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2 Editorial Chief Editor: 4 Tenth Successor of Don Bosco Fr. Sebastian Koladiyil 6 Our New Superiors Editorial Team: 19 Letter of Rev. Fr. Pascual Chavez Fr. LUIS Neville Fr. FELICE Molino 20 A Boy with a Dream Sr. VIRGINIA Bickford 22 27th General Chapter’s Message to Sr. Jacqueline Wanjira Salesians Administration Office 25 Interview with Isabel Artime - The mother DBYES Tel: 0706 349 971 of Major 0789 479 161 28 The Don Bosco Touch Publisher 31 John Paul II, John XXIII Canonized Bosco Eastern Africa Multimedia Services [B.E.A.M.S.] Teachers’ Seminar in Makuyu 32 P.O. Box 2 - 00502, Karen - . 33 Signis World Congress 2014 Tel: 0772 770 468 34 South Sudan’s Frontline Nuns 0734 719 449 E-mail: [email protected] 35 Nuns Help Displaced people in South [email protected] Sudan www.dbafe.org 37 Pope to Seminarians Layout & Design Anthony Mungai 38 “Do Theology on Your Kneels” E-mail:[email protected] 39 Groaning Beyond Words Tel: 0721 582 787 Photos Courtesy B.E.A.M.S. CONTENT Printed by: The was founded by St. DON BOSCO PRINTING PRESS in 1877. ‘Don Bosco Eastern Africa’ is the Salesian P.O. Box 158 - 01020, Bulletin published by the , Makuyu, Kenya Eastern Africa Province , Kenya. E-mail: [email protected]

2ND QUARTER 3 From the EDITOR The poor young people will save us

e have reached the final stage of the preparations for the celebration of the bi-centenary of the birth of Don WBosco. Three years of preparations, three themes for study and reflection to renew every member of the Salesian Congregation. The huge operation of the pilgrimage of the relic of Don Bosco which increased the awareness of this great and made him more popular and increased the devotion to him is complete. And the celebration itself will take us through many beautifully well prepared Eucharistic celebrations, novenas, processions, talks and in addition, videos and other publicity materials will be made available to the faithful and the devotees of Don Bosco. Pilgrimages to the Holy places of Don Bosco will be organized. A reflection of these took my mind far away to venture outside the traditional doings, to celebrate the centenary. Can we in all the provinces of the Congregation, or at least can we here in open at least one bi-centenary presence among the poor needy youth in Eastern Africa? I think then it will be the best way to celebrate and we will leave a true legacy touching the lives of many on the occasion of this great event which will make Don Bosco happy. Now we have a new team of superiors who are inspired by inviting us to look in the direction of the poor. In the 27th General Chapter’s Message to the Salesians, the members quoted what the Pope told them during their audience with him, “He (the Pope) asked us insistently to go out to the peripheries where the young dwell and where we see their various forms of poverty more acutely. He begged us to spare no effort in assigning our best individuals to the poorest, those who have no prospects and no future…The Holy Father’s message will remain in our hearts and will be a programme for all of us to follow.” In March I was in the Kakuma Refugee Camp. My visit was not one of a touristic nature or a visit to the Salesian community but it was to make a documentary about the Salesian presence. This gave me a chance to visit many people especially the young; to listen to their stories, their pain and struggles and to their dreams and hopes. Everyone had a different and difficult story. Each one told me about their life back in their countries, why they had to run away, how difficult it was to reach the “promised land” and the reality they found when they reached there. They also told me about their vision for the future and how they want to live their life. No one wanted to die in the refugee camp. Kakuma Refugee Camp in the northern part of Kneya is one of the largest refugee camps in Africa. It is was established in 1992 to accommodate refugees from Sudan but was later expanded to host refugees from Somalia, , Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, , Rwanda and other countries. It is administered by the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) assisted by a wide range of organizations among them are the Salesians of Don Bosco. According to the latest statistics (March, 2014) released by UNHCR there are 147,773 officially registered refugees in the camp where the majority are Southern Sudanese. The population has risen due to the current political conflicts in South Sudan

