Frater@NJBC

Bro. John Fava, S.J., (MIS) a chaplain for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, gave the invocation and benediction at the Candlelight Vigil (April 30, 2010) and the Memorial Service (May 1, 2010) on the grounds of the state capital in Jefferson City, MO. These two events honor those law enforcement officers from the state of Missouri who have died in the line of duty.

Robert Macke SJ (MIS) is a Jesuit brother from the Missouri Province who is studying physics and astronomy at the University of Central Florida.  He is conducting research on meteorites.  See the full article here.

Brother “Biz” Korte, SJ (CFN) who was the public face of the Novitiate winery in Los Gatos died at the age of 80.  Here is a link to more information:  http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/sfgate/obituary.aspx?n=norbert-korte&pid=142787404  May Biz rest in peace!!

Br. Bob Macke (MIS) was awarded the Smithsonian Graduate Student Fellowship to conduct research in Washington, D.C. on meteorites. Bob is working on his doctorate in physics and astronomy at the University of Central Florida.

The San Francisco Examiner wrote a great article on Bro. Douglas Draper, SJ (CFN) who has been the dean of students at St. Ignatius College Prep in San Francisco for 42 years.  The article does a great job of speaking of him as a brother to all.  Bro. Draper is highly respected in San Francisco and at St. Ignatius College Prep.  

“For Brother Douglas Draper, the key was always in the preparation: If there were a bunch of students celebrating after a game, where would they go? Or if someone were holding a prom party at a hotel, which inn in San Francisco would it be?”  Here is the link to the full story, Draper was a brother to all.

There is a documentary being produced on the life of St. Rene Goupil, SJ, a Jesuit brother who was a Jesuit missionaries who was killed in 1642 by Native Americans.  This documentary is based on the book, The Ghost in the Mohawk Valley by Fr. William Breault, SJ (CFN).  Below is the trailer to the documentary.

Br. John Fava, SJ (MIS) has been asked to give the invocation and benediction at the State of Missouri Police Memorial Ceremony in Jefferson City for those police officers who have died in the line of duty.  There is also a candle light vigil the night before the memorial ceremony.  The dates of these events are May 2 & 3, 2008.  Br. Fava is also the NJBC rep for the Missouri Province.

Br. Jerry Pryor, SJ (Det), recently completed a portrait of the opera singer Salvatore Licitra.  The singer’s brother took the painting to the family home in Switzerland as this was Salvatore’s first portrait.  Licitra replaced Pavarotti when the tenor canceled at the Metropolitan Opera as well as replacing him all over the world.

Today is the feast day of Blessed Ralph Ashely, SJ who was a English Jesuit brother who was martyred on April 7, 1606.  Here is a brief bit of information on him from the Catholic Online web site:

Ralph Ashley d.1606, martyr. An Englishman, he served as cook at Douai College, went to Valladolid, Spain in 1590, became a Jesuit laybrother and returned to England in 1598. He served and was captured in 1604 with Fr. Edward Oldcorne. He was frightfully tortured during two years of imprisonment in the Tower of London then was executed at Worchester on Apr. 7. He was beatified in 1929.

May Blessed Ralph Ashley pray for us!

Today is the feast of Blessed Francisco Aranha, SJ who was martyred outside of Cuncolim in the South Goa district of India in 1583 at the age of 32.  He is a martyr of India.  Here is some information on the Jesuit from the main Jesuit web site:

Francisco Aranha (1551-1583) was born in Portugal, probably in Braga. He traveled to Goa where his uncle had been Goa’s first archbishop and entered the Society of Jesus as a brother on Nov. 1, 1571. His first two assignments were at the colleges in Cochin and Goa. About 1577 he was assigned to the Salsette mission where he devoted himself to building churches and chapels. When the five Jesuits were attacked outside of Cuncolim, Brother Aranha was the second to be struck. Villagers cut his neck with a saber and thrust a spear into his side and left him for dead. He managed to drag himself into the woods where people found him and attacked him further, still without killing him. Finally he was forced to stand up before an idol but refused to bow before it. An ax blow ended his suffering.