The Far East COLUMBAN MISSION MAGAZINE October 2014
Columbans respond to fire victims "El Vergel" of Valparaiso, Chile
Reflection - Let us not be robbed of the joy of evangelisation World Mission Day 2014 Mission in Korea Columban Lay Mission stories PRICE $1.50 The Far East Contents October 2014 Vol 96, No. 9
THE FAR EAST is devoted to furthering the missionary apostolate of the church and is published by St Columbans Mission Society. 4-5 8-9 THE SOCIETY was founded in 1918 as a society of secular priests dedicated to the evangelisation of the Chinese and other overseas people. It is an exclusively missionary society. SUBSCRIPTIONS: $15 per year (AUSTRALIA)
AUSTRALIA St Columban's Mission Society 69 Woodland Street 10 -11 12-13 Essendon Vic 3040 Postal address: PO Box 752, Niddrie Vic 3042 Tel: (03) 9375 9475 [email protected] www.columban.org.au
NEW ZEALAND St Columban's Mission Society P.O. Box 30-017 18-19 22 Lower Hutt 5040 Tel: (04) 567 7216 3 From the Editor 16 Mission World [email protected] The joy of evangelisation The Ebola virus www.columban.org.au 4-5 Columbans respond to 17 From the Director fire victims The dynamic of sending Publisher: 6-7 Taiwan's desperate 18-19 An open door Fr Gary Walker migrant mothers Columban Sr Rebecca Conlon in [email protected] Pakistan 8-9 Reflection Editor: World Mission Day 2014 20-21 Mission in Korea Jena and Luda share their Fr Dan Harding 10-11 Building bridges mission stories [email protected] Interreligious Soccer Match and Vatican Cricket Team 21 Order your Subanen Editorial Assistant & Designer: Christmas Cards 12-13 Man of many hats Jacqueline Russell Columban Fr Aidan Larkin's 22 Where do you come [email protected] vocation story from? 14 Welcome to Hakaka Columban Fr Patrick Programs Director: Supporting families from McInerney's reflection from Mrs Janette Mentha Fukushima Jerusalem [email protected] 15 Order your 2015 23 Support Columban Columban Art Calendar Mission Saint Columbans Mission Property Association A.B.N. 17 686 524 625 Printed by Complete Colour Printing, Melbourne The Far EastMAGAZINE COLUMBAN MISSION 2014 October
Columban Lay Missionaries from the Philippines, Luda and Jena in traditional dress. They share their experiences of mission in Korea (see pages 20-21).
Photo: Columban Fr Eamon Adams
Columbans respond to fire victims "El Vergel" of Valparaiso, Chile
Reflection - Let us not be robbed of the joy of evangelisation PRICE $1.50 World Mission Day 2014 Mission in Korea Columban Lay Mission stories From the Editor The joy of evangelisation
oday vast numbers of people Columban priests and seminarians An interfaith soccer match in Rome "T still do not know Jesus Christ. in Chile, working alongside trade and an ecumenical cricket tour of For this reason, the mission ad gentes unionists and personnel from a England from the Vatican are two continues to be most urgent." These medical centre, share the joy of sporting events that joyfully build are the opening sentences of Pope putting together three prefabricated friendships and good relations Francis' Message for the 88th World homes for families who were the between peoples of different religions Mission Day, which this year takes victims of The Great Fire of Valparaiso and from other Christian Churches. place on October 19. This is an in April this year. Columban Fr Nguyen The Far East magazine received opportunity for the Catholic faithful Van Hung shares the joy of being two awards for excellence this year across the world to pray and reflect able to help Vietnamese wives and from the Australasian Catholic Press about the urgency, as Pope Francis girlfriends of Taiwanese men. These Association. One award went to Fr reminds us, of the mission ad gentes. women have become victims of an Gary Walker for his column "The spirit This is the mission of Christ and his unjust system. leads us" for October 2013. Church to all nations, to all peoples in Columban Fr Aidan Larkin shares every land, across the world, inclucing The second award went to staff the joy of his vocational journey to to different groups at home. member at the Columban Mission priesthood as a Columban Missionary Institute in Sydney, Ashleigh Green, In his Message Pope Francis speaks in Chile. His journey takes him from for her article "A Chance Meeting" over and over again about joy. He being a seminarian in another published in the October 2013 issue. speaks of the joy of Jesus and the congregation, a teacher, a barrister, These awards confirm our Columban joy of his disciples after returning a member of parliament, a Diocesan commitment to the joy of taking part from their mission to local towns priest in Dublin and Priest Associate in the mission ad gentes both overseas and villages. He speaks of the joy of and finally a Columban priest in Chile. and at home. the Gospel, the joy of taking part in the mission ad gentes and the joy of From Pakistan we have the story evangelization. of Columban Sr Rebecca Conlon who shares with us the joy of her The October issue of The Far East is missionary work amongst the dedicated to the joy of evangelization, Christian and Muslim people of particularly as a Columban Missionary. Pakistan. Jena and Luda are two It offers a brief summary of Pope Columban Lay Missionaries from the Francis' Message on the joy of Philippines who write of the joy of Fr Daniel Harding evangelization and also on the joy of being missionaries in Korea. [email protected] the Columban missionary vocation. The Far East - October 2014 3 Columbans respond to fire victims JORGE PAREDES ORÓSTICA
In the June issue of The Far East this year we published a story from Chile oday Diana stops at the on "The Great Fire of Valparaiso" which in April had destroyed thousands T entrance of what could be of homes of the poor, many of whom live in illegal squatter camps like called her site in El Vergel, an illegally "El Vergel." Jorge Paredes, a journalist who works for the Columbans occupied camp in the hills high above in Chile, wrote the following article on the Columban response to this Valparaiso, Chile. Here on the edge of the city, Porteños (the inhabitants disaster. of Valparaiso) level out hill tops and cut out land from the forest in order to live and dream of a better life for themselves and their families. Diana is a Peruvian citizen who has lived for the past 10 years in El Vergel. She lost everything in the fire. The day after the fire all that was left was ashes. What was even more terrible for Diana was that the authorities will not allow her to rebuild in the area where she previously lived because it has been declared a danger zone. Today however is different for Diana who now looks towards the future with a little more hope. She has been relocated to another area of the camp where little by little she is reorganizing her new site. Diana, her The Great Fire of Valparaiso, April 2014. husband and three children, are one of three immigrant families who have Columban Fr Alvaro Martinez (white hat) and Columban Seminarians on site. received new prefabricated homes that were put together over a recent weekend. Working together in this action of solidarity with the victims of the fire were Columban seminarians, trade unionists who work at the Chilean Steel Company and the staff of a Medical Centre in a poor area of Santiago. They began putting the homes together on the Friday morning and by Saturday afternoon the three families received their new homes.