4 2ND QUARTER In this camp there are hundreds and hundreds of children and youth, most of them having nothing to do. A few lucky ones are able to get a place in the few schools- primary and secondary-run by UNHCR and in the technical school run by Don Bosco. The rest live on the ration handed out by the UNHCR which is hardly enough. The best that can be given to these unfortunate people is education so that one day, if they are able to go back to their countries or to migrate to any other place, looking for a better living they go with something which will help them to earn a living. In Kakuma, there are thousands of youngsters just sitting around idling away having nothing to do. This is the ideal place for the Salesians to start something more for these young people. Another educational institution. It could even be a project under the Generalate. This would be an ideal work that can be started as we celebrate the bi-centenary of Don Bosco, this will truly be a work close to Don Bosco’s heart. Can we not venture into it? If we dare we will fulfil the wish of the chapter members, “Our cloister is the world of the young who are in difficulty and our prayer is our hands raised up and our action in giving dignity back to those who are most excluded…. We are faced with an exodus which will help us reach another land, one promised a thousand times over: the land of the most abandoned and poorest. As Salesians we will find our Tabor there.” This will demand our communities to make sacrifices, giving up some of our comforts to contribute to this new presence, leaving our communities to be part of this new daring venture. “For our communities we want a simple lifestyle, one marked by the joy of the and passion for the Kingdom.” Then we will live the words of Pope Francis to our Chapter members, reflected in the first letter of the Rector Major to the Salesians, “May the poverty of Don Bosco and Mama Margaret inspire every Salesian and each of your communities to an essential and austere life which is close to the poor, transparent and responsible in its management of goods.” “Going out to marginalised youngsters requires courage, maturity and much prayer. And you need to send the best people for this kind of work! The best.” (Pope Francis to the Salesians). This step will bring the new “Francis effect” to our Salesian presences in AFE Province. We the Salesians will become the “shepherds that smell like the sheep.” Only then we will have as our Rector Major wrote, “our priority is the young who are poorest, the least, the most excluded. Fr Vecchi wrote in one of his letters: “Poor young people have been and still are a gift for the Salesians. Returning to them will allow us to recover the central characteristic of our spirituality and our pedagogical practice: the relationship of friendship that creates correspondence and the desire to grow” (AGC, 359, p.24). I am encouraged to say that it is poor young people who will save us.” If we take this challenging tasks we will be on the right path and we will save ourselves. Let me end with another quote from our new Rector Major, a passionate plea, “This is why I dare to ask that with the “courage, maturity and much prayer” with which we are sent to the most excluded young people, we choose in each of our provinces to take another look at where we are, where we must remain, where we should go and where we can leave … needy young people challenge us with their groans and their cries of pain. In their own way they are calling out to us.

Sebastian Koladiyil

2ND QUARTER 5 Fr Ángel Fernández Artime is the Tenth Successor of Don Bosco!

“I abandon myself to the Lord...”

6 2ND QUARTER Fr Ángel Fernández Artime is the Tenth Successor of Don Bosco!

The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, Provincial of Southern , as tenth Successor of Don Bosco.

The election took place at 10.20 AM at the first ballot.

The official announcement was welcomed with long and warm applause.

Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, 53 years of age was born 21 August 1960 at Gozón-Luanco, ; he made his first profession on 3 September 1978, his perpetual profession on 17 June 1984 and was ordained on 4 July 1987. Originally from León Province, he has been Youth Ministry Delegate, Rector of the school at Ourense, member of the Council and Vice Provincial and, from 2000 to 2006, Provincial of León.

He was a member of the technical commission in preparation for General Chapter 26. In 2009 he was appointed Provincial in Argentine South, a task he has carried out until now. In this capacity he got to know the then Archbishop of , Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, and to work with him.

He has a Doctorate in Pastoral Theology and a Licence in Philosophy and Pedgagy.

On 23 December last he was appointed Provincial of the new province of Mary Help of Christians in Spain, an office which Fr Angel will obviously not now be able to take on, since he will exercise his ministry as Father of the whole Salesian Family.

Fr Pascual Chávez, President of the Assembly, invited Fr Angel to come beside him, and said: “Dear Fr Ángel, through your confreres God has called you today to be the successor of Don Bosco. You are not called to be like the Rector Major, nor Don Vecchi nor Don Viganó. You are the successor of Don Bosco, not of Don Chavez. So, on behalf of the Chapter, I ask you if you accept.”

Speaking in Spanish, Fr Angel said with an emotional heart: “I abandon myself to the Lord. We ask Don Bosco and Mary Help of Christians to accompany us and to accompany me, with my brother Salesians and with the Congregation, and I accept with faith.”

2ND QUARTER 7 Our New Superiors

Fr Francesco Cereda Vicar of the Rector Major The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Francesco Cereda as the new Vicar of the Rector Major. Fr Cereda has been Councillor for Formation until now and is currently Moderator of GC27. “I am happy to work as Vicar of the Rector Major, Fr Ángel. With the help of Mary Help of Christians, I will try to be faithful in this ministry and I accept.” This was Fr Cereda’s response to the General Chapter, indicating his willingness for the office. Don Francesco Cereda, born in Veduggio con Colzano, in the Province of , on the 6th of March 1951, made his first vows on the 16th of August 1968 after his novitiate in Missaglia. He made his perpetual vows on 14th of September 1974, after his Tirocinium at Parma. He was ordained deacon at Chiari on the12th of May 1979 and priest on the 24th of May 1980. Fr Cereda was animator in the post-novitiate community of Nave, in the Brescia province, till 1987 when he became Rector of the community and Head at the school in Parma. In 1986 he got a Mathematics degree at the State University of Parma. After having been Provincial Councillor for three years 1990-1993, he was nominated Provincial of the Italian Province of Lombardo Emiliana (ILE). At the end of his term he was given the office of Superior of the Visitatoria “Mary, Seat of Wisdom” of the Pontifical Salesian University till 2002 when, during the GC25, he was elected as Councillor for Formation. He was confirmed in this office at GC26, when he was Moderator for the first time.

