Every Christmas, the ladies of Theodokis Maria visit the small village of Rayampampa, Peru. Rayampampa is outside the city of Otusco where the Virgen de la Puerta, this region’s most famous religious icon resides.
The group takes gifts for the children of the village. When they first started approximately 15 years or so ago, there were only 10 children on their list. This year, there were over 100. They also take clothes and needed household items for the adults.
In the beginning, the village also did not have a church. Within the last few years, the ladies have worked with the villagers to construct their beautiful one room church. I was honored this year to be invited to participate in this project!
The celebrations started with praying, singing and Bible stories. The children danced and laughed and had a wonderful time. After the gifts were distributed, everyone was treated to hot chocolate and Panetton…the Peruvian version of fruitcake. No Christmas celebration in Peru is complete without it!
When most of the village had started their trek home with their goodies, one of the families cooked lunch for our group. Roasted hen and rice and beans cooked over an open flame. It was wonderful and I will certainly always remember the friendliness and generosity of spirit of these wonderful people!!
Hello everyone
We leave you a video recorded by the Spanish TV in Trujillo (Peru) where we can see the work of the Comboni Missionaries and of the Comboni Lay Missionaries in the place (is in Spanish).
Greetings to everybody, let us see who wants to joint!
Jesus Christ, You are the first missionary of the world, thank You for the grace of faith and for all the people who helped me get to know You.
I ask you to teach me hear Your voice, to humbly discover my vocation and accept the tasks You put in front of me.
Help me grow in a greater awareness of myself and send me the Holy Spirit to overcome my weaknesses. Let me follow St. Daniel Comboni’s example having energy and sensitivity to serve God and His people with my whole life as Comboni Lay Missionary.
Support missionaries who work in every place you send them so “every tongue could confesses that Jesus Christ is the Lord”.
Among the various pastoral activities in the parish of Santo Domingo, led by the Comboni Missionaries in Nova Contagem, there is also the Prison Pastoral, carried forward by 15 volunteers, including Comboni Lay Missionaries, as part of the parish.
Every Tuesday and Wednesday morning, the group meets to visit the pavilions of the maximum security prison Nelson Hungría, located in Nova Contagem, with about 2,000 prisoners. The appointment is at 08:00 in the square next to the prison.
Prisons in Brazil, as elsewhere in the world, suffer high prison overcrowding due to a system with little attention to the recovery of the detainees.
Prisons of Minas Gerais, for example, can receive 32,000 prisoners, divided into 144 prisons, actually are 54,000 prisoners within the various units. This situation can only deteriorate the living conditions of prisoners, with a purpose of punishment more than re-education and re-socialization, with serious violations of human rights.
The action and commitment of the Prison Pastoral group, mostly made up of women, is to believe in the work of promoting human dignity, respect for human rights, and overcoming the limits of the current prison system in favor of a model that allows effective recovery and reintegration of the prisoner.
The most important of our pastoral action is the testimony of a God who does not discriminate any person in a place marked by contempt, prejudice and violence, making our own the words of the Gospel: “I was in prison and you came to visit me”. It is the teaching of Jesus, the method, the model, who heads the walk of this pastoral, recognizing the face of God in every person, even in prison.
There are many challenges and difficulties faced in our pastoral activities, such as excessive bureaucracy that often delays and complicates our work, controls, restrictions on visits, limited permissions; but this small group of volunteers face difficulties with courage. This also allowed in 2014, to create two groups of catechesis in prison and enabled some prisoners who had requested to receive the sacraments.
To this are fundamental the moments of ongoing formation we do each month, with a space dedicated for programming and training, allowing pastoral prison agent to know and learn the actions and information that will help improve visits to the prison and the relationship with prisoners. We also attend the training conducted by the diocese.
That’s the job of the prison ministry. A simple action, holding hands, meeting face to face, listening to the life stories of those who are on the other side of the bars in order to witness the justice and dignity of every human being, because as the Gospel says ” By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (Jn 13, 35).
Last weekend we met in Carraia (home of the secular missionaries) the General Councils of the Comboni Family.
Like every year, this event helps us to be close and attentive to the news that each of the branches are having.
The morning, after a set time of prayer, was dedicate for sharing these progresses.
The Comboni missionary sisters told us their walk and especially the steps that have being taken to prepare the chapter this year as well as the reorganization of the institute taking into account the new realities. The Chapter is been prepare with a first experience in a concrete and challenging reality in every community which split reflection and sharing. Looking guide the institute toward truly significant presences, knowing that not all is graspable.
The Comboni missionary Secular told us their way from the last assembly and the challenges that arise. The importance of reappropriate its own history and experience of the charisma while remaining faithful in their everyday to their vocation, keeping growing and trying to maintain a spirit of collaboration with other secular institutes and the rest of the Comboni Family.
This year the new general counsel of the MCCJ told us their way of preparation and conduct of the general chapter, collecting the reflections arising in each province and each brother. The inspiration they have had in the teaching of Pope Francisco. And the central themes that have come during the Chapter on the Mission, the Person and the Restructuration of the Institute.
For our part, the CLM explain the great challenges we are trying to pursue. Especially seek to strengthen each group and the CLM family in general, work with each group and at continental level, the importance of communication, training and the economy, ending with the commitment and challenge that from the charisma is presented as Comboni Family referring to our missionary work and witness our missionary being.
Later in the afternoon, we had a period of reflection on mercy in the life and mission of St. Daniel Comboni from a text of Father Carmelo Casile. A rich sharing time, which also helped us think as a family.
The day ended with the joint celebration of the Eucharist and dinner in a cordial atmosphere. In Carraia we felt very welcomed by the secular missionaries and enjoying the good atmosphere that characterizes these meetings.
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Every Christmas, the ladies of Theodokis Maria visit the small village of Rayampampa, Peru. Rayampampa is outside the city of Otusco where the Virgen de la Puerta, this region’s most famous religious icon resides.
