Not So Far Afield is a bimonthly publication of the Maryknoll Affiliates. The name is a play on the title of the original Maryknoll Magazine: The Field Afar.
You may subscribe to Not So Far Afield by email or to be notified when it is posted on our website.
Please click here to subscribe to the electronic PDF version email list.
You may also download PDF versions of Not So Far Afield here.
Rich, a Maryknoll Affiliate in the Albany Chapter since 2006 and a Board member since 2013, loves being in the company of other Affiliates and Maryknollers. His wife Denise and two young adult children, bring him much joy as he adjusts to retirement.
On the Affiliate leadership team, Rich meets regularly with Lay Missioners, Sisters, and Fathers and Brothers to discuss present challenges and to help plan for the future. To advance the Affiliate movement, Rich wants to:
- Develop a better sense of what it means to be an Affiliate.
- Make the Affiliate Movement stronger by increasing membership.
- Find greater ways of collaborating with all Maryknoll entities in their mission work in the US and abroad, building on the relationships we already have with other Maryknollers.
- Foster communication among all Affiliates.
Rich’s personal desire is to be in mission overseas when the opportunity presents itself. For now he looks forward to spending time with Affiliates and other Maryknollers in Guatemala at MAC 2017.
The Broader View
Notice: Undefined property: Joomla\CMS\User\User::$profile in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Notice: Trying to get property of non-object in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Written by Mary Ryan-Hotchkiss
Global Vision is a special perspective of Maryknollers, including Affiliates. Our Mission Statement says Affiliates “go beyond borders, locally and globally.” We recognize that our local actions have an impact across the globe.
This issue of the Not So far Afield tells of Affiliates in the US, Korea, and Peru responding with urgency and generosity to the needs of the flood-stricken in Peru. As people of God, Affiliates also look to welcome the stranger in difficult times. Houston Affiliates Bob and Ruth Kleeman remember their local saint, Mark Zwick, of the Houston Catholic Worker House, Casa Juan Diego. The Casa welcomes immigrants from many Spanish-speaking countries who fled their own repressive regimes or who suffered from policies of the US. Gerry Mullaney tells of his experience seeing another Cuba. Read the profiles of the speakers for the November 2017 MAC in Guatemala to gain a broader view of the world, including the indigenous philosophy of Buen Vivir.
To “check off all boxes on the Four Pillars scorecard,” including Global Vision, Rich Lessard encourages us to make use of the treasure of the Maryknoll Mission Institute. Tell us how your chapter meetings nurture our Four Pillars—Spirituality, Community, Global Vision, and Action—at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Articles in this issue:
Affiliates in Solidarity – "Without all the help from the Affiliates and the faith they placed in us, we would not have been able to help as we did."—Carlos Apcho
“If We Had Any Guts, We’d Start a Catholic Worker House” – "Mark would say there is no such thing as “illegal immigrants”—some may be undocumented, but being a person is not illegal."—Bob & Ruth Kleeman
Welcoming the Stranger – "Some Affiliates visit immigrants in detention. Others accompany immigrants to appointments or to court."
2017 Climate March – "A continual stream of people carrying funny, creative, and inspiring signs kept us entertained."—Mary Ryan-Hotchkiss
NOLA Marches Forward – "The earth, our common home, is beginning to look like an immense pile of filth.” —Pope Francis
¡Meet the MAC 2017 Speakers! – "I have learned about the value and beauty of land from a cosmic worldview; about culture and the legitimacy of indigenous peoples’ claim to full recognition as people; their right to organize their collective life according to their ancestral norms; and their aspiration to “Live Well”, opting for a life in harmony and balance with nature."—Laura Hurtado Paz y Paz
Another Cuba, Another Fidel – "It seems that the churches have succeeded at convincing the government that the church social programs are compatible with the aims of the government."—Gerry Mullaney
Maryknoll Mission Institute—What A Gem! – "Let me introduce you to the MMI and encourage you, if you are able, to seriously consider spending one of the best weeks one could experience."—Rich Lessard
From the Board and Executive Coordinator:
News from the Board: Introducing our New Member
Are You on the Affiliate Email List?
