Missionaries of Africa

Further news from Ethiopia

Posted on 27/12/202027/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

News from our American confrère Paul Reilly from Adrigat, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia received today 27 December

Apologies for the quality as the posts are written on tablet from a bed hospital.

Dear family, friends, confreres, everyone…

First off, I am alive, safe and sound. Just yesterday (December 26th), I managed, along with two other M.Afr. priests, one religious sister, and five M.Afr. seminarians (aspirants), to get out of the Tigray region where we have been living in the midst of a terrible civil war since the night of 3/4 November. The journey was long (13 hour drive) to get here to our Missionaries of Africa community in Kombolcha, where I am now. We weren’t sure that we could get out and had no idea what would happen to us along the way, but by the middle of last week we had started to hear that vehicles were moving along the roads again and we just had to try. The situation in Tigray is still very dangerous and things change daily depending upon where new fighting breaks out, but our journey went as well as it could have. There were plenty of military checkpoints, but we managed to pass without difficulty. So now I am out of danger and in a safe place, thanks be to God and to all those who kept us in their prayers.

I’m sorry I wasn’t able to keep in touch during this difficult time. Since 3/4 November, all lines of communication were cut and still are in Adigrat. Once the TPLF forces abandoned the town on 20th November, we lost all electricity and water for one month, before they were restored about a week ago. Food was getting scarce and the banks have been closed since the beginning of the war, so cash to buy even things on the black market was scarce as well. When the TPLF forces left, Eritrean soldiers took over the town and have been in control without mercy since. Many people were killed, property looted and fear has become a way of life for everyone there, including our community.

Thankfully, all of the priests and sisters (including M.Afr. confreres) working in the diocese are alive (according to the information we currently have available). More than that, I can’t say for sure. At the moment, four Missionaries of Africa confreres remain in Adigrat. They are fine, but the security situation is still very disturbing. Please keep them and all the people of Adigrat in your prayers, as no matter what you hear in the international media, this conflict is far from over and peace has definitely not yet come to northern Ethiopia.

As for me, I’m fine… all I can write for now is that it was a difficult time… more details will have to come later as I don’t want to write them down in a general email. I think I will need time to recover and process all this. For sure, we all managed to stay safe thanks to your support and prayers and for that I am eternally grateful. Please let anyone else concerned about me know that I am ok and we can be in touch on a personal basis later. For now, I look forward to some rest and the peace of mind to know that I am no longer in danger. For those who remain in Adigrat, we keep them all at the forefront of our minds and in our daily prayers.

Thank you all for your concern for me which means so much. May 2021 be a better year for all of us and may the Prince of Peace bless and heal Ethiopia!

Blessings to all,

Paul

Jan Renis, R.I.P.

Posted on 26/12/202003/01/2021 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Society of the Missionaries of Africa

Father Yvo Wellens, Provincial Delegate of the sector of Belgium,
informs you of the return to the Lord of Father

Jan Renis

on Thursday 24th December 2020 at Anvers (Belgium)
at the age of 89 years, of which 65 years of missionary life
in Rwanda, DR Congo and Belgium.

Let us pray for him and for his loved ones.

Download here the announcement of Father Jan Renis’s death

(more…)

News from Ethiopia

Posted on 26/12/202026/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Dear confreres, Relatives and FriendsGreetings of Joy and Peace from Addis Abeba. I hope you celebrated well Christmas. As for us we will celebrate it on 7th January.I am coming to you this morning with GOOD NEWS !At last i got news from our confreres in Adigrat ( Gerry Murphy, Jose Bandres, Belete Fanta, Clayb Caputolan, Olivier Ndayikengurukiye, Sabu Punthepurackal, Paul Reilly and our 5 students). They are all fine.Paul Reilly managed to reach a place where he got the Network and called me to inform me about this.Now Paul Reilly , Belete and the 5 students with some sisters are trying to see how they can come to Kombolcha community. They are 9 people and they started the journey this morning.So we thank God for his protection and we also thank you for your prayers.
PS : Would you help me to transmit this message to those who need this information
Bonaventure BWANAKWERIEPO Delegate superior

