We leave you a video that we have received from Kenya telling us about the project that the CLM community of Kitelakapel-Kenya is doing on Mental Health issues in collaboration with Hani (CLM of Egypt).
In it you will be able to hear first hand how it is being developed and the continuity they want to give. It is a nice example of collaboration with the presence of Hani and then the second time with the arrival of Mira (candidate from Egypt) and where financial support has been received from Spain.
Thank you all for your prayers and support to our CLM service in the places where we are present.
As the CLM are looking for new candidates for their missions, an interesting experiment was done in Kitelakapel: an international summer camp, or mission animation experience, organised for a group of young adults from Italy, in collaboration with the Italian CLM, and particularly the group of Verona. Actually, the whole idea originated from Verona, where the local CLM dealt with the formation of the participants and all the necessary arrangements. On our side, we welcomed the idea and agreed to accompany the group in their discovery of our mission and our community here in Kitelakapel and other areas of Kenya. Indeed, the programme was super rich: first, three weeks in Kitelakapel, with the CLM community, then a week in Kariobangi near Korogocho – one of the main slums in Nairobi – hosted by the Comboni fathers, and finally some days of safari and activities by the sea, not to forget the experience of moving around the different areas of Nairobi with all their contradictions, where the gap between rich and poor is as evident as it could be.
A full picture of Kenya, from the far, marginalised area where we live, to the touristic coast, passing by the congested yet creative realities of the slum. And the variety of lifestyles one can choose: from the condition of living in a lay community, to that of a religious one, and that of individual tourists.
The group was led by CLM candidates, Giulia Lampo and Laura Materazzo from Italy, while three CLM couples were constantly in touch with them from Verona, also accompanying through online communication each of the group members individually. Pius, Marzena and Linda (Kitelakapel community) were obviously involved in the organisation, and Linda accompanied the group also in their tours out of West Pokot. Towards the end of their stay in Kitelakapel and during the week in Kariobangi, they were joined, for some parts of the day, by fr. Paolo La Torre, who helped them particularly with moments of sharing, reflection, and Mass. It was therefore an almost fully “lay” experience, done by lay people, led by lay people, and in a community of lay people!
In Kitelakapel, after a warm welcoming to the sound of a very famous Italian song (thanks to the creativity of our Marzena!), the group settled both in our home and another house the fathers have near the chapel. We all shared meals together, and moments of prayer, following the rhythms of the community. The participants were also included in our regular cooking and cleaning chores, therefore taking full part in our daily life as a community.
And then, of course, they accompanied us in all our activities, collaborating with the teaching of life skills in the schools, discovering Marzena’s work in the dispensaries of Kitelakapel and Kacheliba, the pastoral activities with the youth, including catechism, visiting families around, and playing with the children in our compound. It goes without saying that we also took them to visit the parish in Kacheliba, meet the Comboni fathers, climb the little mountain near the parish, and walk around the market. Not to forget the beautiful scenery by the waterfalls near Makutano, where we had a nice picnic. And lots of moments of reflection and sharing, which were so needed as such an experience can make one feel overwhelmed in a storm of emotions, while the encounter with such a different reality and culture brings up tons of questions.
In Kariobangi, where they were hosted by the Comboni fathers, the group visited some of the projects the MCCJ run in the parish, accompanying workers and volunteers in their activities, especially visiting the families or individuals whom they support in the nearby slum areas. These were members of the community affected by HIV, young single mothers, street children and children with physical disabilities, who are in a physiotherapy programme. It was another intense experience, before the more relaxing final days in Kenya, which were spent in yet another setting, that of the coast.
Of course, in Nairobi our friends had the chance to meet the Kenyan CLM and attend part of their formation meeting. Not to mention that they were so lucky as to get the chance to meet also our general coordinator, Alberto de la Portilla, on that very occasion, and to spend some time with him as he was preparing to leave Kenya for Egypt in his round of visits.
It was a well-rounded experience for the participants, and, as we hope, one that will change their lives, pushing them to make missionary choices in their future, whether abroad or in the place where they live, and possibly join the wonderful journey of being Comboni Lay Missionaries. We also hope that other summer camps or similar mission experiences will be organised in the future, whether in Kitelakapel or other missions, as part of our common effort to expand our movement, reach more people with our testimony and change theirs and other people’s lives through mission animation.
You can read the testimony of one of the participants to the camp at this link.
During my three weeks in the village of Kitelakapel, I had an experience that deeply enriched and changed me. From day one, I was welcomed with warmth and joy by the Comboni Lay Missionaries-Linda, Pius and Maya-and by the villagers. Each day was an opportunity to learn, share and grow with them.
