Penned By : Savariyar Innasimuthu

The RTP Tamil Catholic Association celebrated the festival of Our Lady of Good Health Velankanni on Sunday, August 20th, 2023. The festivities commenced with the Blessing of Holy Oil, the consecration of the new mother Mary statue, and the recitation of novena prayers. Following these rituals, we held a procession around the church, carrying the sapparam with the newly consecrated mother Mary statue. Subsequently, a Holy Mass was celebrated in Tamil, with Rev.Fr. Gnanapragasam as the main celebrant, and joined by Rev.Fr. Arul Yagappan, Rev.Fr. Soosai Arockiadass, Rev.Fr. Lourduraj Alapaty, and Rev.Fr. John Vedanayagam.

The joyful occasion concluded with a delicious dinner, and it’s important to note that none of this celebration would have been possible without the dedicated efforts of numerous volunteers. We wish to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all those selfless individuals who contributed to the success of this event. Below is a list of the various committees and their contributions that played a pivotal role in the success of this event.

To keep the newly consecrated mother Mary statue, the Holy Cross Catholic Church Parish priest Fr. Pius requested us to design a pedestal to match the existing pedestal that is located on the right side of the church. With Paul as a lead, a committee (Antony, Adarsh, Christopher, Inigo, Joseph, John, Patrick, and Savariyar) was formed to obtain quotes for pedestal from various sources. After careful consideration, the committee decided to hire a skilled carpenter “Joe”, to construct the pedestal. Joe has completed the pedestal and delivered it to the church on Saturday, July 27th. Patrick has played a crucial role in this process, working closely with Joe to ensure that the pedestal meets all the necessary requirements, which includes measurements and color.  In addition to the pedestal, Patrick took the initiative to order candles online and modified them to work with electricity and to fix them on the pedestal. Adarsh provided valuable assistance to Patrick in making this modification successfully.

The Decoration Committee was established with the purpose of adorning the sapparam, pedestal, church, and the altar. Vidya took the lead, with Rani, Jency, Monicka, Anjela, and Golda as team members. Rani undertook the task of procuring the necessary decorative items from India. On August 12, 2023, one week before the celebration, Antony, Vidya, Golda, Joseph, Adarsh, and Savariyar assembled at Patrick’s house to make sure the Mother Mary statue fits in the Sapparam and pedestal. We appreciate Caroline generosity in providing snacks and lunch for all the members. On the morning of August 19th, the Decoration Committee members convened at the church and meticulously adorned the Sapparam, church and the altar. Additionally, they embellished the floors with intricate and beautiful Kolam designs.

The Mass Preparation Committee created the worship guide to ensure the smooth flow of the Mass and festival proceedings. Savariyar led the committee, with Angela, Jency, Monicka, and Rani. On July 30th, Savariyar, Joseph, and Golda traveled to Eden, NC, met Fr. Pragasam and finalized the document. The team members thoroughly reviewed the document and printed 100 copies. Joseph and Savariyar conducted altar server training sessions on July 29th and on August 19^th.  Ronel, Loran, Anaya and Hannah attended the altar server training. These training sessions proved to be highly beneficial. Deepa led the rosary during the procession. 

The RTPTCA choir (led by Susan and Jeyan, consisted of Antony, Anita, Benitta, Golda, Vijayan, Jency, Maria, Monicka, Prabha, Savariyar, and Susai) offered praise to the Lord through their music and songs during the Mass and procession.

The Prayers for the Sick Committee, led by Golda with Rupa, Monicka, Maria, Raji, Aadarsh, and Aathira filled 500 canisters of oil and provided prayers for the sick.

The Promotion and Publication Committee, led by Joseph and Chris, designed, and printed flyers and disseminated them through various channels, including Holy Cross Church, St. Michael’s bulletin, Facebook, and websites. Richard and Mervin took beautiful pictures and recorded the festivals. Raja helped to organize the Saparam bearers.

The Food Committee played a crucial role in ensuring that the devotees were well-fed and satisfied during their visit. The food committee lead Jayaraj Kanagaraj and its members Anna Rupa, Sneha Kurian, Michael, Joseph, Rani, and Albina were responsible for procuring the necessary catering & cleaning, making weekly calls to ensure that tasks were being handled on time, ensuring that the quality food delivered on time, and the price within our budget. Michael oversaw the serving team. The entire Food Committee had the responsibility of maintaining cleanliness and hygiene in the dining area. Joseph, Rani, and Albina provided invaluable guidance and instructions to ensure the success of this team’s effort.