8 2ND QUARTER Fr Ivo Coelho Councillor for Formation Fr Ivo Coelho was elected by the 27th General Chapter as new Councillor General for Formation. Fr Coelho is Rector of the Salesian Theological Centre at Ratisbonne in Jerusalem. He was not a member of the present Chapter. When the voting ended Fr Coelho had received a large majority. The Rector Major immediately contacted him by telephone to ask if he accepted the result of the election. Fr Coelho responded positively and the Chapter members, who had been following the phone call, applauded. Fr Coelho said, “I accept the will of the Chapter and see here the will of God for me and for the Congregation. I hope to do my best, with God’s grace and your help, and that of Don Bosco and Mary Help of Christians.” Nicholas Ivo Coelho was born on 15 October 1958 in , . He entered the Salesian novitiate of Yercaud in 1976, made ​his first profession on 24 May 1977 in the same town, and his perpetual profession exactly 7 years later in Mumbai. He was ordained priest on 27 December 1987 at Panjim Goa. He studied philosophy at the Pontifical University Jnana- Deepa Vidyapeeth of Pune and Theology at the Kristu Jyoti College in Bangalore. In 1994 he obtained a doctorate in philosophy at the Gregorian University in Rome with a thesis on the thought of the Canadian theologian, Bernard Lonergan. His doctoral thesis was entitled: “The development of the notion of universal point of view in the thought of Bernard Lonergan: from Insight to Method in Theology.” That same year he was appointed Rector of the student community of Nashik, a role he filled until 2001 and then again from 2008 to 2011. He served as Provincial of India - Mumbai in the intervening years. In 2007 and 2008 he was part of the Pre-Chapter Commission for the 26th General Chapter in which he participated and acted as moderator. In 2011 he took up the appointment as Rector of the Salesian Theological Centre in Jerusalem. Fr Coelho succeeds Fr. Francis Cereda, who was elected as Vicar of the Rector Major.

2ND QUARTER 9 Bro. Jean Paul Muller Economer General

The 27th General Chapter has confirmed Bro. Jean Paul Muller as Economer General of the Salesian Congregation. When the Rector Major asked him if he accepted the result of the election, Bro. Jean Paul replied: “First of all, thank you for your trust and thank you to the team that has been chosen. I will be asking for their help in the task. As Fr Guillermo said, I am glad to be a part of this team with the Rector Major and the others that have been chosen. Thank you. I accept.” Jean Paul Muller was born on 13 October 1957 in Grevenmacher, . He entered the novitiate of Jünkerath on 16 August 1978, made his first profession as a Salesian on 15 August of the following year and his perpetual profession on 15 August 1984. He was a member of the House Council in the communities of Helenenberg (1995-2000) and Bonn (2005-2011), Provincial Councillor from 1990 to 2011 - first in Northern and then in the Province of Germany - and he was Delegate for the Missions from 2003 to 2012. In 2004 he was elected a member of the Equipo de Dirección del Consejo de Misiones Católico Alemán. From 2005 to October 2012 he was Director of the Salesian Mission Office in Bonn and he is also President of the Confederation of educational psychologists in . On 27 January 2011, after consultation with the members of the General Council, the then Rector Major, Fr Pascual Chávez, appointed him Economer General of the Congregation. He participated in the 23rd, 24th and 26th General Chapters and was a member of the pre-chapter Commission of GC27.

10 2ND QUARTER Fr Guillermo Basañes Councillor for the Missions

The 27th General Chapter has entrusted to Fr Guillermo Basañes, former Regional Councillor for Africa-, the position of Councillor for the Missions . “With this team and this manager, I could not say no. I accept,” was the formula employed by Fr Basañes to communicate his willingness to accept the office. Born on 19 October 1965 in Washington, USA, Fr Basañes made ​his novitiate in La Plata, Argentina, his first profession on 31 January 1986 and his perpetual profession on 24 November 1991 in Buenos Aires. He went to for practical training and did his theological studies in Lubumbashi. He was ordained deacon in August 1994 and became a priest on 12 August 1995. He was a member of the pre-chapter commission for GC26 and at that chapter he was elected as Councillor for the Africa-Madagascar Region. In 2009 he was appointed Member of the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, on the theme “The Church in Africa at the service of reconciliation, justice and peace.” As Councillor for the Missions, Fr Basañes succeeds Fr Václav Klement.

2ND QUARTER 11 Fr Fabio Attard Councillor for Youth Ministry

The 27th General Chapter has confirmed Fr Fabio Attard for a second term as Councillor for Youth Ministry. To the formal question put to him by the Rector Major, Fr Attard said: “We are all in the hands of Mary, so, I accept!” Don Attard was born on the 23rd of March 1959 in Gozo and was professed as a Salesian on the 8th of September 1980 in where he made his novitiate. He received the diaconate on the 11th of July 1986 and priesthood on the 4th of July the following year, in Rome. Rector in Sliema, , of “St Alphonsus” first, and then of “St Patrick”, he received his degree in Moral Theology at the “Alphonsianum” in Rome. He was the Rector of the Institute of Pastoral Formation, which he founded in 2005 in the Archdiocese of Malta; he participated in the 26th General Chapter as delegate of the Province of - Malta and was elected Councillor for Youth Ministry.

“We are all in the hands of Mary, so, I accept!”

