Greetings in the Lord!

Let us very humbly and joyfully thank the Good Lord the Almighty for the abundant blessings showered upon all of us during the month of February.

We have just entered the Season of Lent; so let us prepare ourselves & our faithful worthily to celebrate the Paschal Mystery of Christ by observing all religious practices which are encouraged by the Church.  Let us educate & instruct our faithful to receive the Sacraments in a more meaningful manner during Lent.  May I request you to take your Parishioners to the Diocesan Calvary Shrine at Hiniduma at least for a weekend.

Our deepest sympathies to Very Rev. Fr. Marie Antony S.J. & members of the Society of Jesus over the death of our long standing missionary late Rev.Fr. Anjelo Steffanizzi S.J. who had really and genuinely served & lived with the poorest of the poor specially in the Diocese of Rathnapura.  He committed & dedicated his whole life as a very simple & a religious Priest to uplift the standard of all people with whom he had contacted.  He was an exemplary Jesuit Priest.   May the Good Lord grant him eternal rest!

His Lordship Bishop Valance Mendis & the Presbyterium of Chilaw:-
We are saddened over the untimely death of Rev. Fr. Edward Karunarathne of the Diocese of Chilaw.  Please accept our condolences & prayers. May he Rest in Peace!

01st & 02nd March :  Our next Monthly Recollection for the Priests & Religious of our Diocese will be at DDN at Halpatota.  All Priests are kindly requested to be there on 01st March by 12.30 p.m. The  Religious are expected to be there on 02nd March by 08.30 a.m.

Very Rev. Sr. Anastasia Perera S.C.J.M. -We take this opportunity to express the deepest sentiments of our gratitude to God for what you have been to our Diocese.  We appreciate very much your ever readiness to cooperate with us in all our missionary undertakings in the Diocese of Galle.  We shall commend you to the loving care of our Blessed Mother and pray for the success of your future ministries.

Very Rev. Sr. Deepthika de Silva S.C.J.M.: May we warmly welcome you as the new Provincial Superior of the Sisters of Charity in Sri Lanka.  We look forward to working together with you closely especially in the mission fields of the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. As the Sisters of Charity were the very first group of nuns to arrive in Galle to begin a missionary journey in southern Sri Lanka we hope that you would pay special attention to our diocese in your missionary plans for the future.  Wishing you God's abundant blessings on you and your ministry.

10th March: Sacred Relics of St. Anthony. The Diocese of Galle is also blessed with a rare opportunity of viewing the Sacred Relics of St. Anthony of Padua. On 10th March the Relics will be brought to St. Mary's Cathedral, Galle in procession from the Sacred Heart Convent, Galle.  The procession will commence at 11.00 a.m. The Relics will be kept in the Cathedral till 02.30 p.m. to pray and for veneration by the faithful. The Novena will begin at 02.30 p.m. followed by the Holy Eucharist and then the Sacred Relics will be taken to the Diocese of Rathnapura.  The detailed programme has already been sent to you.  Please encourage your faithful not to miss this blessed and rare opportunity.
N.B. As a spiritual preparation, please be kind enough to have a Triduum Service in your own            
parishes prior to the celebration on the 10th of March.

19th March: Feast of St. Joseph, the Husband of the blessed virgin Mary .  It is a Solemnity.

25th March: Annunciation of the Lord.  It is a Solemnity.

HOLY WEEK (28th – 04th April) During the Holy Week the Church celebrates the mysteries of salvation accomplished by Christ in the last days of his earthly life, from his messianic entry into Jerusalem, until his blessed Passion and glorious Resurrection.

28th March: PALM SUNDAY OF THE LORD'S PASSION: a day on which the Church enters upon the mystery of the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Her Lord, brings together the triumphal procession of Christ as King and the Proclamation of His Passion.

Palm Sunday is also the Major Pilgrimage Day at the Calvary Shrine, Hiniduma.  The Blessing of palms with the Holy Eucharist will take place at the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes at 07.00 a.m.

30th March (Tuesday): CHRISM MASS: Traditionally the Church holds the blessing of the Holy Oils during this Mass. All the priests of the Diocesan presbyterium gather together with their Chief Shepherd to make a renewal of their priestly promises. The Religious and the lay faithful together with their priests give thanks to God for the gift of the sacramental renewal they receive through the Holy Oils. The Holy Mass will be at 10.00 a.m. at St. Mary's Cathedral, Galle.

The Easter Triduum (01st-04th April) Christ accomplished the work of redemption and the work of perfect glorification of God principally through his Paschal mystery in which dying he destroyed our death and rising he restored our life.  Hence the sacred Easter Triduum of the Lord's Passion, Death and Resurrection shines forth as the culmination of the whole liturgical year (LY18).

01st April : Maundy Thursday : The institution of the Holy Eucharist and that of the Priestly Order together with the Lord's command of brotherly love are highlighted on this day.

02nd April: Good Friday of the Lord's Passion is a day of penance for the whole Church, to be marked by fasting and abstinence from meat.
Retracing the Stations of the Cross followed by the Solemn Liturgical Service at the Calvary Shrine will begin at 2.00 p.m.

03rd April: Holy Saturday: On Holy Saturday the Church waits at the Lord's tomb, meditating upon his Passion, death and descent into Hell, awaiting in prayer and fasting his Resurrection. 

04th April: Easter Sunday of the Lord's Resurrection.  It should be celebrated with Great Solemnity.  "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain & your faith is in vain" St. Paul 1Cor.15/14.

Let us make use of this Lenten season to experience a radical change of our hearts towards the saving message of Christ. Do encourage your faithful to make the sacrament of reconciliation with God and with one another in order to receive the blessings of Easter Mysteries.     

Let us continue to pray for us to have a Spiritual Leader soon.

May God Bless you and your ministry.

Yours devotedly in Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Nihal Nanayakkara
Diocesan Administrator.