"This suffering is ours, we cannot walk away from it. Nothing human is alien to me." - St Alberto Hurtado
4 The Far East - October 2014 CHILE
Fr Alvaro Martínez, the Columban "Everything that diminishes others Photos: Alvaro Martinez Regional Director in Chile, present at tears me apart as well." the site of the new homes, explained - St Albert Hurtado how this initiative came about. "The Columban Fathers have donated several homes to the fire victims through It was very meaningful for the the local Diocese. The gift of these Columban seminarians to return to homes arose out of a conversation with El Vergel. Along with thousands of the local parish priest, who put us in other volunteers, they had arrived contact with three immigrant families soon after the fire to remove the who had lost everything in the April fire. rubble. It was particularly gratifying They had permission to build on new for Peruvian Columban Seminarian, sites. Today Columban seminarians Jorge Luis Vargas. To be able to help and other volunteers have put these his fellow countrymen in their time of homes up in the spirit of our Columban great need in a foreign country he felt Pedro Navarrete, the Trade Union Charism of Justice, Peace, the Integrity was truly a gift from God. leader for the union of workers from of Creation and brother and sisterhood. Chilean Columban Seminarian, the Chilean Steel Company, said "We did not choose this place by chance. Rafael Ramírez, says that it really hit that when he first came after the fire We deliberately chose it because it is an him deeply when he spoke with the with his fellow unionist to El Vergel, illegal squatter camp. As Columbans families soon after the fire when they "it had such an impact on me, that I we try to reach out to those on the had just lost everything and were began to cry. Through the Union we periphery of society. El Vergel is on the in deep mourning. "It's wonderful to immediately began organizing all kinds edge of Valparaiso, where the poor be able to return and do something of help for the victims. To be able to illegally occupy land. Today we helped concrete to help these families have help these families with new homes will three immigrant families who have a better life. In fact, reaching out to affect me for the rest of my life. It is very come to our country looking for a better these people is an important part of my emotional. All of us are children of God". formation to be a priest. It shows me future." "Today the only things believed are I would like to be a priest close to the Ricardo is one of those to receive a the living witness of life, the loving people, to share in their suffering and new home. He is a circus performer witness of love, the strong witness of happiness and to help them a little to who has travelled to different parts of fortitude and the hopeful witness of live with more dignity. This is what we the world in the circus. He becomes hope." - St Albert Hurtado have been able to do here." emotional when he was asked why he wishes to live in Valparaiso. He replies, "I could live in Colombia or the United Saint Alberto Hurtado S.J. (Padre Hurtado) States, but the Lord has said to me, Chile's great social activist saint. 'Here you stay' and here I am. The first Born 1901 Died 1952 weeks after the fire were very difficult. I lost everything. Thanks be to God, we He was a Chilean Jesuit Priest, Lawyer, Social have received a lot of help. University Worker, Author, Magazine Founder and Social students arrived the other day to clean Justice Advocate. He founded the Hogar de up the place and put up some homes. Cristo Foundation for the poor and dispossessed. Later we received mattresses, clothing, He was canonized on October 23, 2005, food and much more. In this way, one by Pope Benedict XVI, becoming Chile's second begins to regain some hope and can say canonized saint. to the Lord, 'Thank You.'"
The Far East - October 2014 5 Taiwan's desperate migrant mothers When the marriages don’t work out, the country’s foreign brides often face desperate circumstances. JENS KASTNER Columban Fr Peter Nguyen Van Hung's work with Vietnamese migrant mothers in Taiwan.
hen Shao Lee, a divorced immigration laws have been largely prevent her from leaving him once she W Cambodian immigrant left untouched, failing to adequately has the Taiwan ID.” illegally residing in Taiwan, wants protect the bond between immigrant Fr Hung elaborates that Taiwanese to be with her teenage daughter mothers and their Taiwan-born men usually take foreign brides and toddler son for half an hour, she children when cross-border marriages many years their junior, meaning sneaks into the first floor flat in Taipei go wrong. the husbands tend to be jealous. where the two live together with her This holds particularly true for the He also observes that Taiwan’s mentally handicapped Taiwanese four-year period during which the harsh immigration law has created ex-husband. Every time she does this foreign bride is banned from applying in the island’s central mountain she is terrified by the thought of his for Taiwanese citizenship, because if range “a whole village inhabited by clan living on the second floor getting her husband wants her gone in that undocumented foreign mothers and wind of it. Because if they were, time, she has no automatic right to their Taiwanese children.” Shao Lee says, they would have her remain in the country. Whereas Shao Lee turned to deported in order to cut her ties with “The guardianship court’s paramount Taipei-based NGO TransAsia Sisters the children forever. consideration is the financial ability to Association for help after desperate East Asian economic powerhouse raise the kid, and that is surely to the years in hiding from Taiwan’s police Taiwan has opened its doors wide to detriment of the immigrant mothers and the National Immigration Agency blue-collar workers and brides from because they come to Taiwan with (NHI), Nguyen Thi Dao, a Vietnamese China and Southeast Asia. According nothing,” observes Columban Fr Peter mother of a toddler boy, whose to the Ministry of the Interior there Nguyen Van Hung, the executive Taiwanese father died of lung cancer are 41,000 foreign spouses who have director of the "Vietnamese Migrant two months after the child was born not yet acquired Taiwan nationality Workers and Brides Office" based in out of wedlock, got her support in Fr residing on the island, and one out of Taoyuan, a satellite city of Taipei. Hung’s small Catholic church. every 10 Taiwanese primary school He adds, "the four-year period after Nguyen came to Taiwan as a blue- children now has a foreign-born which a foreign mother could gain collar worker in 2005 after her family mother. permanent residency is meaningless, in Vietnam took out a $6,000 bank Despite these dramatic changes to since her husband might not let her loan to pay the cross-border labour Taiwanese society, the country’s apply for it in the first place, in order to broker, she says. But toiling away
6 The Far East - October 2014 TAIWAN