And don't miss our Features:
To view this issue in its print form, download the July/August NSFA PDF.
Carlos Apcho – Chapter of San Francisco de Asisi, Lima, Perú
Thank you, brother and sister Maryknoll Affiliates, for your support of the people of Peru who recently suffered from terrible natural disasters.
We are very grateful for your strong gestures of solidarity with our brothers and sisters affected by the natural disasters that our country, Peru, suffered a few months ago. We continue to suffer the consequences of the intense rains—landslides and overflowing rivers. Cities and towns were flooded, thousands of people were left isolated, and agricultural and cattle lands were destroyed. These disasters left more than 100 dead, affected 150,000 people directly, and impacted almost one million nationally, according to the Center for Operations of National Emergency, which monitors natural disasters in Peru.
What book would you like to read next? Both current and potential book discussion group members are invited to suggest titles. We have found Orbis Books (www.orbisbooks.com) to be an excellent source, with the advantage of their 40% discount for Maryknoll Affiliates and book group members.
The next book group session begins in September. Readers will be contacted by email to help choose the book and their preferred meeting time. Previously, book groups met via free conference calls on Tuesday or Friday mornings or Sunday evenings. Additional times can be arranged if a person volunteers to act as contact person. To add your name to the list of readers and receive book group emails, to suggest a book, or to volunteer as a contact person, please email Bob Short at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
At the May 2017 Maryknoll Affiliate Board Meeting, the Board agreed to a new policy regarding email communication with our members. When the mailing lists are updated, all members will receive both the Monday Morning Update emails and the bimonthly email with the digital Not So Far Afield. Members signed up for the paper version will continue to receive it by mail.
If you do not receive these emails in the next few months, please contact Bob Short (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Members who prefer not to receive the group emails may use the unsubscribe option offered at the bottom of every email.
“If We Had Any Guts, We’d Start a Catholic Worker House”
Written by Bob & Ruth KleemanBob & Ruth Kleeman – Houston Chapter
Most of our readers are familiar with Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement, but perhaps not everyone is familiar with Mark and Louise Zwick in Houston, Texas.
They were volunteer missioners in El Salvador in the late 1970s but were forced to leave following death threats related to the civil war at the time. Upon their return to the US, they saw the need to help the refugees from Central America and commented that, “If we had any guts, we’d start a Catholic Worker House.” They founded a house of hospitality under the name of Casa Juan Diego in 1980, and ever since they have dedicated their lives, on a fulltime volunteer basis, to helping the needy.
How is your chapter, your community, responding to immigrants?
Since many immigrants in the US are threatened with deportation, various organizations are offering sanctuary and solidarity:
- Some schools do not collect or release information that could brand a student as “illegal.”
- Some churches offer physical sanctuary or assist other churches.
- Some states or communities by law do not allow their resources to be used to enforce federal immigration rules.
- Some families open their homes to individuals who are pursuing refugee status or to immigrant teenagers who have “aged out” of the foster care system and might be incarcerated or deported.
- Some Affiliates visit immigrants in detention. Others accompany immigrants to appointments or to court.
What can we do? What will we do?
What would Jesus do?
Manny Hotchkiss – Board Member, and Mary Ryan-Hotchkiss – NSFA Co-Editor
“We Speak for the Earth.”
Even at 90 degrees in the shade, we were exhilarated by the more than 200,000 upbeat, committed activists who came to Washington, DC, on April 29th to emphasize their concern for the earth. We started the day with a Mass attended by several hundred Catholics brought together by the Catholic Climate Covenant, the Franciscan Action Network, and the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.
