Newsletter for alumni of The
Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.
Caracas, 10 of June 2014 No. 657 Extra
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Dear Friends,
Here is the exchange regarding
the invitation to Cardinal Felix.
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Nigel Boos
May 25
Joe,
I would
really appreciate a response to my last email of May 8th. Would you please let
me know whether the signed letter to Cardinal Felix has yet been mailed to him?
This is extremely embarrassing now, to think that a letter which was prepared
and has been in your possession since early April has not as yet been mailed
out. I have asked you a number of times since April 6th whether this has yet
been done, and you have been busy, apparently, with home renovations. Perhaps,
by now, these have ended and you can devote a little time to handling this
matter?
Thank you
in advance for your kind attention.
Nigel
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On 2014-04-22, at 5:09 PM, Nigel Boos wrote:
Thank you
for keeping me in the picture, Joe. As I've said before, I believe it is
important that you, as President of the ASAA, should be the one to forward the
letter to Cardinal Felix. Please let me know when it has been mailed.
Nigel
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On 2014-04-22, at 11:38 AM, Joe wrote:
Nigel,
I am very
sorry. I am having a very very difficult time and haven't been able to keep my
promise. I will attend to this matter with urgency, in a few days. You can
still send it from your end. If you want, I will send you the Word file.
Sincerely,
Joe
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On 2014-04-14, at 10:39 AM, Joe wrote:
Nigel,
I haven't
gotten to bed as yet. I have been up since 9 am on Sunday after about 4 hours
sleep, which has been typical of the last two weeks and I haven't been to work
since then. I will try to complete it tomorrow.
Sincerely,
Joe
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On 2014-04-07, at 9:14 AM, Nigel Boos wrote:
Joe,
Thanks
for your response. I would prefer if the letter were mailed directly from
Trinidad to Cardinal Felix, and I also believe that it should come directly
from you, as President of the ASAA. I certainly do not believe that a document
such as this should be emailed. I am disappointed that it has taken so long to
leave your hands but I can understand that moving house is a stressful and
time-consuming job, and that you have been otherwise occupied.
I can
imagine the Cardinal's surprise at reading the report in the Catholic News that
we have invited him to join us as an Honorary Member, when in fact, we have not
as yet done so. Please do whatever you can to send the revised letter to him
ASAP.
Kindly
confirm when the letter has finally been mailed.
Nigel
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On 2014-04-06, at 11:58 PM, Joe wrote:
Nigel,
No I
haven't sent it because.
1. When I
completed it initially I presumed that one of you (who were the sponsors of the
idea) would have made arrangements to get it on to Cardinal Felix - - the
document which I sent is a printable PDF format equally good for hard or soft
copy. See my last email with the attachment.
2. When I
got your further thoughts on the issue, it occurred to me that the document
would be improved with the revision although there is, in my view, an unnecessary
repetition somewhere in there.
I am
having a hard and difficult move in/out together with renovations at our new
place of residence and have absolutely no time.
The
choices are:
1.You may
want to send the original document on as it is.
2. I can
try my best to complete it by this Friday: Hopefully by then the move would be
over.
Sincerely,
Joe
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On 2014-04-06, at 10:43 AM, Bernard Tappin wrote:
Just
letting you know that the Catholic News has published an article by Lara
Pickford-Gordon re our honorary membership of Cardinal Felix, along with
photograph. This can be read on the Catholic News web site, which I just
googled.
Bernard.
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Nigel Boos
Feb 22
Gentlemen,
The
results are in!
I've
received 30 votes to my question re. Cardinal-elect Kelvin Felix. I had
proposed that we should honour him by offering him an Honorary Membership as an
Old Boy of the Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict, in light of his former
association with the MSB Seminary, to which the Abbey School owes its origins,
and to his involvement with us as a member of the 1953 Football Team (below):
Probably,
the most interesting comment I received was from Ken Austin, who stated:
1.
"In the photograph of the football team which includes Hans Hermans and
Kelvin Felix , the individual on the extreme left is another seminarian, John
Mendes who went on to be a bishop of the Archdiocese of Port-of-Spain. This
strengthens my statement in my previous email that the students and seminarians
considered themselves one. Perhaps this was also because Father Bernard, the
Principal of the School, was also the Rector of the seminary and in fact was
generally referred to by students as Father Rector".
But here
are the other comments as well:
2.
Peter Gittens: Nigel, I e-mailed Archbishop Felix about a week ago, but still
no reply. I can understand how overwhelmed he must been with so many
congratulatory messages, so I was not expecting an immediate response. I will
be attending the Consistory in Rome as part of the St. Lucia delegation, and
I'll get my answer then.
Yes,
meanwhile, let's consider him an "old boy". I've enjoyed the
conversation. Peter.
3.
Don
Mitchell:
I am happy to vote: AYE.
4.
Harry
Guildner:
Yes
5.
Roger
Maingot:
You have my vote
6.
Robert Dumas:
It will be
an honour to be have Cardinal-electors Kelvin Felix be honoured as an Honorary
Old Boy of the Abbey School, Mt. St. Benedict.
7.
Michael
Howard:
How does one vote, especially YES
8.
George
Laquis:
Agreed
9.
Roger
Henderson:
OK with me. You have my vote
10.
Gordon
Thavenot:
I would definitely support that proposal
11.
Phillip
Nassief:
I am in agreement that the Cardinal-elect be regarded as an OB of the Abbey
School and I fully support your proposal.
12.
Bernard
Johnson:
This sounds like a great idea, this is indeed a great honour for the Caribbean.
13.
Anthony
Cintra:
I vote in favour of honouring Cardinal elect Felix
14.
Garnet
Diaz:
My vote is definitely a YEAH
15.
Chris
Knowles:
You have my vote
16.