for one year in a nursing home for Mental Scars Vietnamese mother with her baby the elderly for $265 a month, she Fr Hung says that he has seen many girl seeking shelter in his church. came to understand that she would foreign mothers and immigrant According to Fr Hung, Ho is a runaway never be able to break even and thus workers developing signs of mental worker, who stands accused by absconded. That move made her one illness because of their ordeal in prosecutors of having let gangsters out of the nearly 20,000 Vietnamese Taiwan. Blue-collar workers come to use her cell phone SIM card in a crime. workers currently missing, according Taiwan heavily in debt, and both they Accordingly, she may even face a to statistics from Taiwan’s Council of and foreign brides often encounter jail term, “causing her to become so Labour Affairs (CLA). abuse – from the employer or the depressed that the baby’s skin is covered “I lost 10 kilos in the first year saving as husband’s clan, respectively – while with a rash,” Hung says. much money on food as possible for my not knowing the local language and Patchy Support parents, and after I ran away to make laws well enough and not having the Earlier this year, the Taiwanese media more money on an illegal job, I met the support of someone who does. was abuzz with the bizarre story of boy’s father,” she says. “I got pregnant, a Vietnamese woman, who turned but cancer killed him so quickly that we Despite these dramatic changes to Taiwanese society, the herself in after having hidden for did not have time to marry even though more than a year in a tomb in the country’s immigration laws have both of us wanted to do so.” mountains near Taoyuan together Nguyen elaborates that because been largely left untouched, with her five-year-old daughter. failing to adequately protect Taiwan fears fake marriages between The woman’s sick and impoverished the bond between immigrant its nationals and Southeast Asians, it Taiwanese boyfriend had wanted imposes a deliberately cumbersome mothers and their Taiwan-born both of them to stay in Taiwan, and lengthy review process, too children when cross-border but because the mother was in the lengthy for her boyfriend as he lay in marriages go wrong. country illegally and a DNA test ruled hospital dying. out the boyfriend as the child’s father, "The undocumented workers typically Making matters worse, Nguyen, as mother and child were deported have nightmares, being afraid of arrest an illegal alien, had to bear the child together in May. and deportation, and if you talk to using another woman’s identity. If them, there is only uncertainty, anxiety "This is another example of the police were to pick her up today, she and hopelessness,” he says. “Many of desperate circumstances faced by says, she could find herself in one the young women eventually consult Taiwan's foreign wives and mothers," of Taiwan’s grim detention centres, psychiatrists, who do nothing except put explains Fr Hung. presumably a bad position from them on medication.” which to convince the authorities to replace the name in the boy’s As he speaks, Fr Hung nods at Taiwanese birth certificate with hers. Ho Thi Ngoc Lang, an unmarried Jens Kastner is a Taipei-based journalist.
The Far East - October 2014 7 Let us not be robbed of the joy of evangelisation Pope Francis' message for the 88th World Mission Day which takes place this year on October 19.
World Mission Day is an opportunity for the Catholic faithful across the world to actively support through prayer and concrete gestures of solidarity young Churches in mission lands. As vast numbers of people still do not know Jesus Christ, it is as urgent a task as ever that the Church sends forth missionaries for the evangelization of the world. For almost 100 years, the Missionary Society of St Columban has joyfully made an active contribution to world evangelization and awareness of its importance amongst the Catholic faithful.
The Far East presents below a brief summary of Pope's Francis' World Mission Day message and several direct quotes from it.
PERU A) The Joy of Evangelization - Biblical Reflection of Luke 10:21-23 Pope Francis uses this biblical text to shows us how evangelization can lead to great joy. Jesus had sent the 72 disciples two by two into cities and villages to proclaim that the Kingdom of God was near and to prepare people to meet Jesus. Now after carrying out this mission, they return full of joy. Joy is the dominant theme of this first and unforgettable missionary experience. Jesus is filled with joy. He rejoices in the Holy Spirit. He praises his Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because he has hidden things from the learned and wise and revealed them to the childlike. The learned and wise who are full of their own importance have no room for God in their lives. Therefore the mysteries of the Kingdom of God are hidden from them. On the other hand, the mysteries of the Kingdom, of the divine lordship of Jesus and the victory over Satan are revealed to the childlike. The Father is the source of joy, the Son is its manifestation
Photo: Peter Fr Woodruff and the Holy Spirit its giver.
8 The Far East - October 2014 Let us not be robbed of the joy of evangelisation WORLD MISSION DAY VaticAN REFLECTION
PAKISTAN B) The great need for evangelization in today's world
• The joy of the Gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness. With Christ joy is constantly born anew. (Evangelii Gaudium 1) • The great need in today's world, pervaded by consumerism, is the desolation and anguish born of a complacent yet covetous heart, the feverish pursuit of frivolous pleasures and a blunted conscience. (Evangelii Gaudium 2) • Humanity greatly needs to lay hold of the salvation brought by Christ. His disciples are those who allow themselves to be seized ever more by the love of Jesus and marked by the fire of passion for the Kingdom of God and the proclamation of the joy of the Gospel. • All the Lord's disciples are called to nurture the joy of evangelization. • The Bishops and the missionary commitment of the local Church are called to acknowledge that the joy of communicating Jesus Christ is expressed in a concern to proclaim him in the most distant places as well as in a constant outreach to the peripheries of their own territory where great numbers of the poor are waiting for this message. Photo: Peter Fr Woodruff
C) The joy of a missionary Columban Missionaries celebrate World Mission Day 2014 vocation The joy of the Columban missionary vocation • Many parts of the world are experiencing a dearth of • Today over 480 Columban Priests and Lay vocations to the priesthood Missionaries work in 16 countries: Australia, and the consecrated life. Often New Zealand, Fiji, Chile, Peru, Mexico, the United States, the Philippines, Myanmar, this is due to the absence of Pakistan, Korea, China, Japan, Taiwan, Ireland and Britain. contagious apostolic fervour • From the high Andean tablelands of Peru, the deserts of northern Mexico and the in communities which lack Atacama Desert of northern Chile, to the teeming urban barrios of Santiago, Chile enthusiasm and thus fail to and Lima, Peru, Columban missionaries seek to build God's Kingdom of justice, attract. peace, dialogue and solidarity. • The joy of the Gospel is born of • From the deserts and cities of Pakistan to the tropical islands of Fiji and the the encounter with Christ and Philippines, Columban missionaries cross boundaries of religion, race, culture, social from sharing with the poor. class and geography to preach Jesus Christ and his Gospel. • Wherever there is joy, • From the great cities of Korea, China, Japan and Taiwan to the cities of Australia, enthusiasm and a desire to New Zealand, Ireland, Britain and the United States, Columban missionaries bring Christ to others, genuine proclaim the joy of encountering Jesus Christ and enthusiastically share their lives vocations arise. with the poor.
