Michigan, USA - St. George Camp Chaldean in Brighton, Michigan invites the Chaldean faithful community to freely join their friends and family for a two-day camping celebration of the Feast of The Assumption of our Blessed Virgin Mary.  The celebration begins on Wednesday, August 13 and concludes on Thursday, August 14. 

As one big family the community comes together to celebrate this inspirational event.  The camp features a tent-city for guests to pitch a tent, boating, scenic nature trails, DJ music, food, and most importantly on Thursday, a Mass led by His Excellency Bishop Ibrahim Ibrahim.  Mass begins at 6 p.m. sharp.  Prior to Mass, church choirs will lead pilgrims in prayer songs.  After Mass a candle light prayer precession march will occur. 

Overnight Guests are reminded to bring tents, lawn chairs, barbeque grills, towels, and other camping related items.  Over 100 picnic tables are available, indoor bathrooms, warm showers, and hot food will be available for campers. 

For more information please call 1-888-822-CAMP or e-mail CAMP@chaldean.org. 

After a long bitter winter, spring finally begins to peek into Michigan.  In anticipation of the warmer temperature, I drew up my 24-point list of things to do, many of which involve outside activities; garage clean up, light home renovations, etc.  I am positive that many of us who are avid gardeners have probably started exercising their favorite hobby.   

Indeed, when I stood in the middle of my garden, I could count many things that needed attention.  Things such as trimming trees, picking up dead leaves, spraying fertilizer, and the most important of all, grass cutting.  That same day I was listening to my favorite radio station, the Catholic Radio, and the commentator was comparing our spirits to a garden.  That comment left a deep impression in me, and I started thinking to myself: If we spend so much time, money and energy cleaning up and beautifying our gardens every year, do we lend the same attention and spend the same amount of time and energy cleaning up our hearts and strengthening our faith and spirits? 

"Sometimes healthy competition for what we want turns into a problematic desire to have something merely because a rival already has it. This is not just based on what we want, but also on what we don’t want our perceived rival to have,” writes author, Susan, Barash in her book “Tripping the Prom Queen: The truth about Women and Rivalry.” 

Seventy percent of the five hundred women interviewed said they were familiar with the concept Barash writes about.  Barash is a professor of gender studies at Marymount Manhattan College in New York and became fascinated by women's relationship. Can sisters, mothers and best friends be jealous and supportive at the same time? In fact she found that rivalry and envy often pervades female relationships.

The women were interviewed on female competition.  The study revealed that many women are competitively mean.   In her book, Barash outlines why women compete with each other differently than men do with other men and why women often want to sabotage powerful female rivals.

Sydney, AUSTRALIA – Australian Chaldeans in Sydney have been wildly celebrating World Youth Day.  The excitement, exhilaration, and energy has been intoxicating says Joshua Shami, a Chaldean pilgrim from Europe.  Chaldean youth from around the world have gathered in Sydney in celebration of World Youth Day. 

“We continue to pray for our Chaldean brothers and sisters stuck in Iraq,” says Shami.  For many Chaldeans in Austrialia, the joy of welcoming Pope Benedict XVI to the World Youth Day celebration was dampened by the absence of a Chaldean Catholic delegation from Iraq.  “For months people have been working on getting the Iraqi Delegation to Sydney, but it is one thing after another stopping them.” 

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Michigan, USA - A handful of Chaldean-American Wayne State University (WSU) students were recently able to do something that not a handful of Catholic churches could do: attain approval of 24-hour Adoration sessions, something many churches overall, have not yet had.

Rasha Kashat, 20, a pre-medical student at WSU, is one of the students that made efforts to allow one 24-hour Adoration session to be held at St. Thomas Chaldean Catholic Church per week.

Kashat said that "Adoration" is a meaningful gathering of individuals at the church to encourage religious practices, as well as have a great time while committing to such practices.

Catholic News Agency reports that the Australian Embassy in Amman, Jordan has issued 27 visas which will allow some young Iraqis to participate in World Youth Day.  Initially 170 Chaldeans applied for Visas to participate in the largest gathering of world youth Christians in history.  True to their faith, the Chaldeans still expressed their gratitude and appreciation to the Australian government for allowing 27 delegates.

