Comboni Lay Missionaries

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Pope Francisco Message for Lent 2014

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Lenten 2014Pope Francis has released his message for Lent this year. The text offered by Francisco, which takes as its theme a fragment of the Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians – “He became poor to enrich us with his poverty” (Cor 8.9) – the Pope reflects on the “poverty that enriches “from the point of view of Christ, and the different forms of poverty that humanity suffers at the present time.

The poverty of Christ is for the Pope a poverty that “liberates and enriches” and shows “unlimited trust in God the Father”. “It has been said that the only real sadness is not being saints; it could also be said that there is one true misery: not live as children of God and brothers of Christ,” said the Pope. In this text, Francisco also warns against three kinds of misery: “material, moral and spiritual misery” that afflicts the human been.

According to what the Pope tells us in this Lenten message, God is not revealed through the power and wealth of the world, but through the weakness and poverty. And Jesus, the eternal Son of God, equal to the Father in power and glory, made himself poor so that we feel brothers of all who are suffering, the needy, the latter, which are the favorites of God.

The Pope invites us in his message to remember that Lent is a time to divest, to ask how we can deprive ourselves in order to help and enrich others with our poverty. Not forgetting that true poverty hurts: a wreck would not be valid without this penitential dimension. Distrust of almsgiving that does not cost and is painless.

Full text of the Pope’s Francisco message for Lent 2014

Walking strong in a faith with the truth and the knowledge

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The weekend of 21, 22 and 23 February the community of life of Porto joined the parish of Grijó for another missionary animation. The meeting began with a reflection and exchange on the encyclical Lumen Fidei where we could reflect upon faith as the most beautiful expression of love for God. But a faith walking strong with the truth and the knowledge, a faith rooted in God and whose trunk strengthen us with the truth, with daily reflection on the Word of God. So, in fact, “As it is light, faith invites us to penetrate it, always more to explore the horizon that illuminates, to better understand what we love.” (LF 36).

It was in this sense that moved by this faith that drives us to always learn more, we share the charism of being Comboni Lay Missionary in the world, we share testimonies of missionary experiences, let challenges in a walk of faith and commitment into a walk of missionary animation for youth. In this way we gave voice to the project KWE ZO ZO – “Every person is a person”, to the JIM´s project (young missionary commitment) and shared with the parish community the gift of being CLM. But for all this to be possible, many collaborated with us. So we want to thank everyone who helped us, from the parish priest, the deacon, the sexton, all catechists, the youth group, the groups of catechesis and the whole entire parish community that welcomed us so well and that generously contributed to the project.

Along our route we tried to interpellate each person in their life, in their routine and simplicity tries to follow the call to holiness, to love this God always gracious and merciful. As Jesus challenged us in the Gospel, “Be ye therefore perfect as your Father, which is in heaven, is perfect” (Mt 5, 48). So we also try to challenge each person to follow the fearless mission entrusted to him/her by the Lord Jesus Christ and to respond with joy to the call that God has for us with the gospel!

In the farewell remained the great joy of our hearts to share experiences, joys and learnings. The joy for the continuation of this path in community, this path that will only be made walking in communion with our brothers around the world!

By Paula Sousa (Portugal)

CLM Assembly in Portugal

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Time to (re) launch challenges and deep breathing

Last weekend we made our second National Assembly. We are in our beloved home of Coimbra and take advantage of this time to look and reflect on the present and especially the future.

With the grace of God, we come to end the review of our directory (which we hope will be approved shortly) and, according to the reality of our communities of life, we draw guidelines for the future based upon the challenges taken in the International CLM Assembly of December 2012 in Maia.

We wanted, as usual, live this Assembly with the presence of those who are in formation. So with them, we shared moments of prayer, food and leisure, living this time in the light of the Apostolic Exhortation “The joy of the Gospel.” So it was with this joy and with the help of Fr Silverio Malta (MCCJ) that being in Assembly we remained in communion with the candidates in formation and all the Comboni family.

In our prayers, the “Joy of the Gospel” was read and prayed in the light of joy, the suffering and hope of the CLM in mission and the peoples to whom we are sent.