The celebration went well. May the mother Mary and his son Jesus Christ bless us all. Thank you!!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Penned by : Benita Joseph

Mark 6:31 – Jesus said to them, “Come away with me. Let us go alone to a quiet place and rest for a while”.

 Our Lenten retreat for this year started on March 25, 2023 Saturday at 9:00 am sharp with holy rosary and continued with ‘Praise and Worship’ songs. The theme for our retreat was “I am revelations of Jesus”.

Our preacher was Fr. Amalraj Savarimuthu, who came all the way from Philadelphia. He enlightened us on the depth of God’s word.

Fr. Arul Yagappan gave us his spiritual support and Fr. Lourduraj Alapatty gave us a brief talk about Lenten spirituality.

Fr. Amalraj shared his thoughts over 3 sessions.

Session 1 – I am the Bread of Life & 1^st pillar of family life

Father kept us engaged with many interactive questions and inspiring stories. With brief introduction about the importance of family life, he walked us through the history of mankind from creation to present and how God created us to be united as a family. He showed the parallelism of Jesus in the New Testament and Joseph in the Old Testament.

Session 2 – I am the Good Shepherd and 2^nd pillar of family life

After a short break, we continued the retreat. With great conviction, Father taught us the love that binds the trinity (Holy Spirit) and the family too. He showed us the power of positive talks by the experiment of Japanese scientist, and the snowflake pattern in frozen water that was positively influenced. Time just flew, when we were reminded by Vijayan that it was lunch break.

Kids Ministry

Meanwhile, in our fellowship hall, our little children were kept engaged with stories of God’s love, importance of Lent along with activities with crafts and acts too. Thanks to volunteers and kid’s ministry coordinators (Maria & Joyce).

Way of the Cross

Our kids were the super stars. They sang hymns in the church and then dressed in the right costumes, portrayed and wonderfully enacted the Way of the Cross, which for sure will be etched in everyone’s memory forever. It was very meaningful as they took us all through each step of Jesus’s journey to crucifixion! Thanks again to Maria, Joyce and parents who were actively involved.

Youth Ministry

During the afternoon session, we had a separate session for the little kids (split into 2 groups age-wise) in the fellowship hall. The youth ministry – session lead by volunteers Chris Peter, David Savariyar, Jessica Antony and coordinated by Vidya, was conducted very effectively. They spoke and taught about LENT.

Chris spoke about ‘Charity & Almsgiving’ and had a LENT Bingo which the kids enjoyed. David lead the group speaking about ‘Fast & Abstinence’ and moving away from distractions to get closer to God. Jessica spoke about the importance of Prayer in our daily lives and how we can talk/chat with God and then ended with an activity where children colored a heart shape paper and wrote down who they wanted to pray for.

Feedback – All of the youth-leads kept the kids engaged so well, that, the kids did not want to leave the hall when called to take pictures.

Lunch

Thanks to our potluck coordinators (Nirmala Francis and Genrose) we had a sumptuous lunch with so many varieties. The menu was very thoughtful and yummy! Children had special treat too. Yeah, it was Pizza. Thanks to our volunteers who helped in setting up the lunch and clearing it.

Session 3 – I am the Light of the World and the 3^rd pillar of family life

Retreat continued post lunch with further enlightenment about the sins in our society and how all the root cause starts from family. Those goose bumps moment came when Mama Mary, the epitome of God’s creation was glorified as the supreme creation of God the Father, Mother of Christ and spouse of Holy Spirit, the complete ‘Unity in Trinity’.

As always, all good things must come to an end. We all were energized, empowered to love our family and most of all, trusting in the goodness of our Savior.

Finally, Father was felicitated by RTPCA’s president Mr. Joseph Prem Anand, bringing an end to the wonderful Lenten Retreat.

Excerpts from retreat:

“I am” – the word itself is a present tense, which gives the assurance that our Lord is always present as revealed by God to Moses from the burning bush. When Jesus said “I am the bread of life”, he wants us to have an intimate relationship with him, specially through ‘Eucharist’ – He wants to be with us.