12 2ND QUARTER Fr Filiberto González Councillor for Social Communication

The 27th General Chapter has confirmed Fr Filiberto González as Councillor for Social Communication. “In the name of God, I accept. My life is for young people, for you and for your service,” said Fr González in response to the Rector Major, Fr Fernandez Artime. Don Filiberto, a Mexican, was born at Milpillas, an area belonging to the commune of Tepatitlán, in the State of Jalisco on the 22nd of August 1954. He made his novitiate at Chulavista and took his first vows at Guadalajara on the 1st of October 1974 and his perpetual vows on the 28th of September 1980. He became deacon on the 13th of November 1981 and was ordained priest on the 11th of December 1982. He has taken on different responsibilities, among which were Novice Master in his Province from 1985 till 1987 and, from 1987 till 1992 did pastoral work at the Cristobal Colón Institute in the city of Zamora. From 1990-1992 he attended the Institute for Social Communications (ISCOS) at the Salesian Pontifical University, receiving his degree in Social Communications. Returning to his Province he was in charge of formation of the Post-novitiate at Huipulco until 1993 when he became Delegate for Youth Pastoral till 2001. Subsequently, until 2004 he was Novice Master then became Rector of the Postnovitiate of - Guadalajara at Huipulco in Mexico. In 2006 he was appointed Provincial of the Salesians of Mexico- Guadalajara. He participated in the 26th General Chapter when he was elected as Councillor for Social Communication. He was also a member of the Technical Commission for the 27th General Chapter.

2ND QUARTER 13 Fr Américo Raúl Chaquisse Regional Councillor for Africa-Madagascar

The 27th General Chapter has elected Fr Américo Raúl Chaquisse as the new Regional Councillor for Africa-Madagascar. Until now Fr Chaquisse has been Superior of the Vice-Province of . He is the first African Councillor for the region and succeeds Fr Guillermo Basañes who was elected as Councillor for the Missions. “I thank God, the confreres who accompanied me, and especially Mary Help of Christians, under whose protection I place myself, and I accept,” the newly elected Councillor said. Américo Raúl Chaquisse was born on 23 February 1966 in Maputo. He did his novitiate in his hometown and made ​his first profession on 30 January 1986. He did his theological studies in Lubumbashi and was ordained priest in Maputo on 11 August 1996. He has held various positions in the Vice-Province: he was Council Member, Economer, Vice-Rector and Rector of the Provincial House, Casa Dom Bosco – Residencia. In 2006 he was appointed Economer and Delegate for Missionary Animation in Mozambique. He participated in the 26th General Chapter and in June 2012 he became Superior of the Vice-Province of Mozambique. Since February 2013 he combined this office with that of Delegate for Evangelization.

14 2ND QUARTER Fr Stefano Martoglio Councillor for Mediterranean region

The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Stefano Martoglio as the Councillor for the new Mediterranean region. He has been until now Superior of the Special Circumscription of and Valle d’Aosta. The Rector Major spoke in Spanish as he invited the newly elected councillor to practise Spanish just as he himself is practising Italian. Fr Fernandez and Fr Martoglio both thanked Fr José Miguel Nunez and Fr Pier Fausto Frisoli for the service they had given in the two regions that have now become the new Mediterranean region. Fr Stefano accepted the result of the election, trusting in the mercy of God and the prayers of the confreres. Stefano Martoglio was born in on 30 November 1965. He entered the novitiate at Monte Oliveto in Pinerolo in 1984, made ​his first profession in the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians in Turin on 8 September 1985 and his perpetual profession on 27 September 1992 in . He was ordained priest in Turin on 11 June 1994. He served as a member of the House Council in the community of Pinerolo and that of St. Dominic Savio, Valdocco, before becoming Rector of the Mother House of the Congregation in Valdocco in 2004. In 2008 he was appointed Superior of the Special Circumscription of Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta. He participated in the 25th General Chapter, and recently was part of the pre- chapter Commission for GC27. Fr Martoglio is Councillor for the newly established Mediterranean region which was set up as a result of the decision taken by GC27 as part of the reconfiguration of the Salesian presence in Europe. The new region consists of the Circumscription of Central and that of Piedmont and Valle d’Aosta, together with the Italian provinces of Lombardy and Emilia, Southern Italy, North East Italy and Sicily, plus the Middle East, and the current Spanish provinces of , ​Bilbao, León, , Seville and Valencia. These six provinces will be reduced to just two: Spain Central, North and East and Spain Mediterranean. 2ND QUARTER 15 Fr Václav Klement Regional for East Asia-Oceania

The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Václav Klement as Regional Councillor for East Asia-Oceania. For Fr Klement this is a return to the region where he was Councillor from 2002 to 2008. The Rector Major first thanked Fr Andrew Wong, outgoing Regional, for the generosity and willingness with which he served the region in the past six years. Fr Klement accepted saying, “Thank you for your confidence. With the help of Versiglia and Caravario who gave their lives in our region, I accept.” Born on 7 October 1958 in Brno, in what was then Czechoslovakia, he lived for 26 years unable to profess his faith openly because of the communist regime. He entered the Salesian Congregation secretly and made his religious profession on 4 September 1982. He studied officially at the diocesan seminary, concealing his Salesian vocation even from his parents. In August 1984 he fled to Rome where he received his baccalaureate in Theology and began studying Social Communication at the Salesian Pontifical University. He was ordained priest in Rome on 25 May 1986 and was incardinated in the Province of , where he worked with young people in a professional training centre in . In 1995 he became Rector of the formation house at Dae Rim Dong in Seoul. He became Provincial in Korea in 1996. In 2002 he participated in GC25 and was elected councillor for the new region of East Asia and Oceania. At the 26th General Chapter he was elected as Councillor for the Missions.