The Far East - October 2014 9 Building bridges
An important part of the Missionary Charism of Columban Missionaries throughout the world is to build bridges of understanding, friendship, appreciation and dialogue between peoples from different religions or from different Christian churches.
The Far East publishes two stories of recent and on-going Soccer Stars call interreligous soccer efforts to build bridges through sport. match a "beautiful experience"
These stories are a follow up from the same stories published in the September issue.
Columbans build bridges
Columbans are involved in this work in Pakistan, Britain, Fiji, the Philippines and in Sydney, Australia. At the Australasian Catholic Press Association Awards for Excellence 2014, The Far East magazine won an award for the October 2013 article, "A Chance Meeting." This article was written by Ashleigh Green, a staff member of the Columban Mission Institute's Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations. In this article, Ashleigh writes how her family, actively involved in the Pope Francis and Javier Zanetti hold a soccer ball and trophie after the interreligious Broken Bay Diocese, decided to match played on September 1, 2014. Photo: AP/Gregorio Borgia attend the Eid Festival and Fair. There they met a young Muslim Echo Pope's Call for Peace, Halt to Discrimination man and his family with whom Ashleigh had been involved The players and other participants Pope Francis, who was the impetus in Interfaith work and jointly in the First Interreligious Match for behind the soccer game, met with enjoyed the Festival. Peace in Rome on September 1 say it those involved some hours before was a "beautiful experience" that sent a the match. ZENIT spoke with various message sorely needed in our times. participants following that event.
10 The Far East - October 2014 VaticAN
Muntari Ali Sulley is a Ghanaian The Argentine player Javier Zanetti We support this initiative, and I think midfielder for the Italian club Milan spoke of his "incredible" happiness that coming here, making this trip, and and for his own country's national because of "all that we have witnessed. having a personal interview with Pope team. He is a Muslim who described We have been with the Pope who has Francis was very special." day's events as a "beautiful experience." transmitted to us this sentiment and He added that "we got to know (Pope "Even if I am a Muslim," he said, "I have this desire to be able to bring peace to Francis) from the many encounters he been able to come to the Vatican, which the world especially in these times when had with the World Jewish Congress, is the centre of the Christian world, war is happening. I hope this can be a when he was archbishop of Buenos because we all adore one God, before beginning point," he added. Aires, where he had many meetings.
whom we fall to our knees. Because of We aren't just participating in this Iván Zamorano, from Chile, described this, it is beautiful to be together to give initiative [of the soccer match], but also the event as "extremely beautiful and a message of peace and because we we wanted to visit a friend. I believe that special. As you arrive here, you already believe in God." the Pope is behaving as a leader, he is feel something special," he explained. someone who moves things, and this is The Israeli goalkeeper Dudu "And to have the opportunity to be here a very valuable initiative. That's why my Aouate praised "the message of an with this family is truly a blessing." wife and I came here." interreligious game - because as we Eduardo Elsztain is a businessman live in a time of much conflict, we have from Argentina, who echoed the to show that it is necessary to first look The Far East thanks Deborah Castellano players' evaluation of the match. at the person, to look him or her in the Lubov and H. Sergio Mora from the Zenit eyes, and not to look as if someone "I think any event that is an initiative to News Agency for the above article. is white or black, Jewish, Christian or bring peace, union among peoples, and Muslim." has to do with the fight against poverty, is efficacious and very valuable. ROME, September 3, 2014 (Zenit.org) Vatican XI prepared to take on the Anglican XI Pope Francis blessed the St Peter's Cricket Club members (the Vatican XI) as they prepared to fly to England to play a five-match tour, culminating in a match with the Anglican XI at Canterbury. The Vatican team is largely made up of young seminarians and priests from Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Australia and England, who are studying in Rome. Columban Fr Robert McCulloch was instrumental in inviting the Governor of Sindh Province, Pakistan, a Muslim, to donate six test-quality, made-in-Pakistan cricket bats to the Vatican XI. Pope Francis signed one of the cricket bats to be used on the tour. The Vatican XI team was scheduled to pray
Photo: Chris Warde-Jones Chris Photo: Evensong with the Anglican XI team at Canterbury Cathedral the evening before the Match on September 19. The Vatican team is largely made up of young seminarians and priests from Pakistan, India, STOP PRESS: Anglican XI narrowly beat Sri Lanka, Australia and England, who are studying in Rome. The Vatican XI in front of St Peter's Basilica, Rome. Vatican XI - 108 runs to 106 runs. The Far East - October 2014 11 Man of many hats FR ALO CONNAUGHTON Photos: Alo Connaughton Alo Photos:
View of shantytown in Iquique, Chile, where Fr Aidan Larkin worked for nine years. Columban Fr Aidan Larkin's vocation story.
