The Second Term confrères’ meeting was held in Nairobi from the 26th of May 2019 to the 16th of June 2019. The composition of the participants reflected the international and interracial nature of our Society. The animators were Olivier SOMA from Burkina Faso and Gilles EFIYO from DRC all based in Nairobi, Balozi Formation House.
And the participants were:
- Joseph CHIPIMO from Tanzania working in Tanzania,
- Patrice SAWADOGO from Burkina Faso working in Zambia,
- Anand RAJA from India working in India,
- George ATHIKALAM from India working in India,
- Norbert NKINGWA from Tanzania working in Zambia,
- Saju AKKARAPATTIALAL from India working in India,
- Anthony ALCKIAS from India working in Tanzania,
- Ghislain MBILIZI from DRC working in Togo,
- Peter EKUTT from Nigeria working in DRC,
- Erus KISHOR Tirkey from India working in Ghana,
- Jean Bosco NIBIGIRA from Burundi working in Mozambique,
- John SSEKWEYAMA from Uganda working in DRC,
- Bernard GACHURU from Kenya working in DRC,
- Edison AKATUHURIRA from Uganda working in Rwanda,
- Gilbert RUKUNDO from Rwanda working in Nigeria.
For many it was a great opportunity to see each other after many years of formation and mission. Roussel House, which was the venue of our meeting in Karen, Nairobi offered a perfect lieu of encounter, celebration and prayers. We were happy for the conducive atmosphere that we had for our session coupled with the hospitality and virtue of services rendered by the sisters of the Donum Dei Congregation working at the center.
Our stories as follows….
Our Session was divided into three parts namely:
- Individual sharing of personal experiences,
- inputs for personal growth and
- input for pastoral and mission growth.
The first week was dedicated to individual sharing of missionary experiences. We started it with a recollection which was meant to help us to get in contact with ourselves and how we have lived our missionary vocations after these few years of missionary oath. The spiritual exercise was later followed by individual sharing. Confreres shared with confidence and trust the various experiences lived in mission placements. From various sharing, it came out clearly that the Lord has been with each one of us in various challenges and moments of joy.
With regards to inputs related to personal growth we had a wonderful talk on community life especially on how we can make our community life more meaningful as a community of care, prayer and forgiveness. There was also an elaborate talk on spiritual growth with the emphasis on being in touch with God who is at the center of our vocation. We benefited also from inputs on Burn out/Self care, addictions, affective and sexual maturity. Their objectives were to help us to be in touch with inner self in view of a better self-care and matured expression of our emotions and feelings.
With regards to mission related topics, we had inputs on Encounter and Dialogue, Justice and Peace and Integrity of Creation, Christianity and witchcraft, and finances. We were pleased that some of the talks were exposed by some resource persons of our Society. Besides various inputs received, we had moments of recreation and outings together visiting our community of Olchore in the heart of the Masai village surrounded by nature, peace and harmony. The welcome was just so tasteful thanks to Martin ONYANGO who welcomed us in a so beautiful and peaceful “white house”. We enjoyed also the company of many confreres working in Nairobi thanks to the social evening and super offered by the Provincial team of EAP. Thank you to our confreres of South B Parish for the invitation to share our faith with the Christians during a Eucharistic celebration concelebrated by all the participants of the sessions.
Moments of peace and self renewal
Taking our time to revisit our missionary experiences for the past few years has been a blessing to us. The experiences of pastoral fulfillment and challenges shared in all amount of confidentiality, the different inputs received during this period of ongoing formation have been some useful tools for personal growth and self renewal. We share in the joy of others, but also in the various experiences of sufferings, hurts, disappointments and resistance. It has been a period of discovery, discovery of God’s unconditional love towards us, the joy of having each other in the community as a blessing but also the desire to take up new challenges in order to grow and to help each other to grow. This has really helped us to look at ourselves, to awaken in us the spirit, to recharge our batteries for mission. It has made us to grow in love, forgiveness and patience. In fact, we discover more and more that there is no best community, no best Province and not even the best religious Society. We all live with love but also experiences of challenges which should help us to ask for forgiveness and for the grace to go on the path of Love and Encounter. Each story was unique and left us with some sense of relief and renewal.
In fact, it has been a period of a long journey of liberation for many of us. Liberation from frustrations and hurts which can cancel the thirst for God and the need to encounter the other in community. Liberation from the fear which we carry within ourselves, often unresolved from the past. Liberation from daily illusions we have about community life and the way we want it to be. It was three weeks led by the spirit to share our “stories” of human, spiritual, community, pastoral and every other form of formation as Missionaries of Africa which has been constant means to help us stay on the path. We treasure this time as we depart from each other.
In a nutshell, the whole session was presented in such a unique way that we don’t only wish to have such regular ongoing formation opportunities as invitation from Rome but also as important and necessarily programs receiving priorities in our Provinces.
In a way, this ongoing formation finds its basic meaning in the need to continually nourish and revitalize the grace of our missionary vocations. It’s never enough; the glass is neither full nor empty. This is why we must constantly stir up our missionary vocations, find renewed meaning each day as M.Afr and renew untiringly our mission of proclaiming the Gospel.
Above all, it has been an experience of sharing, listening and learning from each other. Therefore, we would like to express our gratitude to the Society for giving us this wonderful opportunity for personal growth and of self repairs. Thank you Olivier Soma for your support and listening qualities. Thank you Gille Efiyo for your availability and support. We felt that both of you really accompanied us- THANK YOU! And to all of you with whom we shared our joy and pains of our Missionary life and experiences during these three weeks, may the FIRE keep burning as we try to be sowers of prophetic hope for our brothers and sisters to whom we are sent. And may God help us to flourish where we are planted. Peace!
Peter Ekutt
Gilbert Rukundo