Best wishes from PAC

Posted on 22/12/202022/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Best wishes from PAC

Meilleurs voeux de la PAC

Flashes from EAP

Posted on 21/12/202021/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Flashes n° 29 from EAP

FLASH No. 29

Communication in the age of COVID-19

Posted on 21/12/202021/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Communication in the age of COVID-19

Here is the Word of the Webmaster, which will appear at the beginning of the Book of Personnel 2021. I publish it here so that you may take action after reading it.

The year 2020 will have been an unforgettable year for many of us, especially because of COVID-19 which confined us here and there, preventing us from going about our usual business (for our pleasure, but also for our work). For while it is, of course, pleasant to leave our home for a meeting, a council, a workshop … confinement has also forced us to familiarise ourselves with virtual communication tools which have the advantages of reducing expenses, saving time, and reducing our ecological footprint … even if the discussions remain open. In any case, technological tools will never replace the desire to communicate well. In about fifteen months, if all goes well, the Chapter will meet in Rome. I dare to hope that Communication will have an important place there, in the discussions, but also in the way the debates will be conducted. If you are not yet accustomed to paperless communication techniques – to save the trees, of course – it is time to get started. In the 2016 Chapter, email was still being used extensively. But the tools are diversifying and more and more confreres are using WhatsApp, Facebook, Messenger, and so on. I would like to be able to facilitate all types of communication by putting on-line, on the international website, the addresses of all the confreres, a page obviously protected from outside scrutiny.

I invite all of you to submit on-line a short update of your data, either by filling in the questionnaire at

http://tiny.cc/communication-details

or by scanning the QR CODE on the left side, which will allow you to answer the questionnaire directly on your mobile phone.

Thank you in advance.

Nuntiuncula (Belgian Newsletter) n° 719

Posted on 21/12/202021/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Nuntiuncula (Belgian Newsletter) n° 719

This is probably a historical moment. After being published 718 times on paper, the sector of Belgium (PEP) decided that their newsletter – “Nuntiuncula” – would, from now on, be published online only. Congratulations for a courageous decision. Sorry, no time to translate anything, but it is very easy to get a rough translation online these days.

Nuntiuncula n° 719

Never a boring moment!

Posted on 21/12/202021/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

Never a boring moment!

Michel Meunier, MAfr

“Be apostles, nothing but apostles!”, or at least, be nothing else, except with this in view …, try to think, to speak and to write as apostles. Missionaries must never forget that they are neither explorers, nor, nor tourists, nor scientists, nor anything else. “(Cardinal Charles Lavigerie, founder of the Missionaries of Africa – White Fathers and White Sisters).”

Nevertheless, in this book you will find out that the missionary adventure sometimes leads us unwittingly to be explorers, travellers and occasional tourists, because of unexpected events and circumstances. Cardinal Lavigerie often quoted Terence, a 2nd century freed slave poet of North African origin: “I am a human being, and nothing human is foreign to me.” Indeed, our founder asked us to always start from the human dimension; this is what you will find in these stories and anecdotes.

Enjoy!

Michel Meunier was born in 1944 in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, province of Quebec, Canada. In 1969, he took his missionary oath with the Society of the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers) and was ordained a priest on May 23, 1970. In September of the same year, he left for Africa.

He now lives in Montreal.

There is a Kindle e-version of the book, but, according to Michel, the layout is not perfect. So he instructed me to make it available for free to the confreres because of the high costs of postage from Canada to Europe and to Africa. Thank you to Michel Meunier.

Michel Meunier – Never a boring moment

PGF Jérusalem

Posted on 14/12/202014/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

News from the Small Formation Group in Jerusalem

Isaac Kinda, student in SGF Jerusalem

“You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.” (Mt5:13-16). It was in the light of these words of Christ that Calvin and Trésor made a final commitment to the Society of the Missionaries of Africa. The ceremony took place on November 28th in the rather unusual context of covid-19 restrictions. Mass was presided over in the Basilica of Saint Anne by the Apostolic Nuncio of Jerusalem. Given the situation we live in, the number of guests for the celebration was limited. We were about 30 people only. But this did not affect the quality of the celebration.