16 2ND QUARTER Fr Maria Arokiam Kanaga Regional Councillor for South Asia

The 27th General Chapter has confirmed Fr Maria Arokiam Kanaga as Regional Councillor for South Asia. Fr Arokiam accepted his election with these words: “The Lord, Our Lady and Don Bosco know my limits and what I can do, and I know a little of what is waiting for me because I’ve already done this job. I put my trust in the Lord, the Virgin Mary and in our father Don Bosco who is living here, and I accept.” Maria Arokiam Kanaga was born on 4 October 1956 at Varadarajanpet, Trichy, India. He entered the novitiate of Yercaud, made ​his first profession on 24 May 1976 and his perpetual profession in Madras on the same date in 1982. He was ordained priest in Rome in 1986. Since 1992 he was Rector of the Don Bosco community in Tirupattur, the Theological Institute of Poonamallee, Madras, and at Yercaud. He studied theology and earned his Doctorate in Philosophy at the Salesian Pontifical University in Rome. He was Vice-Provincial in the Province of Madras from 1996 to 2002 and Delegate for Youth Ministry from 2006 to 2007. He participated in the 24th, 25th and 26th General Chapters. At GC26 he was elected as Regional Councillor for South Asia. He was a member of the pre-chapter Commission for GC27.

2ND QUARTER 17 Fr Timothy Ploch Councillor for Inter-America

The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Timothy Ploch as the new Councillor for the Inter-American Region. Fr Ploch has been Provincial of the Western Province, USA until now. He succeeds Fr Esteban Ortiz who has completed a dual mandate and was not eligible for re-election to the same position. The Rector Major thanked Fr Esteban Ortiz for his kindness and generosity. The Chapter members showed their approval with loud applause. Fr Ploch accepted his election and expressed the hope that he could continue the service given in this region by Fr Chavez and Fr Ortiz in the name of Don Bosco. Timothy Ploch was born on 8 June 1946 in Paterson in the . He entered the novitiate in Newton in 1964 and made his first profession as a Salesian on 16 August 1965. He made his perpetual profession in Columbus on 15 August 1971 and was ordained priest in Westerville on 24 April 1976. He has held various positions in the community including those of Director in Columbus and Port Chester, and priest, also in Port Chester. He was Provincial in the Eastern Province of the United States (1991- 1997), then Councillor and Delegate for the Salesian Family and for Social Communication (2003-2006). In 2009, the then Rector Major Fr Pascual Chávez appointed Fr Ploch as Provincial of the Western Province USA. He participated in the 22nd and 24th General Chapters and, most recently, he was part of the pre-chapter Commission for GC27.

18 2ND QUARTER Fr Natale Vitali Councillor for America Southern Cone

The 27th General Chapter has confirmed Fr Natale Vitali as Regional Councillor for America Southern Cone.”I was hoping someone else would get more votes, so that I could have a rest. However, I accept,” Fr Vitali said jokingly. Natale Vitali was born on 14 May 1955 in Montappone, in the province of Ascoli Piceno in Italy. After initial training in Italy he went to where he did his theological studies. He was ordained deacon on 23 August 1981 and priest on 31 July 1982. He was a teacher of religion and school counsellor and has had experience as parish priest and economer as well as Rector of the community. He was Provincial Councillor and then Provincial of Chile for two terms, from 1995 to 2000 and from 2006 to 2008. At GC26 he was elected Regional Councillor for America Southern Cone. He previously attended two General Chapters and was also Vicar for Religious Life of the Archdiocese of Puerto Mortt.

2ND QUARTER 19 Fr Tadeusz Rozmus Councillor for the new region of Central and Northern Europe

The 27th General Chapter elected Fr Tadeusz Rozmus as Councillor for the new region of Central and Northern Europe. Fr Rozmus is at present Rector of the Salesian community of Perugia and was previously Provincial of Krakow in . Fr Rozmus was not present as a member of the Chapter, so when the result of the voting was known, he had to be called by phone. He was on Retreat and when the Rector Major asked him if he accepted, his answer was: “If this is the will of the Chapter, I accept.” Tadeusz Rozmus was born on 29 April 1957 in Bielsko-Biala in Poland. He entered the novitiate of Kopiec in 1975, made his first profession there on 22 August 1976 and his perpetual profession at the Salesian house of San Tarcisio in Rome on 16 September 1984. He was ordained priest in Krakow on 18 June 1986. He was Rector of the Salesian houses in Swietochlowice, San Callisto in Rome and Perugia, Provincial Councillor in the Province of Krakow from 1997 to 2000 and then Provincial from 2000 to 2006. Last year he made ​the Extraordinary Visitation of on behalf of Fr Marek Chrzan. Fr Rozmus will be Councillor for the new Region of Central and Northern Europe. As a result of the deliberations of GC27 on 22 March, the region includes: Austria, North, , , - Southern Belgium, Germany, Great Britain, , Ireland, Poland- Krakow, Poland-Pila, Poland-Warsaw, Poland-Wroclaw, , , and the special circumscription of Ukraine.