“I would like to thank the Australian government for everything they have been able to do and also the Australian embassy to the Holy See which has contributed to this positive ending,” Father Philip Najim, Chaldean Prosecutor to the Holy See, said.  “Many in Iraq were waiting for this.  It is a symbolic number of visas but our youngsters will be in Sydney too and that’s what counts.”

The Catholic News Agency reports that the Australian government has denied visas to dozens of Chaldean World Youth Day pilgrims from Iraq.  Australian officials say they are concerned that participants will not return home and instead will seek asylum in Australia. One Chaldean Catholic priest called the decision “a slap at young people who wanted to go to witness to the faith and the joy of the church’s living in Iraq despite sufferings.”

Initially the Australian government denied visas for nearly 170 pilgrims, allowing only ten visas to aspiring World Youth Day participants, the SIR News Agency says. According to the website Baghdadhope, there are now only about 30 total visas available that will be granted “in extremis.”

Father Rayan P. Atto, parish priest of Mar Qardagh Church in Erbil, told SIR News Agency that the concerns about asylum seekers were unfounded, arguing that, “for young Christian Iraqis, taking part in the WYD in Sydney was not a way to leave their country.”

This article is the third in a seven series discussion on the attributes of a Chaldean apostle.  A Chaldean apostle is patient and perseverant.  They are willing to accept in their mind and heart that they will be required to wait and endure for His sake.  By having such faith the Chaldean apostle’s behavior will naturally change and begin to better reflect the Kingdom of God.  Therefore, this series will examine the attributes of behavior that demonstrate the grace of our Lord and our choice to be a follower of Christ.  

The term "patience" has several meanings in the dictionary.   It can mean the bearing of pain or trials calmly and without complaint; not being hasty or impetuous; or being steadfast despite opposition or adversity and showing forbearance under provocation or strain.

Most think of patience as something benign, like not being hasty or impetuous.  However, unlike the popular definition of patience, the Holy Bible teaches us that pain, trials, adversity, and strain are also involved (James 1:2-4, 1 Peter 2:20, Romans 5:3-4, 12:12).   In the Bible, perseverance is often mentioned in the same verse as patience (Matthew 24:13, Romans 5:3-4, Galatians 6:9, Hebrews 10:23, 10:36, James 1:2-4). Why do these two traits go hand in hand? What is the difference between them?

الذكرى الاربعين للرسامة الكهنوتية للاركذياقون صبري قج

في الاول من حزيران احتضنت خورنة مار ميخا احتفالا بمناسبة الذكرى الاربعين للرسامة الكهنوتية للاركذياقون صبري قجبو. اقام الاحتفال اعضاء المجلس الخورني ، علامة شكر وتقدير للخدمة والعمل الدؤوب الذي يقوم به المونسنيور صبري خلال حياته الكهنوتية بدءا ببغداد مرورا بديترويت وانتهاءً بسان دييكو.

حضر الحفل كل من سيادة راعي الابرشية مار سرهد يوسب جمو، والاباء ميخائيل بزي، وبولس خمي، وفيليكس الشابي، واندرو  يونان. كما وايضا عدد من الاخوة الشمامسة، وجوق الكنيسة، وعدد من ابناء الرعية.

تضمن منهاج الحفل كلمات القاها كل من السادة كامل سالم رئيس مجلس الخورنة، والدكتور سامي جهاد اذ قرأ نبذة مختصرة عن حياة الاب صبري وخدمته الكهنوتية، ثم قام الشماس الانجيلي عصام يدكو بتلاوة التبريكات على راعي الخورنة، ثم قدم  الجوق هدية جميلة الى راعي خورنتهم.
واختتم سيادة المطران المنهاج بكلمة مؤثرة عن الخدمة الكهنوتية، اعقبها بصلاة ومباركة العشاء. 

مبروك للاركذياقون صبري قجبو ذكرى رسامته الاربعين، نتمنى ان يعينه الرب لتتميم مشواره ويعضده لخدمةكلمة الانجيل الح

California, USA - The Chaldean Diocese of the American West (St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Diocese for Chaldeans and Assyrians) celebrated the 40th anniversary ordination of Msgr. Sabri.  The event was hosted by St. Michaels Parish. 

Among the guests were Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo, Fr. Michael Bazzi, Msgr. Paolis Khami, Msgr. Felix Shabi, and Fr. Andrew Younan, diocese deacons, parish choir, and both invited and faithful guests.