Comboni Lay Missionaries

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A great day for gardening

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Since 2010 we (Mark & Maggie) have continued our work with the Catholic University and College Students Group in Awassa.  They have an active student leadership committee with lots of ideas and energy, so we accompanying “adults” play a mentoring role.   This years’ group is particularly dynamic.  In 2014, a new Catholic centre will open up here in Awassa city which will have a parish church, a kindergarten school and the main jewel, the brand new diocesan youth centre.  We thought it would be great to start to get the young people involved to breathe some life into this construction site soon to be pastoral hub.

So we approached the student group to see if they would take on the design and planting of the gardens surrounding the church.  They loved the idea and in a flash, they were running with the project with spirited initiative.  In no time they had formed a small committee with engineering and agriculture students, inspected the site, took measurements, toured some nice gardens in the city for inspiration and sketched a design.  One student devoted an entire day to travel three hours away and select and purchase the plants.  Another student visited the site the day before and marked out the plan in the soil. And so last Saturday the students rallied their peers and over 40 came out and planted in one swoop!  We divided into small teams and with an air of controlled chaos, the work began: hoes swinging, spades digging, manure flying and saplings dropping.   We laughed, sang and before we knew it the day was done – 1,200 plants and flowers in place.   We then sat in the shade and shared bananas, bread and sodas.   Everyone was happy with the day’s good work.

Years from now when the hedges are full and the trees tall, the young people involved will look on and smile silently knowing how it all happened.  Most importantly they will have learned a gem of a lesson – we can achieve grand and beautiful things if we are willing to put in the effort and work together.

garden new church low res

– Maggie, Mark and Emebet Banga, Comboni Lay Missionaries, Awassa, Ethiopia

 

Another year ends!

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Many good things happened throughout 2013.

The sending of Scharliman to the international community of Rondos in Peru.

The arrival of the CLM Emma, who comes from Italy for a period of 3 years to Ipê Amarillo, Contagem-Minas Gerais.

The constant communication and support from the Central Committee and the Comboni Missionaries.

The annual meeting of the CLM, moments to check the path we are walking and find the CLM scattered throughout the mission territories of this immense Brazil.

The renewal of Flavio for 2 more years on African soil, and of course his presence with us on vacation and his availability, even while on vacation, he spared no efforts to address many invitations to talk about his missionary experience in these two years Mozambique.

Time to satisfy our nostalgias, to share joys and sorrows and recompose the strength to follow God’s plan in our missionary commitment for 2014. The pains, which are not lacking in anyone’s life, passed because its promise is real and true: I will be with you until the end.

So, friends and fellows CLM everywhere, we want to start 2014 with much strength and courage to all.

May Our Lady of Aparecida and all the saints in each country encourage us in this beautiful journey of our yes to God and Comboni.

By Maria Lourdes Vieira.

 

Happy Xmas from Aber

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Desde UgandaChristmas is a presence, a presence of love. This is the style Jesus choose for his mission, this is the style we are also supposed to have in our life as missionaries…wherever we are! Since we came here in August 2011, we have always tried to be a presence that could arouse question marks in the life of the people; It is very hard to give answers because of the differences we have, but at least we can witness our style of being family, doctor, educator, father, mother, husband, wife and Christians.

This is the reason why we always refused to make very big projects, to build structures and so on.

Jesus didn’t come with money…He came poor; Jesus didn’t build temples…a part the temple of His body. Living here now for a quite long time we had the possibilities to compare our style with the style of some NGOs…for us, we don’t  have any task to reach, we can just do our work and live our life as best as we can. If we should evaluate the life of Jesus considering the results He obtained, we could say that He failed. But we know that it is not like this.

In the same way, it is not good to see that in the hospital the nurses  go on being lazy despite Maria Grazia tries to make them understand that they should be more committed  for the good of the patients, or it is not rewarding when you fix a meeting for justice and peace commission and no one comes…but we are sure this is the right way to be present among these people.

So, wherever you are living in this moment, we wish you to be a presence of love for the people around you. Not minding about the results you will get, but trying only to give your best following the plans God prepared for you…in the same way Jesus tried (and succeeded) to do the will of the Father!

We need to feel presences of love around us, we are called to be presences of love among the people.

Happy Christmas from Aber (Uganda).

By Marco Piccione

Echoes of Christmas 2013 meeting

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“All different, but all united in Comboni wearing the face and the Word of Jesus Christ here and beyond.”

We begin by thanking all those who have contributed directly or indirectly to make possible this Christmas gathering. We are grateful to Sandra for organizing the meeting, to Sister Carmen Ribeiro, Brother Paul and the secular missionary Joanna and Paula for sharing all that is essential for us, LMC candidates, to understand in particular this missionary vocation of the Comboni family. Thanks also to Father Avelino who shared his missionary experience and celebrated the Eucharist. Thanks, finally, to all others not mentioned but that they worked hard to make the meeting possible.

This meeting was full of smiles, hugs, moments of conviviality and animated dynamic. It was the sharing of a joy that with Jesus Christ reborn endlessly. This was a family reunion. We truly felt as a family. We are in the same boat and we rowed in the same direction. In this boat where they are not only all those with whom we live this weekend, but all the other members of the Comboni family no matter where they are and where are they from. We feel with renewed strength and with real and physical certainty of knowing united, not by blood, but by the same creator and make us share the same mission. All different in our vocation but all united in Comboni wearing the face and the Word of Jesus Christ here and there.

By Paula Sousa (Portugal)