got a special discount ticket in EgyptAir. All was well but, sudden health problems before travel,people's advice to cancel the trip, fourteen hours late flightdeparture from Mumbai, etc. had made things difficult forhim. No way, though late, he managed to land in Egypt.He is the first Jesuit from the Province to visit me after nineyears of my life in Egypt. Due to his late arrival, I had tocancel Alexandria visit, my former ministry place besidethe Mediterranean. He had a busy time in Minia where

we've various works. In Cairo, he had the unique visit toTahrir Square, the epicenter of recent Egypt's revolutionwhich ousted the three-decade regime of Mr HosniMubarak. On the outskirts of Cairo, we paid a short visitto one of the four houses of Mother Teresa's Sisters (MC)where three are from Jharkhand. They were very happyto get the general news of their homeland, i.e. Katkahi,Simdega and Sarwada. After the trip, Fr Aurel left forBelgium. Heartfelt thanks to him for everything.

After his official visit to Egypt in Dec 1-5, Fr Generalwas in Syria, Lebanon and Turkey from 21-28 March.He escaped the anti-government protests in Syria whichis sweeping West Asia and the Arab worlds. During hisvisit in Lebanon, Fr. General had a touching moment withhis predecessor Very Rev. Fr P.H .Kolvenbach, Fr. Generalhas completed the visit of the Near East Jesuit Province.

On 19th March Egypt held a general referendum onthe Constitutional Amendments. It showed the highest voterturnout after the recent regime change. 77.2 per cent ofvoters approved the amendments while 22.8 per cent votedagainst. Looking at the results, various sources say thatthere were violations in various parts of Egypt. Sourcesreported attempts to sway voters on the polling day, lateopening, early closure or no opening of some pollingstations, the absence of judges in some booths, the lack ofor no phosphoric ink in some polling stations, a number ofwomen wearing a full face veil (niquab) refusing to removetheir gloves and use phosphoric ink or allow judges tocheck their identity. So much so, one of the Presidenthopefuls and former head of the IAEA Mohammed ElBaradei was attacked by a group when he arrived at apolling station with his family, and hence prevented fromvoting.

In many towns and villages, Muslim Brotherhoodand other Muslim groups had managed to sway the votersin their favour. Here and there, Muslim crowd shoutedslogans,"by all means, we've brought the Cross to theground", and "Islam is the winner". Many Muslims hadvoted "yes" fearing that a "no" vote would have enabled afuture change to the Constituition and might have affectedarticle 2 that stipulates Islam as the State religion and IslamicSharia (jurisdiction), a major source of legislation. Themajority of Christian voters and liberals, for their part hadvoted "no".

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01 Soreng Xavier02 Minj Ajay Prakash03 Minj Erentius04 Dungdung Samir

Lakra ShaileshToppo Erenius

05 To'ppo Ireneus07 Minj Gyan Prakash

Soreng Pradeep08 Xalxo Jerome S.09 Xess Gabriel11 Ekka Walter12 Khoya Manohar15 Delputte William

Kerketta Xavier16 Kerketta Benjamin19 Dungdung Alexius20 Ekka Praful

Kujur Ajit Kalyan24 Ba'a Ephrem28 Chermako Sylverius

Dhanwar John29 Tigga Lalit John30 Kullu Francis David

Minj Theodore

On March 29, a hard core Muslim group hadwarned Christian women/girls against leaving their homespast 9 p.m. (women move out freely till late night), orwearing clothes that exposed their arms or legs. Thosewho did so will be attacked or will be splashed with acid.

That day, majority of the women didn't dare to come outof their homes!

The future of real Democracy is uncertain. Policeservice is still not fully revived. Kindly keep praying forEgypt.

Fr Bimal Kerketta

BIRTH DAYS: APRIL & MA Y

APRIL MAY

01 Tete Albinus02 Lakra Polycarp

Ekka Britius04 Dungdung Anthres06 Barla James07 Doongdoong Anthony

Ekka VitalKerketta Anand

08 Tete Felix Prakash09 Kujur Emmanuel

Guria Cyril11 Toppo Alexius12 Xess Angelus

Topno Nicholas13 Tete James Pascal14 Kiro Sylvanus

Xalxo PiusTirkey Justin

16 Mathias Joseph B.18 Lakra Placidius20 Kerketta Sikander25 Kullu Santosh Vinay26 Minj Francis30 Baxla Emmanuel

Let us remember in Our PrayersMr. William Sinduria, uncle of sch. Valentine Sinduria passed away on 24th March 2011

WISH YOU ALL A HAPPY EASTER !

ALLELUIA !