We spent much of our time visiting local schools and working side by side with the village children and youth in the compound. Despite the lack of material resources, there was an incredible human richness: all it took was a look, a smile, a hug or a laugh to feel immediately at home. The simplicity of their lives taught me to appreciate the little things and to rediscover the value of essentiality.
What impressed me most was to see how the children and young people enjoyed themselves with so little. Every game, every moment together was precious, because what really mattered was being there for each other. Their joy and gratitude was a constant reminder of how much we often take for granted in our lives.
If you want to go first, run alone; if you want to go far, walk together-this is a Kenyan proverb that I got to hear and learn during my stay, and now that I have returned to my daily routine, I can say that this proverb has universal value. In our modern lives, which are often geared toward individual success, we forget the importance of walking together with others. Whether in personal life, work, or community, walking together leads not only to a greater sense of belonging, but also teaches us the humility and strength that comes from being part of something bigger than ourselves. In the village, I experienced what it means to be community: the important thing is not to focus only on the speed of our journey, but on the quality and depth of our relationships along the way. It is a reminder that in order to build something meaningful and lasting, it is essential to walk together, step by step.
I am grateful to God for allowing me to have this extraordinary experience. It has filled my heart and soul with rejuvenating emotions, and it has shown me how much you can receive even when you think you are going there to give. Give what you don’t have,” wrote Alessandro Manzoni back in the 1800s, ”the secret of happiness is precisely this: giving goes beyond the simple act of giving something material, it is an invitation to offer others what, on the surface, we might lack ourselves, but which can be generated and shared through our being and our spirit.
I will always carry with me the faces, smiles and stories of these wonderful people who taught me the true meaning of sharing and Love for self, others and God.
We are here again to give you news and to share, with you, this last time. In these months we unfortunately struggle to respond to all your messages (there are so many of them), due to unplanned vicissitudes, but this is all part of being on mission and living it to the fullest, until the last moment of each day.
Last time, we told you about the sorrow of saying goodbye to Father Jaider, the Comboni parish priest, who left urgently for his homeland due to repeated illnesses.
But well behold, on the same day exactly one month after his departure (again on the 5th but in July), the community of Comboni Fathers, was hit again by terrible news. While waiting to welcome a Combonian brother back from vacation in his homeland, the news of his death reached us overnight on the same day he was supposed to join us.
To date, the Combonian community consists of only one father and one theology student. These have been difficult, intense months, full of obstacles, but even in this time, God’s infinite mercy and goodness has never ceased to work wonders and to give us the strength to face this time and to continue to look to an ever higher horizon together with these brothers and sisters of ours. Indeed, in this very time of fatigue, of fragility, the Lord has united us even more as a community with the fathers, as the Combonian family, and we have never failed to feel, that the Lord was leading us. It is precisely in fragility, that the Lord likes to work, if we always leave everything in His hands and rely on His Grace. As a wise woman who walks with us says, “build with those who want to build and always go forward in the joy that comes from the Lord”; these are indeed true words, because the more we leave everything in the Lord’s hands, the more He builds.
In these our first six Mozambican months, there has been no shortage of hardships and obstacles, and in some cases they have not been easy to overcome, especially those derived from the people closest to us, but really only with the Lord’s help, with your being there, with your making yourselves heard and with the help of the people, have we always managed to keep alive in our hearts, the joy, the peace and the hope, to continue to embrace this wonderful land, rich in beauty but at the same time with many contradictions.
Every day the Macua people teach us and give us the joy of sharing our lives with them. During this time, we have also experienced unexpected, enriching moments, such as the visit of the general council of the Comboni sisters and at the beginning of August, also that by the fathers of the Comboni general councils. How much Grace received, unexpected and rich with some more horizons….
Inside our hearts, bigger dreams are opening up with wider horizons that start from listening to the reality in which we are inserted; all this we know for sure that with our forces alone, we will not be able to achieve it.
In this time, we have tried to always stay one step behind to observe and try to understand what the main needs are for real in this land and to really make them protagonists of their history and their land. Here for us mission is this: to create real, authentic relationships, to create bridges, to create network.
We are overjoyed despite some difficulties and some malaria that hits us (both of us are down to 2), but the joy, hope, passion and love we feel for this land is a drive that moves us every day to keep sowing and building. We also continue to thank each and every one of you, because your presence, closeness and help are fuel to continue to hope and grow, to be able to build a better future together with these people and to feel that we are all together pilgrims of hope in a better world, where every man has the right to live a dignified life.
We all are mission and we with all of you, feel like family.
A hug from the bottom of our hearts. We continue to pray for all of you and you too, continue to pray for us
With love, deep appreciation and gratitude – Ila and Fede
Dear all,
it has been a while since we have talked and we are here to give you some news as so many of you keep requesting and we apologize for the delay.