r Aidan Larkin doesn't actually He then applied for admission to the fight the mid Ulster Constituency with F wear a hat but, in a manner Jesuit novitiate and spent the next Ivan Cooper, Stephen McKenna and of speaking, he has worn a lot of year walking the path of Saint Ignatius Paddy Duffy in the General Election them. He was born in Lissan, near Loyola. For a few months in 1971 he for the proposed Power Sharing Cookstown, Co Tyrone, Northern taught in Mungret College, Limerick. Assembly. Ireland and both his parents were But then, he 'took fright' at the It was a six-seater and he took the teachers. He was educated in St prospect of long-term vows and asked last seat. On the Nationalist side Patrick's College, Armagh. An admirer for a postponement. Finally he left the those were the days of Gerry Fitt and of Padraig Pearse, a leader of the novitiate though he still cherishes the John Hume, and on the Unionist side 1916 Rising, he later modified his memory of happy days in Emo and Brian Faulkner. An intergovernmental outlook under the influence of Jesus' Clontarf. conference was held later on which moderation and commitment to non- Back home in Northern Ireland he got led to the Sunningdale Agreement, violence. a job teaching in Holy Family convent signed in December 1973. It also On finishing his studies in Armagh he school and began to take an interest provided for a Council of Ireland, applied for Maynooth Seminary, was in politics. He joined the newly though this was never implemented accepted, spent one year there and founded SDLP (Social Democratic due to the Loyalist Workers' Strike decided, perhaps prematurely, that Labour Party). In 1972 he won a seat which paralysed Northern Ireland for the life was not for him. He transferred on Magherafelt District Council. The more than a week. to University College Dublin where SDLP won control of the Council. Next In his maiden speech at Northern he took an MA in Ancient Classics. he was nominated by the Party to Ireland's Stormont Parliament, Fr
12 The Far East - October 2014 CHILE
God is at the heart of this great mystery and in his loving care for each sick person he remains very close at hand as he prepares a new heaven and a new earth.
Aidan quoted Martin Luther King's famous address, "I have a dream" - a dream of peaceful coexistence of Unionists and Nationalists. He had always been interested in the American Civil Rights Movement. It seemed to him a lawyers' revolution. This led him to study Law at Queen's University, Belfast, in his spare time from his duties at Stormont. Having qualified as a barrister he worked in the law courts for some time. Columban Fr Aidan Larkin, Fr Jaime Riquelme and children making their First Communion in But as he visited the jails to talk Iquique. with his clients, Aidan came to the conclusion that what they most heart. With great courage he decided surrounded by the Atacama Desert in needed was not the help of a lawyer, to try a third time. northern Chile. but a priest. He also foresaw a bloody The Autumn of 1981 found him In 2008 he was diagnosed with the struggle for power in Northern Ireland in Clonliffe College, the diocesan early stages of Parkinson's Disease. in which lawyers would be pushed seminary of the Archdiocese of He returned to Ireland in 2010 at the aside. He felt powerless. Dublin. This time all went well and request of the Superior General in Next he saw an ad inviting barristers he was ordained in 1985. On that order to write a book. The outcome to apply for posts as junior advisers day he experienced the joy of being was St Columban, Pilgrim for Christ, a in the Legal Service of the Council of a priest, a joy which has never left scholarly work that has been praised Ministers of the European Community him. He was assigned to Corpus by experts in the field. He is currently in Brussels, Belgium. He successfully Christi Parish, Drumcondra where he finishing a study of the influence applied and worked initially with a spent five happy years. In 1988 he of the Fathers of the Church on St more senior German colleague as requested permission to work abroad Patrick. He fears that the treasures a secretary to the Working Party as a Diocesan Associate with the of Early Irish Christianity are being harmonising the Company Law Columbans and this led to six years on forgotten. He deals with his illness, and Stock Exchange Regulations of assignment in Chile. like St Paul, with love and patience, member states. Everything was done On his return to Dublin he was knowing that the Lord invites us to through French. Later he worked in assigned as chaplain to Trinity associate ourselves with His life-giving the section dealing with Agriculture, College. Over the next four years he cross. Fisheries and the Law of the Sea. had to decide between a preferential God is at the heart of this great One of the benefits of living in option for youth (campus ministry) mystery and in his loving care for each Brussels was coming in contact or a preferential option for the sick person he remains very close at with the Charismatic Renewal poor (Chile). In 2003 he was given hand as he prepares a new heaven and having personal contact with permission to apply for membership and a new earth. Cardinal Suenens, one of the leading of the Missionary Society of St proponents of reform at Vatican Columban. On being accepted he Columban Fr Alo Connaughton worked in II. Around this time, the idea of returned to Chile and worked for nine Chile with Fr Aidan. At present he teaches in priesthood gradually returned to his years in lquique, on the Pacific coast, China and Thailand.
The Far East - October 2014 13 Welcome to Hakaka japan Supporting the victims of the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster. FR HARRY O'CARROLL
Tokyo is as far as I got. But even in Tokyo there is anxiety about drinking water and touching the soil. I’m looking forward to a few days free of all such worries, relaxing with my child." For the best part of a year people had been making handcrafted items for mini-bazaars, selling wine all over the place and holding concerts to raise the necessary funds. The four-day programme consisted of trips to parks, swimming pools, a ‘Marine World’ and hot springs. They were put up at the Visitation Sisters Photo: bigstockphoto.com convent.