20 2ND QUARTER Letter of Rev. Fr Pascual Chávez To each and every Salesian in the Congregation

Dear confreres,

You cannot imagine the deep joy I felt when, on the evening of 30 January last, I was able to walk beside Archbishop Cesare Nosiglia, archbishop of Turin and many Salesians, young people from the SYM, as we accompanied Don Bosco’s Casket through the streets of Turin on his return to Valdocco. Young people who had come to the Basilica were waiting for him there and singing “Don Bosco ritorna”. Don Bosco has come back home, having visited his sons wherever they were, anywhere in the world, and it had me thinking of you and now I am writing you this personal letter. Back in Valdocco, Don Bosco wants to reach out to every young person, by preference the most needy of them, through each one of us, called as we are to represent him today. I am about to leave the ministry as Rector Major that was entrusted to me for the first time on that distant 2 April 2002. On that day the Lord called me to represent Don Bosco for you and the Salesian Family. It was an undeserved grace, I believe, and I confess that it encouraged me to identify myself with our Father more each day, identify with his concern for the Congregation, his passion for the young. I know that however much I thank him in the remaining days of my life I could never repay this debt of God’s love. May he be forever blessed! My gratitude extends to each and every one of you, my dear confreres. I have felt accepted and very much loved, though I know that all the signs of respect and love I received were the expression of your affection and filial devotion to Don Bosco. Everyone’s understanding and endorsement, the availability and the obedience I encountered in so many of you have been a real support in the exercising of my ministry. May God bless you as I, with all my heart, do! I do not hide the fact that during these twelve years as Rector Major there has been no lack of pains and sorrows, some more sorrowful because inexplicable or unexpected. However, like Don Bosco in his dream of the pergola of roses, I have walked amidst thorns… However the pain felt and the loneliness experienced helped me to see with greater clarity the good that God, through each one of you, is achieving. I can tell you that today I feel very proud to be a Salesian, not only to have our holy Founder as a Father but also to have you as my confreres. I am sure that whoever will be elected after me will take care “of you and your salvation”. As Don Bosco did one day, I now urge you: “listen to him, love him, obey him, pray for him as you did for me”. And may Mary Help of Christians, Mother and teacher of Don Bosco and each one of us, guide and accompany you in living out your consecration. Thank you, with all my heart.

Rome, 24 March 2014

Fr Pascual Chávez S., sdb Rector Major

2ND QUARTER 21 A BOY WITH

22 2ND QUARTER A BOY WITH A DREAM

2ND QUARTER 23 27TH GENERAL CHAPTER’S MESSAGE TO SALESIANS charism today. Rediscovering Don Bosco has helped our evangelical vocation to take root more deeply and has revived the reasons for giving ourselves for the Kingdom as he gave himself, on behalf of the poorest of the young. In the light of his experience, we set out under the gaze of Mary Help of Christians, sure of her maternal intercession.

God gifted us with Dear confreres, a father When we came back to Rome we began All of us who have taken part in the our work of demanding reflections 27th General Chapter wish to share with and decisions. Fraternal spirit and you the extraordinary experience we common seeking made it possible have had over these months, called to for us to weave warm and sincere Rome in the Lord’s name and sustained relationships amongst us immediately. by the power of His Spirit. For each one These gave us a first-hand experience of us the Chapter has been an event of of multicultural abundance and the grace to which we want to witness when prophecy of fraternity during the days we return home. When we take up our of the Chapter. tasks and concerns once more we would We have felt in communion with like to tell you that “What marvels those communities which, in countries indeed he did for us and how overjoyed experiencing conflict, are living we were!” (Ps 125/126:3). through tragic times in their history: Syria, , the Central African In the beginning there Republic, Sudan have been very much was Valdocco in our prayers. In remembering them, We began our journey in the Salesian we have been brought face to face with Holy Land, at Valdocco, a place of the suffering of so many peoples and the the Gospel and daily miracles. We stark reality of the witness of the many went there as people who are tracing confreres who are living the radical a river back to its source. Our thirst approach of the Gospel in very complex was quenched and the fresh water of situations and who encourage us in our our origins gave us refreshment. Our commitment. father’s story is an ever new invitation. God then gifted us with a father. We sought inspiration from his life and While we express our gratitude for the what he offers so we could revive his outstanding and fruitful ministry of

24 2ND QUARTER Fr Pascual Chávez Villanueva, we feel He asked us insistently to go out to that the election of Fr Ángel Fernández the peripheries where the young dwell Artime as Rector Major and tenth and where we see their various forms Successor of Don Bosco was a gift of of poverty more acutely. He begged us Providence for us all, for the entire to spare no effort in assigning our best Salesian Family and for the young. His individuals to the poorest, those who open and sincere smile, his simplicity, have no prospects and no future. Really, his great humanity and spontaneous Pope Francis set fire to our Salesian rapport with each of the confreres hearts. His embrace was an expression immediately let us see the face of the of sincere affection for Don Bosco’s promised father in him: “A new Rector sons and as he took our hands in his Major will be chosen who will take it renewed the filial devotion to Peter’s care of you and your eternal salvation. Successor that Don Bosco always Listen to him, love him, obey him, pray wanted his Salesians to have. The Holy for him…” (Don Bosco). Thank you, Father’s message will remain in our Fr Ángel, for your heart of the good hearts and will be a programme for all shepherd and for your generosity. of us to follow.