In fact, the increasing violence in the Central African Republic and the political instability in Mozambique leaves us restless, in suffering and in communion with the CLM there present and these peoples victims of these situations, but also because of this cross that we find the strength for our walk in faith and hope towards the One who has conquered death and pain.

by Susana Vilas Boas

Sister Angelique Namaika in Granada

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CARTEL DEFLast Friday February 7th, Sister Angelique Namaika, Fellowship Award 2013 granted by the magazine Mundo Negro published by the Comboni Missionaries in Spain, was in Granada invited by the Comboni Family to give her testimony and share her life and her work with the poorest and forgotten.

More than a hundred people gave us gathered at the Jesuit Center Suarez to hear a firsthand testimony of this strong and passionate about life woman. A testimony of hope amid so much suffering.

Sister Angelique works with victims of the atrocities of the greatest criminal of the recent history of mankind. Joseph Kony, leader of the vicious Lord’s Resistance Army, which roams freely in Congo, South Sudan and Central Africa. Tens of thousands of people are forced to flee from their homes, leaving their homes and families, sometimes losing their children converted into little soldiers.

This religious woman is a symbol of the work that the Church develops in one of the most dangerous corners of the African continent with a collective, the refugees, often more easily forgotten.

Among many other issues, she told us about her work in the field of training and accompanying psychological support to women who have experienced violence in the first person and how her work is focused on advancing the culture of reconciliation so that little by little go slowly disappearing the hate fruit of lived atrocities.

La hna. Angelique junto a LMC de Granada
Sister Angelique with CLM of Granada
La hna. Angelique durante su conferencia
Sister Angelique during her conference

Back to the mission

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DSC08793bAfter a short stay in the land of Peruvian mission I’m back, and I want to thank the CLM Movement that gave me this opportunity.

It was to help one of our families in mission: Isabel and Gonzalo with his two sons, Angel and Carmencita, after an accident. Gonzalo walking along a ravine to attend its work with the people, slipped and rolled about eight meters injuring his shoulder, arms, head … and the worst, a vertebra. This was in November and has been bedridden until mid-January, after a new review, the doctor advised him to start up for short walks.

I had never thought to return to Peru after a missionary period on top of the mountain over 10 years ago… but these are the surprises that the Lord gives us! So, totally open to what I could find there, without knowing exactly what would be my work… I “set off”, rather fly, to the land at Arequipa. There I met my brothers Gonzalo and Isabel.

DSC05867It has been so good this month that I want to share in this blog what I perceived to be at their side. They welcomed me with affection, making me feel like a member of the family, because from the first moment they show me what they are and what they live from their gut, their vulnerability, fragility and great generosity.

Leaving behind friends, work, family … they came out of themselves to take care of the others, to take to our brothers and sisters the Good News, the certainty that God is in their world of poverty, along with them, He does not forget them, that there is hope despite the harsh conditions in which they live. But these are words and were not sufficient for the truth be convince or be persuasive. So leaving the parish house in which they lived, they settled in Villa Ecológica, a settlement on the outskirts of Arequipa. And what I saw there is how with their lifestyle, imbued among the people as a family, have managed to bring the liberating experience of Jesus to the center of their hearts. Day by day they share poverty and environmental constraints, lack of amenities, serve and welcome each person with respect, patience and love, form groups to fight against violence and injustice, helping to recognize their rights and helping to denounce bad  situations; supporting pastoral and organizing youth groups of prayer … on this, sometimes I accompanied Isabel confirming what I somehow knew.

What this has brought me…? a “tune-up” in the meetings with the people relive many things: the joy of meeting, the listening, letting me to be welcome; create, though this little time, a relationship of respect, cordiality, they showed me their simple homes, the “dear God” hope for your life … and the feeling that arose in me was of gratitude and humility. What could I tell them with a return ticket in my pocket?

DSC05884On the other hand we find three moments to share about their work and lifestyle. We propose the challenges of the mission: the loneliness when a community lack, wear and fatigue times, the need to be physically and mentally strong, the difficulties in the presence of a family with children aged 4 and 7 years; lack, sometimes, to have a “companion” to help discern in times of frustration or dryness, loss of perspective when you go into a routine. Also, in certain moments, certain that you follow the steps of Jesus feeling His instruments…

We prayed together and this was a joy … There have been many frank and open dialogues that have warmed my heart and my missionary vocation was excited like a young girl.

Joining them in some way my life has grown because I had the opportunity to see Isabel and Gonzalo to live honestly the Love of God. May He bless you always.

M ª Carmen Polanco. CLM Spain