Chris
Date:
Delighted to be associated with this Honour being bestowed. I am in favour.
17.
Ian de
Verteuil:
I am definitely in favour of your motion as stated
18.
Cornel de Freitas:
I do so agree wholeheartedly, that Cardinal-elect Kevin Felix be so honoured,
and may he be Blessed with many graces...
19.
Salvador Coscarart: Yes, of course, he is an Abbey Old Boy
20.
Brian Costelloe:
Agreed
21.
John
Abraham:
I vote on the motion to honour Cardinal-elect as an Honorary OB of MSB.
22.
Lincoln
Henry:
I support your proposal
23.
Jaime Elias
Benazar:
I´m with you and the other Old Boys to honour Cardinal Kelvin Felix as an
Honorary Old Boy of the Abbey School, Mt St. Benedict.
24.
Ronald
Torry:
I support
25.
Norman
Smith:
Aye!
26.
Richard
Anderson:
My vote is YES!
27.
Bernard
Tappin:
I vote in favour.
28.
Steven
Anderson:
It is my honour to vote in favour and support of your Proposal, but if I might
respectfully suggest that it would be us who would be honoured.
29.
Attila
Gyuris:
Although I
personally never met Kevin Felix, but if you say he has an association with the
school and if you are asking for my vote, I say yes, it would be an honour to
have such a high ranking church authority to be counted among us.
Here is a
recent release from the Trinidad Catholic Press on Cardinal-elect Felix, for
your information:
============
As he
awaits instructions on the functions which Pope Francis wants him to fulfil,
the first cardinal from the Antilles Episcopal Conference (AEC), Kelvin Felix,
says he wants to make the Caribbean Church “better known in Rome”.
Cardinal
Felix will be inducted into the College of Cardinals on February 22.
He was in
Trinidad for a few days last week for follow-up care since having eye surgery
last November. On Wednesday he visited with Archbishop Joseph Harris, and
Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Nicola Girasoli at their respective residences, in
Port of Spain.
In a
brief interview with the Catholic News at Archbishop’s House, Cardinal
Felix said the news of his appointment has long sunk in.
“Although
I never expected it, never anticipated it, nevertheless I have been able to
take it in stride.”
Asked his
views on the hopes and expectations that people of the region may have about
his appointment, Cardinal Felix said he still had to get “the ins and outs” of
all the duties of the cardinal. “One thing I will not be able to do is vote for
a pope that’s all.”
What will
he bring to the post? “That’s to be seen. What the Pope wants me to do. I have
to wait to hear from him. I will definitely bring the Caribbean perspective.
And that is the idea I suppose – two of us from the Caribbean, one from Haiti.”
Asked about
the kind of concerns which he would highlight as a cardinal, he said, “I just
want to make the Church in the Caribbean better known in Rome. They have very
little idea where the Caribbean is, where is Dominica, where is St Lucia.”
Cardinal
Felix said the late Archbishop of Port of Spain Anthony Pantin went to see the
Pope one day and when he said he was Archbishop of Port of Spain the Pope
thought this was in Spain. “So we have to make the Caribbean better known,”
Cardinal Felix said.
Commenting
on his journey to priesthood, he said being a priest was the only vocation he
ever considered. From the age of seven he had an interest in becoming a priest.
He said he used to watch the priests when he attended Mass at Our Lady of Fair
Haven Cathedral in Roseau, Dominica. Cardinal Felix said he approached the
person in charge of the altar servers expressing his interest in becoming an
altar server. He was advised to first do his Holy Communion and then return.
“The following year, after Holy Communion, I went back to him and I was coached
in all the practices and learnt the prayers by heart.”
Cardinal
Felix said, “I was very, very keen on serving and then I was close with the
priests. Every month I went out to various districts with the priests to say
Mass in the chapels, mission churches.”
At the
age of ten or 12 he wanted to be a priest. He told the priest at the cathedral
about his desire and it was discussed with the Bishop. “They said ‘that boy is
too young, they thought of sending me to the pre-seminary – a seminary for
young boys – but they said ‘give him a chance, the boy is too young, let him
make up his mind’.”
At the
age of 11, the boy destined to be cardinal won a scholarship for free secondary
education at the grammar school but he remained close with the priests and was
still fervent about being a priest. “They said as soon as I finished high
school they would send me and so it was.” Two weeks after secondary school, at
the age of 17, he left for the seminary and began studies in philosophy in
January 1951. At age 23 he was ordained a priest.
Cardinal
Felix has a zeal and love for serving people. He said, “To serve – service –
that is what the priesthood calls for, a life of dedicated service, and the
Holy Father has said now a cardinal is not a matter of position and power, and
all that. It is love and service.”
Meanwhile,
at its first meeting since the historic appointment, the AEC Permanent Board
decided to invite Cardinal Felix to address the AEC Bishops at their Annual
Plenary Meeting in May in Jamaica. The Diocese of Mandeville will host the
meeting. Cardinal Felix will be the principal celebrant and homilist at the
meeting’s Inaugural Mass at the St Paul of the Cross Cathedral, Mandeville.
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On the
basis of this vote, and since I've received no more for the past few days, I
believe it is now reasonable to approve the proposal.
I am
therefore asking the ASAA to formally offer a note of congratulations to
Cardinal Felix and to advise him formally of the decision of our organization
to honour him as an Honorary Member of our School. May I therefore expect that
the Management will follow up with this recommendation?
Sincerely,
Nigel
Boos
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FYI, here's the current status of
the Database: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/1717336/MSBOBs%20database.xlsx
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Photos:
24766LK14FB
03SC1978SCOFCU Salvador Coscarart and Fr. Cuthbert
07LK3767LKEGRP, Dinner in Caracas
12UN0110POLO, Polo shirt at the Mount shop