There were two distinct moments that marked the Eucharistic celebration. The first is the Missionary Oath. Calvin and Trésor solemnly promised, before God and the congregation, to live the demands of the evangelical counsels, namely, poverty, obedience and celibacy. The words they pronounced were words that came from deep down in their hearts, testifying to their desire to follow Christ and to participate in His saving mission which is to proclaim the gospel to all. They did so in the presence of Joe, the representative of the Superior General.

The new confreres were joyfully congratulated by their elders. The gesture of love that each of the confreres made to the new members already showed that they are ready to live with them in love and solidarity for the mission of Christ.

Then came the time to listen to the liturgical texts chosen by the confreres themselves for the occasion.

The first reading, taken from the book of the Prophet Isaiah (Is 61:1-3), invited all of us (in particular the confreres who have received a mandate from Christ), “to bring the gospel to the poor, to heal wounded hearts, to proclaim freedom to the captives and deliverance to the prisoners.” In the second reading, Saint Paul said to his son Timothy (2Tim 1:6-14), “I invite you to revive the spiritual gift that God has put in you by the laying on of my hands.” And he continues, “Take as your standard the holy words which you have heard from me in the faith and love of Christ Jesus. ‘These words also invite the confreres to also place the Word of God at the heart of their lives. In the Gospel of Saint Matthew (Mt 5:13-16), Jesus himself invited us to be salt of the earth and the light of the world.

In his homily, the main celebrant invited the two confreres to live out the ministry of the diaconate to the full through the proclamation of the Word of God in a life of service. He reminded them that the deacon has two main functions: the service of the Mysteries of Christ and the service of men and women. These two dimensions of service are at the heart of the deacon’s life. Likewise, he also reminded the elect of the day, the origin and purpose of the ministry of the diaconate, instituted after a complaint by the widows of the Greeks, who saw themselves forgotten in the distribution of goods. Deacons were chosen to take special care of them, so that the apostles could mainly proclaim the Word of God. Therefore, like Jesus, Calvin and Trésor are called to serve others, not to be served. The Word of God must be proclaimed without compromise and without fear.

The second moment was devoted to the ordination of the two confreres. After having received the permission of the Rector, the Nuncio proceeded with the ordination. And it was with reverence that the assembly implored the mercy of God, and prayed over the confreres to the Saints to intercede for the confreres. By laying his hands on them, the bishop established them as servants of the Word and of the people of God. They are to assist the bishop or priest at the altar. They may preside over certain sacraments of the Church. They are also invited to live what they preach and preach what they live.

At the end of Mass, successively, one of the elect of the day and the Rector addressed a word of thanks to all those who had come and in particular to the Apostolic Nuncio for having accepted to ordain the fellow deacons. We wish them a good ministry. After the Eucharistic celebration, all were invited to share a fraternal meal with the new confreres and the whole community.

A life serving the Dagombas

Posted on 12/12/202012/12/2020 by Vitus Danaa Abobo

A life serving the Dagombas in Ghana

Interview of our confrere Olivier Lecestre by KTO (French Catholic Television)

A look at the small Christian communities in the North of this West African country. Father Olivier Lecestre, Missionary of Africa, spent almost 50 years there, in the footsteps of the first White Fathers who arrived in Ghana in 1906. He was in Tamale, in the North, and had a parish ministry among the Dagombas, an ethnic group with a Muslim majority. He was involved in a long process of translating the Sunday readings into the Dagombas’ language, Dagbani, to train lay leaders in the villages. The Church has also developed schools, agricultural projects, and works for inter-religious dialogue, a factor for peace in the region. Father Lecestre was delighted to see a small church blossom over the years.