The uniqueness of Trinity – God the lover, Jesus the Beloved, Holy spirit the Love.

The uniqueness of Mother Mary. Daughter of God the Father, mother of Jesus Christ and spouse of Holy Spirit.

How do we prepare ourselves to receive the bread of life? Are we worthily receiving the Eucharistic Lord?

Importance of Family:

• Family is the First sacrament – instituted by God himself.
• Stay together as a family always. The love between the spouses helps the families and children to be disciplined in faith.
• Love giving, Gratefulness, faithfulness and forgiveness makes us grow as a family.
• Fatima’s 3^rd secret – the final attack of the Satan would be against families.
• We are made in the image of God and called to love others.
• Forgiveness – always put yourselves in other’s shoes and genuinely feel sorry for what you did. Rectification of our sins is a must.
• Joy is always the presence of God in our sufferings and not the absence of sufferings.
• Focus on God always, so you don’t get distracted (e.g. David’s story)
• Do what you can do and God will do the rest (e.g. Raising Lazarus from dead. He asked them to remove stone)
• Never distrust the Lord. Always believe in his Goodness (e.g. Eve was tempted by Satan by sowing doubts, ‘Did God really asked you?’
• Money is always the opposite of God. Teaching our children to convert money to Joy by converting them into charity.
• Bethlehem – house of bread
• Bethesda – house of Mercy
• Miracle fruit – Fruit that makes whatever we eat for the next 2 hours (sour, salt) sweet. So, trust in the goodness of the Lord, which can turn all your bitter experiences into sweet ones.
• God’s name is Mercy.

Finally, have a Beer every day! Yes, you heard it right.

B – Bible E – Eucharist E – Evangelize R – Repent

Some feedback on the retreat!

“Engaging”, “Messages deep and powerful”, “Well Organized”, “One of the Best”“Great Renewal for families spiritually”, “Very interactive, peaceful and prayerful”

Penned by : Michael

Our RTPTCA annual picnic this year took place on May 01, 2022. This picnic would need special mention as the last RTPTCA annual picnic was almost two years ago in April of 2019. The organizing committee volunteers reached the picnic venue – Dogwood Shelter,1400 Aviation Pkwy, Morrisville around 9:00 am to setup the place with decoration and welcome sign. Special thanks to the organizing committee and volunteers.  
 
Lead from the front by our think tank Savariyar and Rani on planning the schedule for the picnic and volunteer assignment.
 

Fr. Thomas Selvaraj

Fr. Thomas Selvaraj was born in the capital city of Burma (Myanmar) Rangoon (Yangoon).  He studied at St. Joseph’s Catholic Seminary in Rangoon between 1955 and 1964 and, later, earned his Doctorate in Environmental Science. In the following years, Fr. Selvaraj served in the villages of Thailand and Burma by teaching the indigenous people how to generate electricity for their villages. Additionally, he assisted the people in creating machinery that would make oil and grind paddy. He learnt their language and used to walk through the thick jungles for several hours to preach the gospel to the village people. These trips were quite dangerous for Fr. Selvaraj as he had many close encounters with vipers and tigers. However, his fervent devotion to the Lord protected him and allowed him to complete these trips safely.

In Chennai, India, Fr. Thomas Selvaraj served in the Santhome Cathedral and in the Velachery Parishes. Later, Fr. Selvaraj moved to the United States and served at St. Anne’s Church in Charlotte, North Carolina from 1998 to 1999. Then, he moved to serve at St. Joseph of the Hills Catholic Church in Eden, NC for the next nine years from 1999 to 2008.

While Fr. Selvaraj was in Eden, NC, he helped to bring the Tamil Catholics in this area together by visiting our houses monthly and celebrate Tamil Mass with us. He baptized our kids in a traditional Tamil mass which was very special for us. Additionally, he celebrated mass at a church in Greensboro in which the Charlotte and RTP Tamil Catholics participated. His sermons were very clear so that everyone could understand, including our kids who were very small at that time. He encouraged our kids to serve in the altar and patiently taught them the order of the mass. The parents and kids loved him very much. Fr. Selvaraj was very patient, humble, and soft-spoken. When we think of Fr. Selvaraj, we remember his ever-smiling face. We will miss him very much.

You can listen to his Golden Jubilee speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu-c7l-NN48