Benjamine Kimala is a Comboni Missionary Sister from Chad. After spending several years in Ecuador and Peru, she has returned to her home country to work in missionary animation. In the video, she shares her personal experience as a missionary (audio in Spanish).
In the month in which we celebrate the 60th World Communications Day, let us pray that all those involved in communications within the Comboni Family may be able to recount the beauty that in-habits the world with good stories that edify and give hope. Let us pray.
After traveling quite a bit, we arrived in Lima, Peru. We were warmly welcomed by Mrs. Ana and Mr. Fisher from the CLM in Peru. It was the first time we had spent Holy Week away from our country and family.
We celebrated Palm Sunday at the chapel near our home. We enjoyed the songs and prayers. People were very happy to meet us. They gave us a brief moment to introduce ourselves.
On Good Friday, we went to the Pamplona neighborhood for the Stations of the Cross. It was a new experience. Everywhere we went, we shared food and joy.
On other days, we visited the families of the CLM members who live in Lima, and we also went to the scholastics’ house and the provincial house. We also visited downtown Lima to do some sightseeing and see some very beautiful places.
So far, we’re having a very good experience. We like the food in Peru. The climate suits us well. We’ve learned about the culture, about money, and how people pay for food and other things.
We’re currently studying hard to improve our Spanish. We want to learn Spanish well so we can provide the best missionary service possible. We’re learning a lot about the culture and history, and we’re also interacting well with the people.
Belinda, CLM in Peru
On Holy Thursday, we dedicated our morning for a moment of prayer at the home of a family from the Ipê community. We prayed together and reflected on the text written by Valdeci regarding CF 2026.
Afterward, we took a walk, observing the glaring contradictions around us.
Ipê Amarelo is a neighborhood born out of the organization of homeless families who used to pay rent. It is a story of the struggle to secure housing in the 1990s, when, through much struggle and resistance, they moved from living in tents to their own homes. But it is also bordered by a large wall that marks social inequality, for behind the walls, guarded by security guards, lies one of the most luxurious condominiums in the region. Visiting the families was a time to listen to their stories, learn about their joys and challenges, and experience the community’s characteristic hospitality.
In the evening, we participated in the foot-washing ceremony at the Nossa Senhora Aparecida Community, a beautiful moment that reminded us that “we are the church of shared bread, of embrace, and of peace.”
CLM Brazil
On the Wednesday of Holy Week, we visited the Brumadinho Memorial, a place of remembrance and “a victory for the families of the 272 victims of the Córrego do Feijão mine dam collapse, which occurred on 25 January 2019 in Brumadinho, Minas Gerais”.
This was a visit that made us stop and ask ourselves: “What are we doing to our planet?” We left deeply affected by the history of the place, the trail of destruction left by mining, and the feeling that whilst places may change, the destructive practice of the current model of exploitation remains the same in many places. Affected communities, the loss of lives, the destruction of rivers and entire ecosystems, and a deep sense of impunity.
Everything we saw, heard and felt made us reflect on the need to deepen our understanding of the Spirituality of Integral Ecology, which reconnects us with our common home, with our brothers and sisters, and reminds us that everything is interconnected.
CLM Brazil
