Last week Father Kevin Barr celebrated 50 years of priesthood by celebrating Mass with Archbishop Petero Mataca. He used the occasion to ask for forgiveness.
“A few months ago I wrote a little booklet on forgiveness and in it quoted the story of a Jewish Rabbi in New York who in his final sermon in the synagogue did not speak of his accomplishments but rather asked for forgiveness from his congregation,” he said.
“So I took this opportunity to ask forgiveness for all the times I was angry and impatient, for all the times I didn’t give you the attention and concern you deserved and for the times I failed in compassion and understanding and didn’t get around to visiting those who were sick or in prison.”
Kevin Barr was born in Sydney Australia and ordained as a Catholic Priest in 1961 with the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart. He was educated in Sydney and Melbourne majoring in Theology, Education, Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Queensland and Sacred Heart Monastery.
He has taught at the University of Papua New Guinea, the University of the South Pacific and Pacific Regional Seminary. Fr Barr founded the Chevalier Hostel and Training Centre which assists in the training of underprivileged youths. He’s a co-founder of ECREA and currently a Consultant for the People’s Community Network. He has authored a number of books and articles in the areas of democracy, social justice, poverty and squatter settlements in Fiji.
Source
Related Posts:
News category: Asia Pacific.
