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By Mark, 12 August 2010

The new academic year is rapidly approaching, and the student parish of St. Augustine will begin the new year at the information market of the KEI-week. The KEI-week is the annual introduction week for new students in Groningen, and we obviously can’t miss that. From 10 to 5 we’ll be somewhere on the Vismarkt in the centre of town, so feel free to look us up.

In this new year we want to continue expanding our activities, while of course remaining firmly grounded in the faith in Jesus Christ who really comes to us in the Eucharist. The Masses at six on Sunday evening will begin again in September (as soon as the date is set you’ll hear it here), and the monthly movie night and pub quizzes will also continue. Next to that we want to delve deeper into our faith by means of a study group. We’ll be reading and discussing a book from the renowned American theologian Scott Hahn. Hopefully that may be an enrichtment and deepening of our faith for all of us.

We hope to see you, students new and old, at our stand next Monday!

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By Mark, 16 June 2010

De 20089-2010 season is drawing to a close, and while we look back on the year and forward to the Keiweek and the new season, we prepare the end of this season. On 20 June we are organising a barbecue for all students and other young people who want to join us for some food. We start immediately after the 6 o’clock Mass.

The barbecue takes place behind the parish house, and it won’t cost you anything. So drop by, bring friends, and end the year with us. Do let us know, via e-mail, if you’re coming, so that we can take you into account for the groceries.

We hope to see you on Sunday!

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By Mark, 25 May 2010

On 27 May it’s that time again: the St. Augustine movie night! Well be watching the movie that breathed new life into the James Bond movie series: Casino Royale. A new Bond, a new style, and quality to boot. But we’ll mostly make it a fun evening, of course.

Thursday 27 May, at 8 o’clock in the parish hall next to the St. Joseph cathedral. Ring the bell and we’ll open the door for you.

“How was your lamb?”
“Skewered. One sympathises.”

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By Mark, 17 May 2010

The last week of Easter has begun and we are looking forward to what is coming: the summer holidays of course, the so-called ‘ordinary time’ in the liturgical calendar, but first still a feast which is rather unfamiliar to many, oddly enough: Pentecost. And that unfamiliarity is strange, since it is nothing less than the birthday of the Church.

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By Mark, 15 May 2010

The St. Boniface Day in Dokkum is one of the annual high points in the diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden. On that day the diocese remembers the death of her patron saint, St. Boniface, who was martyred in Dokkum in 754. In the past years this day has developed into a family day where hundreds of Catholics from all over the diocese, from young to old, meet each other.

The student parish St. Augustine is of course also a part of the diocese of Groningen-Leeuwarden. That is why we think it is important to be present on this day, since it is the chance to meet others. And it also well worth the effort.

’Out of love’

This year the St. Boniface Day will take place on 13 June and the theme will be ‘Out of love’. Love is of course at the centre of the faith and can be recognised and explained in many ways. On a day like this there is ample place for those various ways forms – love between man and woman, parents and children, friends, but certainly also between Christ and His people.

Program

The program starts in Dokkum at 10:30 am, with music and a performance by sand artist Gert van de Vijver. After that you can attend various workshops, including one by Leo Fijen about his books. You can also make your own rosaries or see how Gert van de Vijver works with sand. There is something to do for all ages.

At 13:30 the procession through the centre of Dokkum starts. Here in the north processions are fairly unique and certainly something you should experience once. Together we process from the St. Boniface church in the centre of Dokkum to the Boniface chapel, where we’ll arrive around 14:00. Solemnly yet festive, we enter the chapel and celebrate the Eucharist together with our bishop, Msgr. Gerard de Korte, and many other priests and faithful.

Mass in the Boniface chapel

Transport

But first we have to get to Dokkum in the morning of the thirteenth of June. We have various options for that. You can of course make your own way there, but you also take one of the diocesan busses. For 10 euros per person that bus will take you to Dokkum and back. The bus departs Groningen at 9:00.