The days here are very dense and we do not hide the fact that they go by so fast, with such depth and fullness, that we do not even realize that July has begun and it has been a while since we have written :). We start by apologizing for this time, but towards the end of May, to our chagrin, we had problems with the phone plans…the company brutally cut the connection data, so that also did not allow us to give you much news, but thank God, a week ago, they changed everything again, putting a little more data, so we will be more operational and consistent. We hope in the future there won’t be any more cuts, in fact we hope there will be some increases in data, although a little bit we doubt it since there will be new elections in a few months. We have a lot of ideas in our heads, and if the phone plan does not change, we will unveil some ideas soon. This past month, we also received our “first African baptism,” or rather both of us were stricken with malaria. We were very surprised by this, but it allowed us to reflect a lot on what every day, each of them live with this disease, those who can afford to get treatment, and those who lose their lives because they don’t have the money to access to get tested and start treatment and the struggle to recover energy to start again.
Because of this, with much sorrow, at the beginning of June, we had to say goodbye to the parish priest of Carapira parish, who had to return urgently, to his homeland, precisely because of continuous malaria. His suffering was so great both because of what he was experiencing because of malaria and because he had to leave this land that he loved so much. For us it was like a bolt out of the blue, because before being a good parish priest, he was a humble brother who was always at the service of everyone, he was just a beautiful witness to see and touch. Anyway, we are also very happy with the Comboni Fathers who are here with us, we are just living and breathing at this moment so much fullness and deep living with them. Every day, we find on both sides, like “a little excuse” to always find each other and build piece by piece a communion of fraternity and true witness. Here close to home, there are also nuns who are part of another religious institute than the Combonians, but even with them we have created just a beautiful relationship of harmony and complicity. This is certainly very important because it allows us to get to know each other and to feel like an extended family, but above all it makes us feel that we are in cordiality with our more lonely and abandoned brothers and sisters, and it allows us to help carry each other’s burdens.
We also received the grace in this time to experience the vigil and patronal feast, just of the parish of Carapira … we were more or less 200 people and it was exciting to live and breathe it together with them. Just think, the vigil lasted a good 4 hours, but it went by in the blink of an eye…there were many communities present who came from far and wide, with even a good number of young people present. Well what can we say about the Macua people…they amaze us more and more and we really feel at home among them and with them…I think this is the most appropriate and correct expression to use to make you understand what they make us experience in the true depth and essentiality of the human person. Every day we feel that we are smaller and smaller in their midst, precisely because we see that their presence is a great enrichment for us in our lives….in reality it is more they who form us than what we try to help them. You should see for yourselves with your own eyes and touch concretely with your own hands, how much beauty that is hidden here in their sores and suffering. Of course, all of this, makes us question a lot about various aspects of our lives, our relationships and how we unnecessarily waste energy and time on futile things. Here the beauty and essentiality is just the famous “being there” as we are and nothing more, which is always what we continue to understand and be stronger and more aware of within ourselves and along our path. In the end, what matters, is not what we do, the service in which we spend ourselves, or the accomplishment of something or ourselves, but the love with which we love these brothers and sisters. We know for a fact, that we will not be the ones to save anyone; on the contrary, they are the real protagonists who are saving us “Westerners.” How much joy it gives us to be among them, to try to say four words in their language, to hug them, to joke with them, to make them smile and to let God do the communion meeting with them.
The other day we were reading this little phrase from Don Tonino Bello, which continues to resonate within us in this time:
“I invite you to let yourselves be evangelized by the poor. So many times we think that we are the ones who bring the good news to the poor. But they live certain values better than others, such as trusting abandonment to Providence, solidarity in suffering.”
Here we think this sentence can represent for good, what is written above! How many things we would like to tell you and try to make you more and more participants… how much we would like the love that touches our hearts, to reach you as well. How much we would like this grace to expand for them. But of one thing we are certain… that the Lord will know how to make our lives flourish along with yours with them. We are certain that the Lord of Life is already working in this. We will never cease to thank you for all the love you send our way, for the union and fellowship of this universal church that continues to expand and that each of us feels a part of. Thank you because your presence makes us feel like an extended family that home is not a place, but it is the people who live there and make you feel… and we feel this home is so big that it embraces our land, with this new land. For many of you, it will be a time of rest, we wish you from the bottom of our hearts that this time, makes you rediscover the essentiality of values and relationships. As we do every day, we remember you in our prayers before Jesus in the Eucharist and ask for your continued prayers for this people and a prayer for Father Jaider as well, that he may soon return to health and continue his ministry wherever the Lord will lead him. And as they say here….
Koxukhuru vanjene (thank you very much)
With much gratitude and closeness Ilaria and Federica
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