Maurits De Weerdt 1935 – 2017 (PE nr. 1081)

Maurits was born on the 9th April 1935 at Antwerp, Belgium. His father, a renowned lawyer and Professor at Louvain University, died when Maurits was just four years old. Maurits attended Notre Dame College in Antwerp for his secondary education. He spent a year at the Notre Dame de la Paix University at Namur studying Natural and Medical Sciences. He entered the White Fathers in September 1955 at Boechout. After novitiate in Varsenare, Maurits went to the recently opened Scholasticate at Totteridge, London for his theological studies. He took his Missionary Oath there on the 11th July 1961. He was ordained priest in Heverlee on the 29th June 1962.
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Thierry Cornet 1931 – 2016 (PE nr. 1081)

Thierry was born in Bruxelles on the 19th February 1931. He came from an aristocratic background. His father was Count Cornet d’Elzius de Peissant who worked for the legendry Wagon-Lits company. Thierry studied at the Institute Saint-Josse in Bruxelles. In September 1949, he entered the White Fathers at Thy-le-Château. He then went on to do the novitiate at Varsenare and theological studies at Heverlee. He took his Missionary Oath there on the 16th July 1955 and on the 1st April 1956, he was ordained priest.
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Theo de Jong 1925 – 2016 (PE nr. 1081)

Theo was born in Nes, on the island of Ameland, Netherlands on 18th May 1925. He followed the usual formation programme of the White Fathers at the time: studies in ‘s-Heerenberg where he took his Missionary Oath on the 22nd July 1953 followed by further theological studies in Monteviot, Scotland. He was ordained priest in Galashiels Parish on the 10th June 1954. His paternal uncle was Johannes Cardinal de Jong (+1956) who played an important role in history of the Church in the Netherlands.  Theo had a sound judgment with a facility for matter-of-fact critical assessment. He could find it difficult sometimes to put his thoughts into words. He was a very dedicated person with great simplicity and gentleness; he was someone one could rely on. However, he knew what he wanted and persevered until he got it. He could be somewhat emotional and nervous, and his teachers wanted him to develop his self-confidence.
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Hugo Van den Haute 1930 – 2016 (PE nr. 1081)

Hugo was born on the 25th July 1930 in Ninove in the Diocese of Gand, Belgium. There were eight children in the family, which ran a textile shop and a printing press. Hugo did his first two years of secondary schooling in the College Saint-Louis at Ninove before transferring to the Jesuit run College Saint-Joseph at Alost for his final four years. He met missionaries there and so began a dream, “in the scouts and the Catholic Student Group at school of which I was a member, we were encouraged to follow such ideals.”
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Jean Vialleton 1926 – 2016 (PE nr. 1081)

It was Sunday, the feast of Christ the King and the nurses were helping Jean get ready to go down to Mass at our Nursing Home in Pau. As there was plenty of time, they invited him to lie down before going to the chapel. Hardly had he done so, when his heart gave out and Jean Vialleton died as discretely as he had lived his life.

Jean was born on the 10th April 1926 at Dunières a village in the northeast of Haute-Loire Department in the Diocese of Le Puy. His father was in the confectionary business while his mother was the homemaker.

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Books and articles published by confreres PE nr. 1081)

Adrien Mamadou Sawadogo, Témoignage. Dieu seul l’emporte. Ma conversion n’est ni une victoire ni une défaite, mais l’œuvre de Dieu. Ouagadougou, Harmattan Burkina, 2016, 65 p.

MSOLA, The Missionary Sisters of our Lady of Africa in Uganda. The Beginnings and First Years in Uganda, Kisubi, Uganda, 2016 (2nd edition), 92 p.

Bernard de Rasilly, Dictionnaire Boomu-Français (1994), revu et corrigé par M. Bloemarts, m.afr. & Pakone François Keita (2012), Ouagadougou, Harmattan Burkina, nouvelle édition, 2016, 339 p.

Maurice Borrmans, in Missione Oggi, “ Frère Christian de Chergé e i suoi compagni, martiri del dialogo ”, Giugno-Luglio 2016, pp. 45-48.

Maurice Borrmans, in Teilhard aujourd’hui n°60, « Charles de Foucauld et les Musulmans de son temps », décembre 2016, 6p.

Richard Kuuia Baawobr, in Théologie africaine, Église et sociétés n°8, « La communauté des premiers chrétiens : quelles leçons pour la Nouvelle Évangélisation », Abidjan, ICMA (Institut Catholique Missionnaire d’Abidjan), 2015, pp. 43-56.

Michael L. Fitzgerald, “A Muslim Reading of Nostra Aetate : Response to Dr. Sayyid Syeed”, in Pim Valkenberg & Anthony Cirelli (ed.), Nostra Aetate. Celebrating 50 years of the Catholic Church’s Dialogue with Jews and Muslims, Washington DC, CUAP, 2016, pp. 133-145.

Michael L. Fitzgerald, “Vatican II and Interfaith Dialogue”, in Edmund Kee-Fook Chia (ed.), Interfaith Dialogue. Global Perspectives, Palgrave Macmillan, 2016, pp. 3-15.

Dominique Arnauld, Archiviste

Virtual Museum of the Mission (PE nr. 1081)

The objects that marked our life in mission …

Dear confreres, as part of the 150th anniversary of our Society, the Petit Echo would like to propose to you to share with us all, your memories based on objects such as tools, machines, worthy to be called “museum pieces ” which marked our life in the different missions where we served. Starting, for instance, from the canoes, passing by lamps, stencils, slide projectors and of course everything that will evoke this past in the service of the mission of the Lord; in fact, all objects we couldn’t do without in our daily life.

If you find photos from your drawers, which can illustrate your memories, it’s even better! I suggest you evoke these memories in 200 words … it is just an evocation, which will awaken memories in the minds of so many confreres and feed conversations in communities. This will be a great preparation for the 150th anniversary celebrations and this will certainly give the elders the opportunity to communicate and share their beautiful missionary adventure like the apostles.

Let’s search in our drawers and find some treasures to share to revive the joy of the mission, which passed through little things of our daily life.

Freddy Kyombo

Died as a result of violence (PE nr. 1081)

The commemorative plaque of White Sisters
who died as a result of violence,
unveilled in the crypt of the Generalate
of the Missionaries of Africa.
23rd MAY 2017 Continue reading “Died as a result of violence (PE nr. 1081)”

Ordination of John MacWilliam as Bishop of Laghouat (PE nr. 1081)

Homily of Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald

Worth Abbey, England, 20th May 2017

“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these others do?”
“Yes, Lord, you know I love you.”

Just as Simon did, you, John, have answered “yes”. That day the Nuncio called you, you did not have much time to reflect before answering yes to the invitation of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, to accept responsibility for the diocese of Laghouat. As proof of your consent we have the mandate that has just been read out.

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Interview with John MacWilliam, Bishop of Laghouat in Algeria (PE nr. 1081)

Bishop John MacWilliam, you were officially appointed as Bishop of Laghouat on the 16th March last; what were your feelings before you accepted?

My first thought, when the Apostolic Nuncio informed me of this decision of the Holy Father, was for my predecessor, Bishop Claude Rault, M.Afr who had waited for such a long time to be replaced as Bishop of Laghouat for reasons of age and health. As the Provincial of the White Fathers in the Maghreb, I was concerned for his well-being. I said to myself, “al hamdu lillah!” However, when the Nuncio told me I was his replacement, I was shocked because I never really thought about such a possibility. Continue reading “Interview with John MacWilliam, Bishop of Laghouat in Algeria (PE nr. 1081)”

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