The third – and actually the most fun – option is to go to Dokkum on foot. No, of course not all the way from Groningen, but from the small village of Nes on the northern Frisian coast. We’ll leave there at 7 in the morning. The route takes us along the dike with a view over the sea and then we’ll turn south towards Dokkum, our way blocked here and there by a streak, a fence or a herd of inquisitve cows. On the way we meet here and there the storytelling Deacon Peter Vermaat, as well as the necessary refreshments and rest stops.

The walk is a pilgrimage. Just like St. Boniface we travel to Dokkum on foot, and today that is not just another town. Dokkum is actually a symbol for that to which we travel every day: eternal happiness with Christ, something of which we get a foretaste in every Eucharist. And just like in our faith, we do not walk alone. In Dokkum too we’ll be together, believe together, celebrate together.

Both in the busses and on the pilgrimage there will be representatives of the parish, so you can easily join us. If you want to come, let us know via e-mail, telephone or personally after Mass (because of the organisation of the busses we must know before 27 May who wants to come).

The way to Dokkum

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By Mark, 11 May 2010

This Thursday we celebrate the Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Catholic Church that day counts as a Sunday. Because just like every Sunday this is a feast day which we specifically celebrate. And of course such a Sunday is more than just a day off. The Church asks us to keep the Sunday holy because of the importance of what we celebrate. That is taken directly from the Ten Commandments. How do we keep that day holy? By showing that we know what we celebrate and that we thank God for it. And we best recognise, celebrate and thank when we attend the sacrifice of Christ in the Mass. That is why there is a Sunday obligation for Ascension Day. We are expected to attend Mass that day. Not because the church has to be full, but because it is important for us, as members of the Body of Christ. Becoming aware of God’s acts is a first step towards the sanctification of our own lives.

There will not be a student Mass on Thursday. Instead you can go to the High Mass at the cathedral at 11:00. If you want to go before that, the doors of the St. Francis church, at the Zaagmuldersweg 67, are open for Mass at 9:30.

The Ascension of Christ, by Salvador Dali (1958)

The Ascension of Christ is the conclusion of His work here on earth. Not that everything was now done and eternity was ready to begin; far from it. Things were really only starting for the Apostles. Just before ascending into heaven, Christ told them: “You will receive the power of the Holy Spirit which will come on you, and then you will be my witnesses not only in Jerusalem but throughout Judaea and Samaria, and indeed to earth’s remotest end” (Acts 1: 8). And that is exactly what happened at Pentecost, which we celebrate in almost two weeks. The Holy Spirit came over the Apostles and they become that strong witnesses of the faith who we find in the Acts of the Apostles.

The Ascension is therefore a new beginning. After the new Covenant had been established at the Ressurrection, it can now be put into practice. Jesus promises is that He will send us a helper: The Holy Spirit. We received Him ourselves at our personal Pentecost: the sacrament of Confirmation, and we can always ask the Holy Spirit to come over us anew, to guide and inspire us.

That is what the Ascension already indicates. But until Pentecost we stare up at the empty sky, with hope and faith in the promise made by two angels to the Apostles. And what a promise!

“Why are you Galileans standing here looking into the sky? This Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way as you have seen him go to heaven” (Acts 1: 11).

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By Mark, 10 May 2010

In May and June we are hosting four social evenings. On May 14 and June 11 we’ll participate in the weekly pub quiz at Café Flip (Zwanestraat 3 in Groningen). We are slowly approaching the higher regions of the score list, so perhaps you can help us get into the top 3!

And yes, the dates of the pub quizzes have been changed. We’ve done that becuase they were rather close to the dates of movie nights.

On may 27 and June 24 we’ll be watching movies. The first movie night was well-received, so it is worht repeating. On May 27 we’ll be watching Casino Royale, the 21st James Bond movie, and the first with Daniel Craig in the title role. On June 245 we’ll be showing O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a comedy with George Clooney, based on Homer’s Oddysey.

Keep an eye on the website (and our calender) for more information.

Houdt de website in de gaten voor meer informatie.

