This week is a history-making period in Anguilla as it is the first time that a Roman Catholic Church Diocesan Assembly has been held on the island. It is the 26th Meeting of the Association of the Diocesan Clergy of the Province of Castries with over 30 Priests and Deacons attending from across the region. The five-day Assembly opened with a Mass on Monday evening, January 18, at St. Gerard’s Parish Church at Wallblake.

The visiting Catholic Priests entering St. Gerard's Church

“While the Assembly is held annually, we are particularly pleased to be the host this year, as the period June 2009 - June 2010 has been named ‘ The Year for Priests’ by Pope Benedict XV1,” said Fr. Paul Czoch, Parish Priest of St. Gerard’s Roman Catholic Church, Anguilla. “Further, this is the first time, to my knowledge, that such a large number of Priests will hold meetings in Anguilla and concelebrate at masses at St. Gerard’s.”

Among those from Anguilla at the Opening Mass were Anglican Bishop of the Diocese of the Northeastern Caribbean and Aruba, the Rt. Reverend Errol Brooks and Mrs. Brooks OBE, Chief Minister, Osbourne Fleming, Deputy Governor, Stanley Reid, and Attorney General, Wilhelm Bourne and Mrs. Bourne.

Section of the Anguilla Representatives at the Assembly

The Most Rev. Bishop Gabriel Malzaire, DD, Bishop of Roseau and the Apostolic Administrator for the Diocese of St. John’s/Basseterre, was the main celebrant at the Opening Mass. “It is not usual that we have so many Priests and Deacons gathered in this Parish Church," Bishop Malzaire addressed the congregation. “This is a special occasion … for St. Gerard’s Parish…We find it fitting to meet on an annual basis to reflect on the life of our Priests and Deacons and how we can best serve the Church.”

Bishop Malzaire based his sermon on the divine mission given to King Saul but which he failed to carry out (1 Samuel Ch. 15 vs. 15-23). “On this occasion of our gathering as the Clergy of Castries, we must be challenged by those words for certainly they fall within our camp,” he stated. “Just as Saul was commanded by the Lord to do a special mission, we too have been called on mission. We can use this story to ask ourselves are we perfectly obedient to the voice of God?”

A drumming session in progress

The Bishop went on: “We may ask ourselves whether we are trying in our ministry sometimes to cut corners on God. We can also apply this to other leaders. I know that in Anguilla you are preparing for elections…As a God-fearing country it has to be led because the people who live here are the people of God… and you are going to choose the leader that you think will bring you the kind of peace, tranquility and benefits of leadership that are required. So while I am speaking of Clergy, I am also speaking of our civil leaders because the responsibility of a civil leader is one of leading the people of God. How well are we responding to the call of God to lead…? We would like to have religious leaders and civil leaders who are not ready to cut corners on God.”

Bishop Malzaire, reflecting on the Year of the Priests, as declared by the Pope, concluded his sermon as follows: “It is an opportunity for us to do what God asks of us. It is also an opportunity for the people of God to pray for the Clergy so that we can have more holiness. I too need sanctity. I need the prayers of people, all of us, so that we may more authentically witness to what we have been called to do. I pray that this gathering of the Diocesan Clergy of the Province of Castries would truly be fruitful and that the very presence of those Clergymen among you will be a source of inspiration and grace for this Parish and that all of us will be led in the direction that God wants.”

Bishop Gabriel Malzaire, DD

The spokesman for the Assembly in Anguilla is Monsignor Patrick A. B. Anthony, PhD, SLC. He is the Director of the Archbishop Kelvin Felix Archdiocesan Pastoral Centre in St. Lucia.

The Association of Diocesan Clergy of the Province of Castries held its first meeting in 1984. Membership is open to Catholic Priests and Deacons from all five Dioceses which make up the Province of Castries: the Archdiocese of Castries (St. Lucia), the Dioceses of Roseau (Commonwealth of Dominica), St. George’s (Grenada), Kingstown (St. Vincent and the Grenadines) and St. John’s/Basseterre (Antigua & Barbuda, St. Kitts & Nevis, Anguilla, Montserrat and the British Virgin Islands).
Since its inauguration, the Association has held annual meetings, rotating the location from diocese to diocese each. To date, the Association of Diocesan Clergy of the Province of Castries remains the only association of Catholic priests in the Caribbean. Last year the association celebrated its 25th anniversary in St. Lucia.

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