Alberto de la Portilla
National Assembly of Italian Comboni Lay Missionaries (LMC) in Venegono Superiore.
The Comboni Lay Missionaries (CLM) of Italy gathered in Venegono Superiore, Varese, from 8th to 10th December last, to celebrate their National Assembly. About 80 participants came from Palermo, Lecce, Florence, Bologna, Verona, Milan and Venegono Superiore. Also present were two Comboni missionaries (Father Eliseo Tacchella, provincial councillor, superior of the Mother House in Verona, and Comboni missionary contact person for the CLMs-Italy, and Father Alessio Geraci, from the community in Palermo), a Comboni Sister and a Comboni Secular Missionary, Mr Alberto de la Portilla, from Spain, Coordinator of the CLMs, Mr Marco Piccione, from Italy, member of the Central Committee, and Father Arlindo Pinto (contact person of the General Council of the MCCJs for the CLMs, in Rome, and member of the Central Committee).
During the first two days, five round tables were held on some specific topics, during which the CLMs had the opportunity to share their views on the sense of belonging, the specific service of the laity, and the rules for sending CLMs on missions to countries other than their home countries, the national and international organisation and structure of the CLMs, and collaboration within the entire Comboni Family.
On the afternoon of Saturday, 9th December, they were able to meet online the CLMs engaged in missionary service in Brazil, in Kenya and in Castel Volturno, in the province of Caserta in Campania.
After a prolonged exchange of views, the participants in the assembly decided to adopt the guidelines for formation approved in their international assemblies into their formation plan, as well as to support dialogue with the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, in view of the recognition of their CLM Movement as an International Association of the Faithful (IAF) by the same Vatican Dicastery.
At the European level, it was decided that the CLMs will continue to promote the ‘Stop Border Violence’ campaign against torture crimes committed at our borders.
Next January, the current coordination group (currently made up of two representatives from each local group, which is so large that their meetings are difficult) will meet to elect a new coordination group of only five members, who will be responsible for coordinating the activities of the CLM Movement and animating the joint initiatives decided on the various topics discussed.
The Assembly concluded with the celebration of the Eucharist, presided over by Father Arlindo. After the communion, the ceremony was held to send Ilaria and Federica, who are leaving for the mission in Carapira, Mozambique, and Julia, who will go to Kenya for a short time of missionary service.
Original in https://www.comboni.org/es/contenuti/115835
Celebrating our Missionary Vocation
Last weekend took place in Granada the national meeting of the CLM of Spain. It has been a very rich meeting in which we have had the opportunity to do missionary animation in many parishes of Granada and the province presenting the CLM Movement and our missionary vocation.
Moreover, this year our meeting had a special color since, besides celebrating our missionary vocation, we have celebrated as Comboni Family the missionary life of one of our most veteran companions of the Movement: Mª Carmen Polanco. Throughout her missionary life, Maria Carmen has always been a gift from God for all of us. We are fortunate because Mª Carmen began her life journey a few years ahead of us and so, we have someone to look up to. We are grateful for the value of having her as a reference in our own journey as CLM and we thank God for her shared life and dedication to the mission.
Mª Carmen, may the Lord continue to take care of you and bless you every day as He has done so far.
CLM Spain
A steady and slow pace that is needed for…
On Sunday, November 26, the first formation meeting was held at the Comboni Postulancy of the Martyrs of Uganda in San José, Costa Rica, as part of the discernment stage of the current group of candidates for Comboni Lay Missionaries.
Jesús Pérez – MCCJ, originally from Spain and currently living in the country, accompanied the formative meeting under the theme: “My personal history as a history of salvation”. The objective is to accompany the candidates in the discovery of their vocation within a process of identification with the Comboni mission and charism, trying that each candidate can reread his own life, learning to know and value himself as a person in all its dimensions.
Before starting the formation meeting, we had the virtual visit of Alberto de la Portilla (coordinator of the Central Committee) and Beatriz Maldonado (coordinator of the American committee) of the Comboni Lay Missionaries, as a way of welcoming the new group of candidates to CLM – Costa Rica and encourage them to continue to persevere in this beautiful journey of formation, prayer and missionary service to the ends of the world to make common cause with other peoples where many brothers and sisters are waiting for holy and capable missionaries.
The formation meeting was undoubtedly a space of great importance and reflection on a personal level for each one of the candidates, not only on a human level, but also on a spiritual level. We encourage the new candidates of Costa Rica to continue persevering in the call of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the style and charism of St. Daniel Comboni.
Alex Menjívar, CLM Candidate
Here i am Lord, I come to do your will!
When God’s hour has come, no one can go against it. Having started the journey for quite a while, finally, the Provincial Council approved the suggestion of Father Leopold, chaplain of the CLM in the Province, that Christian Wotormenyo could make his official entry into the Comboni Family through his promise.
This December 1st, he was asked to come and pray at the Good Shepherd parish of Mafi-Kumase, a parish where Father Chaplain is parish priest. It was a time of personal reflection for him to place himself in God’s hands for this commitment.
On Sunday, December 3, the first Sunday of Advent, as requested by the Bishop of the diocese, all stations must meet in one place for the celebration. Thus, all the outstations of Mafi-Kumase gathered at Mafi-Kumase for the celebration. At 9 a.m., the Eucharistic celebration began. After the homily, Father Leopold gave an overview of the ceremony to the entire community present. And then he called the candidate and asked the Coordinator to introduce him. After the presentation, Christian knelt and, before the Father Chaplain, presiding over the ceremony in the name of the Father Provincial, he made his promise. Afterwards, he signed the promise document and was welcomed by the MCCJ. For the first anniversary of the CLM in the province, Lacoste were manufactured and Christian went to the sacristy to put on the dress, a sign of his integration into the CLM Family. The CLM group then came to accept him as a member. The coordinator, at the invitation of the chaplain, carried out vocation promotion. The four CLMs of the Province were given a special blessing by Father John Bliss, MCCJ, concelebrating with three other fathers. At the end of the ceremony, photos were taken and also a small reception was given.
Justin Nougnui, CLM coordinator.
