Comboni Lay Missionaries

Logo LMC
LMCCentroafrica2
MisionenGuerrero2
Natal20162

Brazil

This is our mission field on the outskirts of Nova Contagem in the Parish of Santo Domingo

by

Visita pastoralThe parish of Santo Domingo and the thirteen communities received the pastoral visit of Bishop Luiz Gonzaga Fechio (Bishop of Belo Horizonte), 7 and 8 December in the district of Nova Comtagem. A special time of fellowship and sharing.

On Saturday, the Comboni missionaries presented the activities of the parish and visit the religious communities. During the evening Mass, Dom Luiz Fechio imparted the sacrament of Confirmation to the youth of the communities.

Dom Luiz visited on Sunday, the Comboni house that, through the Ministry of Prisons provides support for families of prisoners and people with addiction. He also met with leaders of the Parish Pastoral Council and the coordinators of the communities.

Don Luis Fechio in his pastoral visit also had the opportunity to see the house of the Comboni Lay Missionaries here in Ipê Amarelo and know how is the life of the CLM. For him and for us it was good to share the experiences, joys and sorrows, more joys as it is clear. Don Luis was happy to know that in a distant periphery, the CLM are communion with the people.

A Mass attended by representatives of the thirteen communities marked the end of the visit.

Visita pastoralBy Maria de Lourdes Vieira

Arrival of Emma (Italian CLM in Brazil)

by

Emma arrived in Brazil on December 1st, 2013.

She has come for a period of 3 years.

The community of Our Lady of Aparecida, Ipê Amarelo, has welcomed her. On this day 8/12, day of the Immaculate Conception, Emma was presented and received by the people. Taking advantage of the pastoral visit of Don Luis, Bishop of our region, Emma spoke of the joy of participating in community life and walk with Jesus in this Brazilian land.

Now she is studying the language and seizes the moment with the children here at the home of Mission Santa Terezinha of Ipê Amarelo to improve her Portuguese.

Welcome Emma!

By María de Lourdes,

CLM Brazil

Annual CLM Meeting in Brazil (conclusion)

by

LMC Brasil 2013It has just finished the second day of our annual CLM meeting.

The morning began with a delicious mining breakfast, fried cake with traditional mining cheese, and of course a good cup of black coffee.

In the morning we talked about the economic reality and the challenges posed by the CLM Central Committee.

We also reviewed the action lines defined for the biennium 2013-2014 in the last assembly, highlighting proposals for the coming year. We hear work prospects of each one and ended with the impressions and conclusions of the meeting.

It was given great importance to the wealth that the presence of the lay missionary couple that is present with the Comboni Missionary in Açailândia, Maranhão, for the opportunity to share and exchange experiences, which has united us even more.

We conclude the morning with the celebration of the Eucharist, reminding all CLM in the world and the challenges that lie ahead.

We remain united in prayer and mission!

We are together!

CLM Brazil

Annual CLM Meeting in Brazil

by

LMC BrasilWe ended the first day of the CLM meeting in Brazil. 11 people attended, including Marco and Valentina, couple of Italian lay missionaries who are working with the Comboni Missionaries in Açailândia, Maranhão, and Emma, Italian CLM who arrived on 2 of this month to join the CLM community of Ipê Amarelo.

We share the experiences made during 2013 of the various communities and reflect on “Comboni and missionary Juncture ” based on some challenges posed by Father George and the CLM coordinator team related to the concepts of new evangelization, conversion, some meaningful words from Pope Francisco and the proposal of the 51st General Assembly of the Brazilian Bishops’ conference.

By late afternoon, we reproduce the workshops held in the Assembly of Maia, which has helped us to start thinking about the next steps as CLM for reflection on the second day.

We concluded the evening with some videos about APAC (alternative prison system), the international community of Carapira and the indigenous cause.

We count with the prayers of all for the continuity of our meeting!

We are together!

CLM Brazil

Dream of God in Us

by

“The position of a missionary disciple is not the center but the periphery.”

Pope Francisco

Lourdes Vieira

I find myself in this immense periphery of Contagem since six months continuing the mission that Jesus has entrusted to us as CLM’s. When I came here I was scared thinking how I could help, because I realized that the community walked pastorally well, each area with its coordinator, everything flowed.

“But when we silenced the heart, God speaks!”

Of course there wasn´t monitoring for the possible vocation to be CLM, but as we know the winds are not to have many vocations, especially in this new context through which it passes our economy in Brazil. But when we silenced the heart God speaks! There is a saying of the Macua people of Mozambique that says: “Yakhala enokhala mmurimani, ekoma khoniwa” (When there is noise in the heart you do not hear the beat). Then, one beautiful day of prayer, I put myself in God’s hands and asked the Holy Spirit, with my permission, to place me at the service of the brothers in these outskirts of Minas Gerais.

Therefore it would be necessary to seek new skills. Then I studied Massage Therapy and got some notions of Biomagnetism with Father George and Regina who happily led me.

“In small gestures I found myself with the reality of the people…”

Today, attending people in the Comboni House and in the Study Center of the Sisters in Pampulha, I feel that I just need to surrender and the rest is up to Him. The Pastoral of the Child is also subject to this call, these days we are finishing a training course for new leaders, this time not so worried about the child underweight, but children with obesity from Zero to Six years old. Right now we are working with 8 groups, assisting 200 families and about 300 children are been accompanied by the Pastoral of the Child here in the area of the parish. In small gestures I found myself with the reality of people who seek happiness, health and safety, life in abundance!

The mission today is no longer just the desire to be a missionary, but also training for the rapid changes that are happening and we are not always willing to open our mind, sit down on the benches of the preparatory school to better serve the brothers.

Of course I could not stop talking about the Pope Francisco. I’ve been in Aparecida do Norte for a meeting of the Pastoral of the Child and I could see him pretty closely, at the feet of the patron saint of Brazil. And in the emotion of the words of our pastor I prayed for all who were lost in drugs, families and to have more vocations in the Church. Thus we continued to walk; together!

By Maria de Lourdes Vieira – CLM Brazil in Ipê Amarelo