Poland – Page 10 – Comboni Lay Missionaries

Passing through Bangui

13 December, 2016 by Alberto de la Portilla

We arrived in Bangui to meet Irene, a CLM coming from Kinshasa. She is from the Democratic Republic of Congo group and will stay with us for about a month. A very charming person. May God allow us to give her a good missionary experience and an unforgettable one for her.

We brought along one of the orphans to whom we feed maternal milk. Her name is Mervelle (Wonder) and she weighed around 4 pounds at birth. She is now five months old, is growing normally and weighs in at 11 pounds, but by December 2 she had lost over a pound and the grandmother said that she had diarrhea. We immediately sent her to the UNT and she was admitted. She was undernourished, and had a fever on a daily basis… Both the director of the hospital and Tenda, another medical colleague, thought that she may suffer from meningitis, so on Wednesday we decided to transfer her to Bangui.

We reached Emergency, an Italian NGO working in the pediatric division of the hospital in Bangui, on Friday around noon and left at four. She was checked from top to bottom and x-rays of her lungs were taken. In the end, Mervelle, our Wonder, was admitted to the ICU for pneumonia, and with symptoms of meningitis, anemia and malaria.

They immediately started to give her oxygen. It was difficult to get enough of her blood for analysis. May God help her to recover quickly, if it is his will! May he watch over her. Today is Sunday and, thanks be to God, a nurse told us that she is doing better.

On December 8 we celebrated the closing of the Year of Mercy with the participation of the entire parish. The Eucharist was very lengthy and lasted three hours, but everyone was happy. At 6:00 in the morning we said the rosary, accompanied by many songs, as we took the image of Mary in procession through the communities of Mongoumba. The faces of our people were glowing with joy and with devotion to our Heavenly Mother.

The Family Jubilee was a success. We held catechesis for both parents and their children. It was good to see the parents and their children take part in the Eucharist together, because they usually do it separately. After Mass, each couple went out looking for a couple that was not married in Church, taking upon themselves the responsibility to catechize them and prepare them to receive the sacrament.

We also want everyone to know that now we have a new car! We thank the Comboni Missionaries of six provinces who shared with us the donations of their benefactors. We are grateful to God who gave them the inspiration to help us, to show solidarity and love.

Do not forget to pray for us. We pray for you.

WE WISH YOU ALL A HOLY CHRISTMAS AND A GOOD 2017 FILLED PEACE, JOY AND MUCH LOVE.

Hugs and kisses from the CLM Anna and Maria Augusta

Mongoumba, CAR

Promoting “Comboni Friends”

9 December, 20167 December, 2016 by Alberto de la Portilla

In Ethiopia, we are planning to revitalize the group of Comboni Friends and maybe later through this group also find some vocations for the Comboni Lay Missionaries (CLM).

Last weekend it has been a good occasion for vocation promotion. We celebrated the Feast of Christ the King (two weeks later than the rest of the Catholic World).

The main celebrations took place in the cathedral of Addis Ababa. There was 2-days of special program. Saturday started with exhibitions of different congregations and lay movements; we were presented our CLM.

There was also a spiritual time – on Saturday adoration, prayers, conferences and confessions; – on Sunday: the solemn Holy Mass in the geez rite.

It was a really nice time of prayer & meetings with the people, some of them showed also interest to get to know our group better. So pray for all of us that, if it’s God’s will, the group starts and will grow well 🙂

CLM Ethiopia

Time of sadness – time of joy

14 November, 2016 by Alberto de la Portilla

Last days went by with these two ambivalent feelings. Moments of sadness interspersed with moment of great joy- this because of our children.

On All Soul’s Day we attended the Mass which was celebrated on the local cemetery situated near our St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Gulu. After the Mass we went with our children to pray at the tomb of our small Angel-as we used to call Moses, who died 6 months ago. After prayer we covered the tomb with flowers which we’d picked from the tree growing in St. Jude Children’s Home.

Here The Day of All Saints is a day of great joy- in this special day children receive sacraments of baptism, First Communion and even Confirmation. The Mass in the Cathedral is pretty long- 4 or 5 hours, because there are for example 150 children to be baptized. Anyway we are in Africa, so the length of the Mass is normal, and good that our Cathedral is big and long so all people can enter. After receiving all sacraments all people gathered in the church, lift up their hand and candles and shout loudly to show their happiness. At the beginning, I was very surprised that the day, which in Poland is a calm day of reflection and prayer, here in Gulu is a one of the most happiest day. But when during the Confirmation each candidate reads the name of Patron out you get the feeling that All Saints gather in one place- beautiful experience, unforgettable.