NOLA Marches Forward
Notice: Undefined property: Joomla\CMS\User\User::$profile in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Notice: Trying to get property of non-object in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Written by Matt Rousso
Matt Rousso – New Orleans Chapter
New Orleans Chapter Affiliates participated in the New Orleans Peoples’ Climate March on Saturday, April 29th, joining thousands from around the country. Kevin Cahalan prepared our marching banner, highlighting Pope Francis’ words from Laudato Sí, “The earth, our common home, is beginning to look like an immense pile of filth.” One lady from Fort Worth, Texas, who was attracted to our banner, came up to our group proclaiming her great affection for Pope Francis. In addition to our five Affiliates, there were some 400-500 participants shouting in a loud voice: “This is what democracy looks like!”
Guatemala Chapter – MAC 2017 Organizers
We welcome the presenters who, with their diverse backgrounds and varying gifts, will nourish the spirit of Buen Vivir throughout the MAC 2017 Conference (November 9-12 at Casa de Retiros Verbo Encarnado, Guatemala.) They introduce themselves in the order in which they will present at MAC 2017. (Meet the Mayans, liturgists, and musicians in the next issue.)
More...
Gerry Mullaney – Northeast Ohio Chapter
A contingent of Affiliates from the Northeast Ohio Chapter—Jan and Curt Alberti, Pam Cibik, Gerry Mullaney, and Kathy Ress—had the privilege of visiting Cuba last December. An added and unanticipated element of this visit was the opportunity to experience the mourning period for Fidel Castro in his homeland. Our group came of age in the 1950s and 1960s, a time when Fidel Castro and the Cuban Revolution were demonized by the US government. The message we heard was the call to condemn and eradicate Castro’s atheistic, communist movement in our backyard.
What we did not hear a half century ago was the voice of a leader and a people who experienced the inequalities and injustices of the US-backed regime of Fulgencio Batista. This voice was determined to make changes.
Gerry Mullaney – Board Member
The Nominating Committee of the Affiliate Board—that would be me, Gerry Mullaney—is calling on all Affiliates to consider candidates for the Board and bring them forth for nomination. Don’t be shy. Don’t deny anyone this opportunity. Competition will not be fierce unless we are inundated with nominations.
Board membership involves a 3-year term (with renewal possible for another 3 years), two Board meetings per year along with conference calls, and application of leadership, wisdom, and creativity for policy development and decision-making. We occasionally have some fun as well. It is certainly a joy to come together with good people to form the Affiliate leadership that supports and encourages our world wide membership to advance Jesus’ mission in the world.
Board Application and Nomination forms are available on the Maryknoll Affiliates website. Email me (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to get information, ask questions, or to follow up on possible nominees. In fact, a good first step would be to contact me for some informal conversation about potential candidates. I would enjoy this, and I hope you would as well.
Marknoll Mission Institute—What a Gem!
Notice: Undefined property: Joomla\CMS\User\User::$profile in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Notice: Trying to get property of non-object in /var/www/vhosts/maryknollaffiliates.org/httpdocs/components/com_k2/templates/default/category_item.php on line 69
Written by Richard Lessard
Rich Lessard – Affiliate Board, Albany Chapter
Following this spring’s Affiliate Board meeting, my wife, Denise, and I stayed on at Maryknoll in Ossining, NY, and attended the Maryknoll Mission Institute (MMI). It was an overdue gift to ourselves, and also served as the perfect way to ease into my third week of retirement.
Some Affiliates may be unaware of this opportunity. Let me introduce you to the MMI and encourage you, if you are able, to seriously consider spending one of the best weeks one could experience.
News from the Board: Introducing our New Member
Written by Manny Hotchkiss
Manny Hotchkiss – Finance Chair (& Elvis)
Hello, everyone! I know that I have met at least two or three hundred of you over the past 20 some years at the international Affiliate Conferences in New York, at the Regional Conferences (Seattle, San Francisco, Portland, Albuquerque, Las Vegas, New Orleans) or just traveling across the good old USA, visiting Affiliate Chapters along the way. Do I remember all your names? Probably not, but I usually will recognize your smile, and sometimes that will pop your name out to me as well. In all the years I’ve been an Affiliate, I have loved meeting you, talking with you, eating with you, and especially praying with you.