Francis fascinated us Going against the flow, A very special and intense occasion in hope was our meeting with Pope Francis. He The theme of our General Chapter, made us welcome and in blessing us he the Gospel’s radical approach, has given blessed each one of you and the young rise to deep reflection, stimulating people the Lord has entrusted to us. His us to conversion. What we have word, which was precise and trenchant, experienced over these weeks is already touched our hearts. He reminded us that in anticipation of the journey we wish to we must be, like Don Bosco, men of the undertake with all of you and with our Gospel who live our daily lives simply educative and pastoral communities. and generously, austerely and freely. He We have dreamed of the future and reminded us that our father taught us to now we commit ourselves to making it love the young with the loving kindness a reality. that is proper to the Preventive System United with the vine like new branches and that makes God’s tenderness for (cf. Jn 10:1-10), we Salesians dream the weakest of his children present. of consecrated life which is able to question the culture and social reality in which we live when we live it with profoundly evangelical attitudes,. For our communities we want a simple lifestyle, one marked by the joy of the Gospel and passion for the Kingdom. We want to live as men who are marked by a strong experience of God, with their feet on the ground, able to give reason for the hope we bear in our hearts, our life completely given over,

2ND QUARTER 25 authentic, whole. We are committed to Francis invited us to place ourselves seeking out the peripheries and deserts at the frontiers, on the margins, on where the most abandoned young people the peripheries of the world, in the are to be found. existential deserts where there are We will be significant today if we many like sheep without a shepherd and go against the flow. When we are who have nothing to eat (cf. Mt 9:36). surrounded by individualism, then This is the key to interpretation which fellowship, fraternity becomes a credible the Pope offers us to refocus ourselves: alternative. We take up the challenge to seek other vistas offering us different of building communities in which we points of view and which help us learn to move from “I” to “we”, always interpret reality beyond ourselves. putting our brother’s good before our This is the challenge for religious life own. We must be able to open up room today: thinking and living in a way that for acceptance and dialogue which can refocuses our way of looking at reality help heal wounds through mature and where we are too certain of ourselves, regenerating relationships. We need to too settled in guaranteed works, too be decisively committed to humanising occupied with structured and satisfying our common life so that we overcome work. When we think of the renewal of loneliness and multiply mercy. Taking our Congregation, do we not have here a the risk of pardon and peace makes criterion of significance that can help us our way of living credible in our world; offer new horizons to our structures? It makes our proclamation more clearly is not so easy to refocus, but it is urgent evangelical. For Francis, this is the to do so if we want to continue to be pastoral conversion of mercy and faithful to God’s call. tenderness. Dear confreres, Refocused Over these days we have felt the breath Aware of the new ecclesial moment of the Spirit “making all things new” (Ap we are living through, we are convinced 21:5). This is the moment to go to work that our consecrated life is a cry against on the guidelines for the way ahead which selfishness and self-reference: it is our General Chapter is proposing to us. about meeting the needs of others and Moved by the power of the Holy Spirit and beginning from our poor and supportive enlightened by Him, we want to “put out lifestyle. Our cloister is the world of the into the deep” (Lk 5:4), navigate towards young who are in difficulty and our deeper waters in our consecrated life prayer is our hands raised up and our and mission to the young and ordinary action in giving dignity back to those people. We sense the urgency of boldly who are most excluded. This is why proclaiming the liberating Gospel of Jesus we cannot spare our energy, nor do we Christ, good for the little ones and have any more time for “our things”, or the poor. And if, seeing the dedication of to close ourselves within our personal our life and our joy, someone should ask: interests. We are faced with an exodus “Why are you doing this?” we will answer which will help us reach another land, in all freedom that God fills our life and one promised a thousand times over: his great love is challenging us so that the the land of the most abandoned and young “may have life and have it to the poorest. As Salesians we will find our full” (Jn 10:10). Tabor there.

26 2ND QUARTER Interview with Isabel Artime

Rector Major’s (Ángel Fernández Artime) mother

“The Salesian Congregation is a ship which needs a good helm at sea”.