ome years ago my Bishop a group of nine Fukushima families Over 30 very generous volunteers S here in Japan sent me a (15 children and 12 adults) from July were on hand to cook and look after letter appointing me as chaplain to 25-28. The project was called Welcome them all the time and what a welcome Fukuoka area Women’s Association. to Hakata. The idea was to give some that lively and joyful group gave the Since then I have been made relief to families who have to live in tense and weary travellers when they responsible for a similar group an area still affected by radiation from landed at the convent door. In the in Chikugo area. Both groups are the stricken Fukushima Nuclear Power evening the adults were brought out mother lodes of clever, talented Plant where one can be outdoors for shopping and introduced to a few and committed Christians. I soon only about 15 minutes each day. local restaurants and hotels. This they realised that they had little need for a Those who participated spoke of very much appreciated. chaplain, but it has been an education their reasons for coming to Fukuoka I was at the airport to see them for me as I find myself yet again being ... "With my child this summer I wanted off and what a contrast! No more evangelised by those with whom I to spend time completely free from the tiredness or tension! It was grand to work. worry of radiation." ..."I took part in a see such joy in everyone. Some of the Every first Tuesday they meet to similar programme before and wanted comments made ..."My whole family organise talks, retreats, seminars to feel refreshed in a place where the has been healed by the warmth of your and various activities of the different air is clean." ... "I wanted my daughters welcome." ... "When my daughter said, parish women’s groups of the area. to never forget the experience of being ‘Are we going home already?’ I knew she These activities include soup kitchens able to live in the midst of nature. had really enjoyed herself." for the homeless, weekly visits to That was something we used to take After it all, everyone was exhausted hospitals and old folk’s homes, for granted. This is a trip to encounter but it was a satisfied tiredness. It really cleaning up and interacting with the nature again." ... "Because of my work, it had been a huge undertaking. They patients. is not possible to relocate to a safer area hope to do it again, but next time in Since the last big North-Eastern and I am worried about my children’s co-operation with one or two other earthquake, they have been very physical development and stress levels diocesan groups. Where there’s a will active in visiting and sending all sorts as they play outdoors for only a very there’s a way and when people pull of necessary materials to those in limited time." ... "I wanted to get as far together great things can be done. need there. Last summer, however, away as possible from the radiation but, they launched out into the deep with for economic reasons, and wishing not Columban Fr Harry O'Carroll has been a a project that saw them welcome to be too far away from my husband, missionary in Japan since 1970.
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“At each Mass I speak about Ebola and how to avoid infection,” Archbishop Tamba Charles of Freetown, Sierra Leone
to the latest indications, people have been asked to stay in their homes for four days, September 18-21, to prevent further spread of the contagion and to monitor the situation. A statement issued by the nation’s Ministry of Health and Sanitation on September 6 lists 260 survived and discharged patients, 23 confirmed new cases, 414 confirmed deaths, 1,234 confirmed cases. The Ministry also says that 16 of the 20 ambulances ordered by the Government of Sierra Leone to intensify Ebola response activities have arrived in the country. The Ministry of Health and Sanitation and UNICEF have taught religious leaders basic techniques on how to avoid being infected and these have been presented to the Church members and other communities. Precautions include
Photo: AP Photo/ Michael Duff avoiding body contacts, regular hand-washing with soap or chlorine, distributing Dettol and buckets to communities, teaching them how to prepare the chemicals properly to bola is such a virulent virus that it is not easily treated. avoid other health hazards, chlorinated water and use of "E Only experts can run tests to identify the virus and approved hand sanitizers. determine the stage of the infection. Therefore the Catholic “In this regard,” Archbishop Tamba Charles affirms, “We have Church, through our national and diocesan Caritas offices, has abolished hand-shaking during the sign of peace at Mass and undertaken community sensitization exercises, both inside and we now distribute Holy Communion in the hand until the virus outside the Church. This includes the sensitization of the people is put under control. We also put chlorinated water or water about Ebola, its more obvious symptoms, how it is passed from treated with Dettol at Church doors for the faithful to wash their person to person and how it can be prevented. We, the bishops hands before entering the Church for Mass. The Muslims are also have also been involved in the sensitization. For instance, at doing the same in the mosques”. each Mass I have talked about the Ebola epidemic, how the virus The Archbishop of Freetown concludes, “The Ebola epidemic is contracted and passed on to other persons, and the methods is still with us. Therefore we will continue the sensitization of keeping oneself and others safe.” exercises. We will also continue our collaboration with the other This testimony was sent to the Fides News Agency, based in religious leaders, both Christians and Muslims, because the the Vatican, by Archbishop Edward Tamba Charles, Catholic religious leaders are still held in high esteem in the country and Archbishop of Freetown, capital of Sierra Leone, one of the our congregations cut across all boundaries: race, tribe, region, African nations most affected by the Ebola virus. According etc.” Source: (Agenzia Fides)
Mission Intention for October That World Mission Day may rekindle in every believer zeal for carrying the Gospel into all the world
16 The Far East - October 2014 From the Director The dynamic of sending
wo of the most quoted verses in the New Testament Christians have to respond to their needs through the bond T are from the meeting between Jesus and Nicodemus of our humanity. in Chapter 3 of St John's Gospel after Nicodemus had come Something significant and new is also happening within at night to speak with Jesus. the Church in recent times. Missionaries are on the move. Verse 16-17 of Chapter 3 reads, Continents like Africa and the subcontinent of India used to receive missionaries. Now they are sending missionaries For this is how God loved the world: he gave his only Son... to countries like Australia, New Zealand and other western For God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but countries. so that through him the world might be saved. This is a dramatic change in the Church. Did Korean or 'God sent his Son'. Chinese people complain about Columban Missionary The initiative for this action came from God the Father. Priests who went to their countries nearly 100 years ago, Jesus is sent. Jesus in turn sends his apostles to preach the when they spoke Korean and Chinese poorly and badly Good News. The apostles send other disciples through the with thick foreign accents? centuries. The dynamic of 'sending' which started with God, continues to this day. Now the shoe is on the other foot. African priests from Nigeria and Indian priests from the Indian State of Kerala, The Holy Spirit is always on the move and is present in to name just two places that send missionaries, are now the great movements of people around the world. People working in our parishes in the West, including Australia in their millions are on the move. Columbans in Peru for and New Zealand. They struggle with the same issues as example work with tens of thousands of country people Columban Missionary Priests have across the world in many who have left the Andes mountain area for a new life in countries. African and Indian priests see themselves as Lima. Everywhere in the world, people are moving into missionaries to our countries - and they are. urban areas. This presents the Church with great pastoral challenges. The Holy Spirit is taking our Catholic Church at home into a new phase of identity. Our Churches in Australia and New That great action of sending which began with God Zealand are now very much a part of the world Church. the Father sending God the Son to our world, still African and Indian missionaries are now serving in parishes continues today in the name of the Son across the all over world. Latin Americans missionaries work in Korea world. and Korean missionaries work in Latin America.
Today we are familiar with people leaving impoverished That great action of sending which began with God the homelands wracked by wars and dislocation in their own Father sending God the Son to our world, still continues countries for a new life anywhere else. They are on the today in the name of the Son across the world. move, from Africa to Italy, from Iraq to Australia, or from Mexico and Central America to the United States of America - by any means legal or illegal. They live on the borders of countries, refugees and asylum seekers in tent cities without a future anywhere.