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By Mark, 3 May 2010

It is finally here: de first St. Augustine movie night! On Thursday 6 May everyone is welcome to join us for a bite to eat and a glass to drink, and of course to watch a movie. The movie of choice for this first evening is Babette’s Feast. The 1987 movie was written by Danish author Karen Blixen, who also wrote the Oscar-winning Out of Africa.

Babette’s Feast takes place in a small Protestant community in 19th century Denmark. There a French (and Catholic) refugee is taken in. For the occasion of the 100th birthday of the (already deceased) pastor of the village, Babette is allowed to take care of the grand dinner. Of course, this causes the necessary concerns. What may this foreign and Catholic woman be up to…?

We will start at 8pm in the parish house next to the St. Joseph cathedral, at Radesingle 4. Just ring the doorbell of the parish house and we’ll let you in. We hope to see you then!

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By Mark, 22 March 2010

On Palm Sunday, 28 March, there will be no Mass for students. Of course, everyone is welcome to attend Mass that Sunday at 9 o’ clock (Latin) or 11 o’ clock (Dutch). Of course you can always attend the Vigil Mass on Saturday evening, 5 o’ clock.

Palm Sunday is the last Sunday of Lent and the first day of Holy Week. We celebrate Jesus’  festive entry into Jerusalem, where the people welcome him with joy and palm branches. In imitation of Christ, we also enter, into the church from the square next to the cathedral, where the palm branches will be blessed. We go towards Easter, to the suffering and death of the Lord, to ultimately rise with Him at Easter.

St. Matthew writes:

And when they drew near to Jerusalem and had come to Bethphage, unto mount Olivet, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them: Go into the village that is over against you: and immediately you shall find an ass tied and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to me. And if any man shall say anything to you, say that the Lord has need of them. And forthwith he will let them go. Now all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

Tell the daughter of Sion: Behold your king comes to you, meek and sitting upon an ass and a colt, the foal of her that is used to the yoke.

And the disciples going, did as Jesus commanded them. And they brought the ass and the colt and laid their garments upon them and made him sit thereon. And a very great multitude spread their garments in the way: and others cut boughs from the trees and strewed them in the way. And the multitudes that went before and that followed cried, saying: Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest. (Matt. 21, 1-9)

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By Mark, 20 February 2010

On 15 March 1345, the legend tells us, a man lie ill in his bed in a house in the Kalverstraat. He feared he would die. He called for a priest to give him the Blessed Sacrament for the very last time. But after having received the Lord he had to vomit.  The vomit was thrown in the fire, but to the amazement of those present, the host remained floating in the flames. Centuries later, Anton van Duinkerken described it in a sonnet: “De Hostie, weggeworpen in het vuur, bleef ongedeerd tussen de vlammen zweven. Genadekracht bleek sterker dan natuur.” (“The Host, thrown into the flames, stayed floating in the flames  unhurt. Grace of God proved stronger than nature.”) The man’s wife reached into the flames and took the host out of the fire without burning her hands, and put it into a chest. That in itself is miracle enough, but the story does not end here.

The host, which had been collected by a priest from the Old or St. Nicholas church the next day, returned to the man’s house. This new miracle repeated itself twice more. For medieval people this was a required confirmation to see the hand of God in events. In a procession, the priest returned the host to the Old Church. The following year, Bishop Jan van Arkel declared that a miracle had occurred.

This miracle is commemorated annually during the Stille Omgang in Amsterdam. From all over the country, people, both Catholic and non-Catholic, come to silently walk the route of the procession. This tradition stems from the time that public displays of the Catholic faith were illegal in the time following the Reformation.

From Groningen there will be busses to this event. On 20 March, at 19:00, the busses depart from Groningen Central Station. Meeting place is the station’s hall. The Committee de Stille Omgang, division Groningen organises transportation. Costs are 18 euros, but if that is problematic you may contact Mr. A. Lukassen (050-3134872). Sign up before 15 March. Flyers with more information are in the back of the cathedral. This will bring you to the program for adults.

There is also special youth program in Amsterdam. The student ministry in Amsterdam also host activities. More information about that can be found on their website.

Part of this text has been taken from the Encyclopedie at Katholiek Nederland.