Children from our Orphanage received the sacraments of Baptism and First Communion earlier- on October 28^th– memory of St. Jude, who is a Patron of our Orphanage. Children from both schools- Nursery and Primary, all workers, orphans and friends of our Orphanage met under the big tree to celebrate the Mass. Seven our children have been baptized and eight children first time received Holy Communion. It was a very joyful day for all of us. Children who received First Communion were in different age, between 10 and 16. None of them asked about toys or super gifts. All of them were prepared well by our catechist.

I came back to Uganda 5 months ago- I already live according to my routine, which is different from the one which I had 2 years ago. Now, the majority of my time I spend with children. In the morning with babies and disabled, in the afternoon with children from Primary 1,2,3 and children from Nursery School. But many different people who come to our house break our daily routine, for what we are very grateful. Some of them come for short time- like Peter- our Lay Comboni Missionary from Poland or for longer like David- Comboni Lay Missionary from Spain, who came for more than one month. Also meetings with Comboni Family, during the feast like on October 10th- the Feast of Comboni or just simple accidental meetings on the street, in the town or in the church. All these meetings give us a lot of joy and positive energy. So if someone plans to come to Uganda for a few days or maybe for longer, remember that our house is always open and you are welcome.

Greetings for everybody!!!!

Ewa, CLM in Gulu (Uganda)

The new coordinating team of the Comboni Lay Missionaries in Poland

15 October, 2016 by Alberto de la Portilla

The opening session of the new formation cycle for the young people in Poland who wish to become Comboni Lay Missionaries was held from September 30 through October 2. Seventeen young people from different parts of the country gathered for a process of discernment under the leadership of the new director of the CLM in Poland, Bro. Tomek Basiński, and Fr. Maciej Miąsik.

On the last day of the meeting, the new coordinating team was appointed. Kinga Piwecka (first to the left) was picked as the new coordinator and Krysia Tarnawska (first to teh right) was reappointed as treasurer. We wholeheartedly thank Michal Kędzior for the service he carried out with great dedication up to this moment, for his ability and good will.

Meskel

13 October, 2016 by Alberto de la Portilla

The Feast of the Holy Cross (called ‘Meskel’) is one of the biggest celebrations in Ethiopia. It is especially celebrated in the Gurage region where we had the opportunity to spend a few days and see the celebrations for ourselves. Our friend Desalegn invited us, so we could observe life in his village. We slept in a traditional hut that we shared with Desalegn’s relatives.

During the Meskel celebrations, whole families come to the villages to spend this special time together. Slaughtering a bull is one of the most important traditions and everyone is involved. After prayers were said, the men of Desalegn’s village slaughtered the animal by cutting its throat. Then everyone helped cut up the meat and prepared it to be eaten raw during the feast. Raw meat is a very popular delicacy in Ethiopians, especially when fresh.

That same day, the women prepared a traditional speciality called Kitfo – raw meat cut into very small pieces and served with butter and very hot spice. Nobody asked us if we would like some – we were all given a portion so we couldn’t refuse. Magda, my namesake, coped quite well, but it was a big challenge for me to eat raw meat. I ate just a little.

According to tradition, Saint Helen, who wanted to find the Holy Cross to save it from desecration, discovered it by following the smoke of a fire. In memory of this event, people all over Ethiopia light bonfires on Meskel Eve. In the Gurage region, the people from the whole village meet together in a large open space and then light the bonfire together.

After speeches by one or more leaders, people wish each a Happy New year. It is indeed the beginning of New Year according to the local calendar. Next they start to dance a traditional Gurage dance in a circle. After some time they go home and each family lights a bonfire in front of their house. Many people move from one bonfire to another.

We noticed that when a number of people gathered at one particular bonfire, many of the neighbours joined them. Then they all together wandered from place to place dancing and singing the same traditional song. This lasted late into the night.

The next day we went to a church for Mass. Afterwards, another large bonfire was lit. There was dancing and singing. First religious songs were sung and then the same traditional Gurage song as on Meskel Eve.

Many people visit their relatives and friends on Meskel Day. We too went with Desalegn to visit his relatives. Everywhere we were welcomed with food and drink, starting with coffee and various snacks and finishing with Kitfo.

Summing up, I can say we personally witnessed the Gurage traditions associated with the Feast of the Holy Cross. It is special family time for this tribe. Just as in Poland we spend Christmas with our close relatives and friends, with special meals together, eating Christmas fare, the Gurage people spend most of the time sitting, talking and eating together. Of course there are also differences. For instance, the Gurage people do not use tables for meals and don’t spend hours watching TV.

During our brief visit, we had a privileged view of a Gurage family. They allowed us to come into their life, feel the atmosphere of the place, observe the way they greet each other, have their meals, drink coffee and talk to each other. We saw up close how they work, rest, celebrate and live their daily life. It was a really interesting and enriching experience. We sincerely thank Desalegn and his relatives and the Gurage people for this great honour.

Magda Fiec, CLM Awassa (Ethiopia)