What is the Holy Spirit asking of the Church for those in dire Fr Gary Walker situations? As the Holy Spirit lives among all of us, we as [email protected]
The Far East - October 2014 17 An open door SR REBECCA CONLON Photo: Sr Rebecca Conlon Rebecca Sr Photo: Columban Sr Rebecca Conlon with a local Pakistani family.
y pilgrimage in Inter-Religious Dialogue (IRD) My own spirituality of inter-religious dialogue is captured M started in 1989 in Selly Oak College, Birmingham, beautifully in Rublev's famous icon of the Trinity which was UK, where a group of five Columban Sisters spent originally entitled The Welcome That Makes A Stranger Into time in preparation for the opening of our new mission in A Friend. In this celebrated Russian icon three angels are Pakistan. Here we had the privilege of being guided into seated around a table drinking from the same cup with an opening the treasures and challenges of Islam. This course empty space in the foreground set for the guest or stranger. prepared me for my mission and even now helps me to For me, making a stranger into a friend is what IRD is all look beyond the frequent experiences where there is much about. In my experience in Pakistan sometimes I am the darkness and where hope and life are threatened daily. one who receives welcome and hospitality; at other times As a sign of our commitment to dialogue as a Way of Life I am the one who provides the space to welcome our among the Muslims, we Columban Sisters decided to live Muslim brothers and sisters who at first are strangers but among them and pitch our tent in their midst, much to the who can be angels bearing God's message as in the Biblical consternation of many people who feared for our safety. story behind Rublev's icon. Incidents like, for example, the It seemed a risky decision. Here I am 25 years later, still 2005 publication in Denmark of cartoons ridiculing the in Pakistan, healthy and happy in a country which is 98% Prophet Mohammed, PBUH (Peace Be Upon Him), had a Muslim. real domino effect across the Muslim world and especially
18 The Far East - October 2014 PAKISTAN
We Columban Sisters here in Pakistan have helped a Muslim couple, both lawyers, to set up an NGO for reaching out to marginalized women. here in Pakistan which is the 'Homeland of the Muslims'. Such We Columban Sisters here in Pakistan have helped a Muslim incidents spark fear of retaliation by the mob among the couple, both lawyers, to set up an NGO for reaching out Christian communities who are a tiny minority, are termed to marginalized women. This is a great meeting place for 'Western' and do not feel secure in the country where they Muslims, Hindus and other Christians who are committed were born. to this particular issue of Justice and Peace. Such wonderful Over the years churches have been burnt, villages attacked people were once strangers but became God-sent angels and houses and businesses burnt. In a recent attack two when clouds of darkness surrounded my life. Over the years, suicide bombers targeted a church in Peshawar killing 85 through such contacts, I have spent much of my life visiting worshippers. Such international and national incidents the abandoned women in the local Psychiatric Hospital and affect us deeply and during 2013 we had to stay indoors for also the Women's Shelter where there is much pain and a full month as it was too dangerous for us to risk going out. suffering. All the women in these institutions are Muslims. During this time we had no opportunity to celebrate the For the past 12 years I have also been going to the women's Eucharist and we depended on a local person to see to our prison where I am accepted by the staff and prisoners shopping needs. and I feel a deep welcome from them all. I am enriched by I often ask myself whether it is OK for us missionaries journeying with them in their struggle. I can see that the to urge our Pakistani Christians to engage in religious God we share together has a big heart. Dialogue is not dialogue. I was very inspired by Shabaz Bhatti, the only always an easy road to travel. It is a pilgrimage of the heart, Christian Minister in the Government. He tried to repeal the a road to personal conversion. This means a letting-go of Blasphemy Law which hangs like a millstone around the prejudices and being open to new ways of seeing things necks of Christians, Hindus and Muslims. He vowed to speak and people. for marginalized Christians and other minorities, saying: "I Living among Muslims in Pakistan, my companion, Jesus, will die to defend their rights. ... I want my life, my character is someone whose uniqueness lies in his unqualified and my actions to speak for me and show that I am a follower acceptance of others in their differences. I also try to of Jesus." His life was taken by a lone gunman in 2011. develop The Welcome That Makes A Stranger Into A Friend. The Lord's work of the Kingdom is woven in and out with such incidents and yet each year we celebrate Christmas night with up to 40 Muslim friends and neighbours. This is a tradition that they started from the very beginning of our time here when, to our surprise, they brought us in our first Christmas tree. We have maintained this open-door welcome ever since. Columban Sr Rebecca Conlon from Miltown Malbay, Co. Clare, Ireland has spent the past 25 years in Pakistan.
We cannot take our earthly possessions with us, but we can so dispose of them that our good works will continue after we are gone. A bequest to help missionaries being God’s saving message to non-Christians is a practical way of showing our love for Christ. Why not speak to your lawyer about it? AUSTRALIA NEW ZEALAND FORM OF WILL St Columbans Mission Society St Columbans Mission Society I give devise and bequeath to the Superior for the PO Box 30-017 PO Box 752, Niddrie Vic 3042 time being of St Columban’s Mission Society Lower Hutt 5040 Tel: (03) 9375 9475 (see local address) the sum of $...... email: [email protected] Tel: (04) 567 7216 email: [email protected] for the use of the said Society.
The Far East - October 2014 19 Photo: Eamon Fr Adams
Columban Lay Missionaries Jena (left) and Luda in traditional Filipino dress.
