Left to right: Kevin Smith, Norm Reavell, Tony Ishak, Allen Chu, Father Kim Ha (Parish
Priest), Chris Porteous, Tim Endicott, Gary Walsh, Truman Lomi
St Joseph Enfield are using resources from Kapaun’s Men to grow and sustain a men’s ministry. Father Kim Ha and men of the parish and inner western Sydney gathered on Monday 8 February for what was probably the first gathering of this type in Australia The Virtue Series is the original production of Kapaun’s Men. This is a formation ministry to men that is based on selfless and virtuous life of ‘Servant of God, Father Emile Kapaun.
Some things the men said about Servant of God, Father Kapaun after watching the video:
- “Father Kapaun had a solid formation, he had a good family foundation.” – Truman
- “He did not talk about being hungry or thirsty…where he engendered a will to live amongst the soldiers, not for his sake but for theirs … Turning a mud hut into a cathedral shows you that God is everywhere.” – Tony
- “Father Kapaun was an authentic man with enormous faith, possessing great courage in the face of adversity, and leaving a great legacy of love in his short but fruitful life.” – Norm
- “He lived his life like Jesus” – Tim
This is a great initiative of fellowship and formation for men based in and approved by the Catholic Diocese of Wichita Kansas, USA.
Fr. Emil Kapaun – Catholic Diocese of Wichita. Servant of God, Father Emile Kapaun, Pray for us.
St Joseph Enfield Men’s Ministry grew out of a group called Catholic Men’s Fellowship which operates in inner western Sydney.
For further information click these links:
Get in touch
Kevin Smith: 0470 284 590
Tim Endicott: 0449 924 663
St. Jerome, once said that, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.”
So, what about Catholics and Scripture. Well, the Mass is “Profoundly Biblical”. Check this website out: The Mass (catholicbridge.com)
Many of the men of St Joseph Enfield gather to contemplate Scripture and the teachings of the Church, in an atmosphere of mateship. Men gather according to family commitments. Parish chairman Richard Allcock has gathered with the men on several occasions, and last year gave a presentation on “Leadership in the Church”. Click here for notes and a prayer. It’s a good thing for men to gather in a scriptural context. Scripture speaks to us in different ways. Our parish priest, Father Kim Ha likes the Scripture from Chapter 8 of the Gospel of St John (8:32): You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.
I reckon that’s a pretty good Scripture. After all, who likes being a slave? Father Kim is very busy at the large parish of St Joseph, Enfield which really should probably be served by two priests. So, we are grateful of his support of Men’s Ministry.
My name is Kevin Smith and I love the Catholic Church. I have come to serve in the area of Men’s Ministry through a set of circumstances over several years. So, I guess I am the contact for Men’s Ministry at St Joseph, Enfield. There are a lot of good reasons for a Catholic Parish to have an active Men’s Ministry, the world is not exactly supportive of your Catholic faith, various issues relate to men in particular. We all need good mates. One of the Scriptures I like is about the Transfiguration. It occurs in the Gospels of Matthew 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8, Luke 9:29 and is referred to in St Peter’s Letter 1:16-18). There are many things I like about this Scripture. Without getting theological and referring to “the presence of the Law Giver and the Prophet” (Moses and Elijah) and Jesus’ “Inner-circle” (Peter, James and John), or the fact that the voice of the Lord boomed out in approval of His “beloved Son”, I love it because it conjures up an amazing image of Jesus, I like how Peter was very excited about this event- I can relate to St Peter getting over excited with zeal for the Lord. What an awesome God we have! Check this out:
The Transfiguration
After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them; his face shone like the sun and his clothes became white as light. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, conversing with him. Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud cast a shadow over them, then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” When the disciples heard this, they fell prostrate and were very much afraid. But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and do not be afraid.” And when the disciples raised their eyes, they saw no one else but Jesus alone.
Matthew, CHAPTER 17 | USCCB
One of my mates said he likes Matthew 14:15-21. His name is Allen. He’s an Acolyte, and another of my mates who is also an Acolyte sometimes refers to Allen as ‘Monsignor Allen’, Father Kim once said he was “like an Archacolyte”. It’s because of his ‘can do attitude’ and zeal for service at the altar as an acolyte. Allen Chu coordinates the parish Acolytes. He’s a funny guy who can be relied upon to serve, he crack jokes, mostly funny and always in goodwill. A solid man in the parish. Allen likes the scripture reference to Jesus feeding five thousand people. This is what Allen says: “The miracles that Jesus performed throughout his life demonstrate his healing powers, including curing lepers, blind men and the famous ‘feeding the five thousand’ with only five loaves of bread and two pieces of fish. Jesus doesn’t want the crowds to go away as suggested by the disciples but wants them to stay give them something to eat. In social customs, we welcome our family and friends to dinner in our homes and share a meal together and show hospitality. Jesus invites his followers to come together and welcomes us all to join his family. This is what we do when we come to Mass every Sunday.” Check this Scripture out:
Jesus fed at least five thousand people
As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” 16 Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” 17 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. 18 “Bring them here to me,” he said. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Matthew CHAPTER 14:15-21
For our friend Gary Walsh, it is Psalm 55 23 that comes to mind as a helpful Scripture in the fast paced world in which we live. Today’s world more so than ever we are increasingly been bombarded & overwhelmed by everyday life and situations, which causes many fears and failures within ourselves. But throughout Scripture, ‘the Good Word’, we are reminded not to fear, the Lord is always with us, we can cast our doubts, our failings, onto him. That most commonly repeated phrase in the Bible of “be not afraid” tells us that fear and anxiety have always been challenging. So, “ Cast your care upon the LORD, who will give you support. He will never allow the righteous to stumble. Like many of us, our mate Chris finds it difficult to pick a “favourite Scripture”, because there are so many inspiring Scripture verses. When asked, Christ selected Matthew 13:24-30 because “Though we have to live with Godless people and many evils we can be consoled that all will be well if we live according to God’s will.”
The Parable of the Weeds Among the Wheat
“He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds* all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”
Matthew CHAPTER 13:24-30