Mission to Korea LUDA L. EGBALIC & JENANYDEL SANDUPO NOLA In May this year, two Columban Lay Missionaries from the Philippines, Luda and Jena, arrived as missionaries in Korea. Here is their story so far.
uda's Story call a life of sacrifice and instability. I was a Redemptorist L I am Luda L. Egbalic from Malaybalay City, Lay Missionary for four years in the Philippines. After that Province of Bukidnon in the Philippines. I am 42-years- time, I prayed hard and discerned for a year whether or not old and come from a big and happy family of 12 and also to continue with my plan of going on overseas mission or blessed by having 11 lovable nephews and nieces. to stay with the Redemptorists. In my life I have learned to present my plans and have entrusted myself to God. Let His My mother didn't want me to go on overseas mission. will be done, that is the sentiment I keep in my heart. She wanted me to serve in the Philippines where I could be close to home. However my mother has come to After meeting Columban Lay Missionaries in the Philippines, understand my heart’s desire of devoting myself to serving I decided to apply to join them. After the nine month our loving God as a lay missionary. When I arrived in South orientation programme, I was sent to South Korea for a Korea I brought with me their blessings. I am always grateful three-year term. to our loving God who has always blessed and provided Leaving familiar people, places, works and comforts for my family’s daily needs and most especially our good in my own country made my heart heavy and full of health, peace and oneness. separation anxiety. However, when I arrived here and I had a stable job as a primary school teacher for 15 years, met many kind-hearted and understanding Columban but I decided to resign and enter into the life of a lay priests, lay missionaries, Columban sisters, Korean friends missionary – a lifestyle which some of my friends would and friends of other nationalities whom I met at Konkuk
20 The Far East - October 2014 Philippines KOREA
University where I am taking my language studies, I say my dream I first had in high school. However in December of thanksgiving prayer to God each day for providing me the that year I was invited by a nun named Pelenatita Petelo, gift of these people. a former Columban Lay Missionary, to attend a meeting about the Columban Lay Mission programme. This meeting South Korea is such a beautiful country with hospitable and reminded me once again about my desire to serve God and hard-working people, innovative and artistic even in the from that time onwards I discerned, listened and prayed. It preparation of their food, religious and sincere in their faith, took me two years before I decided to send my application. beliefs and traditions. In June 2013, I started my nine month orientation Finally, I believe it is God’s will that I am here in Korea. I programme in Cubao, Quezon City, Philippines. commit to live my missionary life to the full with the rest of Luda and I arrived here in Korea on May 20, 2014. Korea, it the missionaries. So, help me God and pray for me Mama seems, is a place where the people, culture and traditions Mary and St. Columban. Amen. are totally different from my own beloved Philippines. Jena's Story However the warm welcome that I received from the Columban missionaries in Korea has made me feel I am Jenanydel Sandupo Nola, 26-years-old and a T’boli comfortable and at home. from Maitum in Sarangani Province, the Philippines. T'bolis are an indigenous community in the Philippines. I have one Upon arriving in the new Lay Missionary Centre, there was older brother and two younger sisters. My older brother, much work to be done cleaning and arranging the house. younger sisters and I studied at the Notre Dame Business This has been a good start for me because it has kept me Resource Centre Foundation Incorporated. occupied and I haven’t had time to dwell on thoughts of my family and home. To stay in a place where everything In March 2010, I graduated from Dadiangas University with is strange is not easy because of the degree of adjustment a Bachelor of Arts with a major in Economics. In June of the needed. I have to patiently learn the language. I also enjoy same year I started working. the food and have changed my ways of relating to others. Before joining the Columban Lay Mission programme Over the first three months I can see that little by little I am I worked at Notre Dame Business Resource Centre learning to live my life by adopting a new way of living. Foundation Incorporated which is run by the Marist Although it is difficult relating to Korean people because Brothers. I worked as a day care teacher and community of the language barrier, I know that little by little I am organizer. I taught for two years and did one year as a improving and the difficulties can be overcome. As of now I community organizer. can see that I am being well taken care of by our loving God In 2010, while I was busy working with the children in my and by the love and care I have received from the people community I began to think about becoming a nun. It is a who surround me. Thank you and God Bless. St Columbans Mission Society, PO Box 752, NIDDRIE, VIC, 3042 Tel: 03 9375 9475 Fax: 03 9379 6040 Subanen Christmas Email: [email protected] www.columban.org.au Cards Order Form
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www.columban.org.au The Far East - October 2014 21 Where do you come from? FR PATRICK McINERNEY Photo: Patrick Fr McInerney
A street scene at a Jerusalem market place.
s I walked the venerable conversations about land, identity realize that we are all children of the A cobblestone streets of old and occupation. one Father in heaven, then we would Jerusalem where Jesus once walked, One day when I asked, “Where do celebrate our national, ethnic and the shopkeepers called out to me, you come from?” the shopkeeper religious differences, not as dividing “Where do you come from?” When I replied, “From my mother!” I laughed. us from one another, but as enriching answered, “Australia”, they urged me This unexpected reply was so our shared humanity. in English to buy their wares. Such is startling that I started using it too, Among all the wonderful goods and their linguistic adaptability that had I to the puzzlement and amusement souvenirs on sale in the markets of answered, “France”, they would have of my questioners, leading to very Jerusalem, this realisation was the spoken French, “Russia”, they would different conversations about identity, most precious gift of all …and it costs have spoken Russian, and so on. nationality and politics. nothing other than letting go of the I quickly learned to deflect their As I reflected more on this seemingly narrow stereotypes that limit our commercial enticements by asking humorous answer I realised that it appreciation and opening ourselves in turn, “Where do you come from?” is actually very profound. Each one to the riches which we are to each Mostly they answered, “From here!” of is us born of our mother. There is other. The new question becomes, not “From Jerusalem?” “Yes!” “Mabruk!” no exception, not even Jesus! If we “Where do you come from?” but “Where (“You are blessed!”) In the Muslim recognized our common humanity are you going?” quarter the answer was often, first, rather than our national, ethnic “From Palestine”. This proud national or religious identity, then we would Columban Fr Patrick McInerney works at the sentiment was also a political know that the other is my brother and Columban Mission Institute, Strathfield, in statement, leading to interesting sister and mother, then we would truly Interfaith Dialogue. 22 The Far East - October 2014 Erecting new homes
Last April, thousands of homes of mostly poor families were destroyed in the worst fire in history in Chile's picturesque port city of Valparaiso. Columban Missionaries have responded to this tragedy by helping to erect three prefabricated homes. With the help of Columban benefactors, other families who have lost everything in the fire can also be helped. We thank all Columban benefactors for their support. Photo: Fr Alvaro Martinez Fr Photo:
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