Father Ángel Fernández Artime has been elected new Rector Major of the Salesian Congregation at GC27. He was born in Luanco (Asturias-Spain). He was an aspirant at Astudillo (Palencia), Cambados (Pontevedra) and León; he spent his years of novitiate at Mohernando (Guadalajara); he studied Philosophy at the University of Valladolid and the two-year practicum period in León. He studied theology and made his perpetual profession in Santiago de Compostela (A Coruña). He was ordained priest in León. His first years of youth ministry were developed in Avilés (Asturias) and he then went to Madrid to study Pastoral Theology and Philosophy. Back in León he was appointed as Youth Ministry Delegate, Vice Provincial and then Provincial. Afterwards he became Rector of the school at Ourense and in the past four years he has been Provincial in Argentine South (Buenos Aires).

Q.- Isabel, who gave you the news of your son’s being elected as the new Rector Major of the Salesian Congregation? A.- The first person who talked to me was the provincial ofLeón, Fr. José Rodríguez Pacheco. It was a huge surprise, I couldn’t believe it! Later I got a call from Fr. Pascual Chávez, the former Rector Major. I couldn’t talk to him, I was

2ND QUARTER 27 crying out of emotion. I also received phone calls from Fr. Juan José Bartolomé, Rector Major’s secretary, from Fr. Filiberto Rodriguez, and from Fr. Adriano Bregolin.

Q.- Which feelings did the news of the election arouse in you? A.- I said: “Help him My Lord, he needs Thee”. But I didn’t know what to think or do. I worried because the role is charged with responsibility, thus he will have to face lots of difficulties. But there was also... hope. I have always told him that God has given him talents not to be buried, but to be given to others. As his mother, I know that he is worth a lot.

Q.- When Ángel called you, what did you tell him? A.- He didn’t phone me right away. I talked to him more than two hours after the first call. I told him that I already knew about the election and that God would help him whenever he were in need. He told me not to worry because there would be a lot of people to help him. It was a very brief conversation. At that moment he was very busy and he said he would phone me later to talk at ease.

Q.- How did he meet the Salesians? A.- God’s hand is in our lives. My husband was a fisherman and I sold the fish he caught. One day, when Ángel was nine years old, Mrs. María Sánchez Miñambres, a cooperator from the city of León who was a good friend of ours asked him if he wanted to go to study with the Salesians to that city (200 kms away from home). Ángel said he would think about it. The following year, when he was ten, he took the decision of going to study there. After four years he got the choice of coming back to Luanco (his hometown) to study High School, but he didn’t want to. He wanted to remain in León. From that moment, the Salesians made an impression on him.

Q.- Tell us some of your son’s good points. A.- He is very kind and sweet, and very affectionate too. He is always concerned about his family and his duty. We transmitted him our Faith from the beggining. Ours has always been a Christian home.

Q.- You cook for him when he goes home, what’s his favourite food? A.- He loves homemade food, but he prefers vegetables, “pote asturiano” (a stew which consists of cabbage, spicy sausage, black pudding, bacon, and beans), and of course fish, any kind of fish. We have got extraordinary fish here in Asturias.

Q.- Is there any special piece of advice you have given him in his life? A.- As I said before, I have always told him that he should not bury his talents. They are for him to give to others.

28 2ND QUARTER Q.- Which present did he give you that you like the most? A.- He brought an image of Mary Help of Christians from León, when he was appointed as provincial. Since then, there is always a candle burning in front of it, here at home. I love her!

Q.- Did he get into mischief when he was a boy? A.- He was so good that he never did. When he was born, he didn’t cry and we were very worried. But then suddenly he burst out crying... and didn’t stop until he was three!! We nearly got desperate, but he didn’t cry any more after we moved back to my parents’ house and he found himself living with other family members. He had a hard childhood, because he was alone for many hours at home, while we were working at the fish market.

Q.- What have you asked for your son to God and Mary Help of Christians? A.- I prayed for His help, so he can do things well. I asked Him to lend Ángel a hand. Without His help, nobody can do anything. The Salesian Congregation is a ship which needs a good helm at sea. God and Don Bosco, as his predecessor, will help him.

José Antonio San Martín

2ND QUARTER 29 THE DON BOSCO TOUCH

30 21NDST QUARTER I am the first born in a family of five. I have a brother and three sisters. Inmy tender age I was brought up by my parents, at that time my father was working and he earned enough to sustain the family. Life was good. When I was in class two my father lost his job as the company he was working for closed down. My father never gave up at least he got another job but this time just enough for the family’s basic needs, with the money from his first job he decided to build a house for us, it was a beautiful mabati (tin sheet) house around the neighborhoods with a well cemented floor and one would call this a good home. Just two weeks after the completion of this humble shelter, with a job which was not secure and sustainable I had to drop out of school. It was hard for my dad to pay school fees as usual and the family had to adapt to this new challenge. One month out of school something terrible happened which left my family traumatized. A fire had broken out from the neighboring house at night and it spread to other nearby houses including our new house, we only managed to save our lives and only one box which my father rescued from the burning house, it contained the family’s important documents such as the birth certificates. With no place to call a home and with nothing left we almost gave up on life, but my mother was strong enough to encourage my dad to start all over again and move on. They decided to distribute all the children to family members. I was taken to stay with my grandmother who was at that time staying in Nairobi, my brother and sisters were taken to my relatives, it was after five years that I met them again and they told me this. I saw my parents and brothers and sisters after five good years since the tragic incident happened. Staying at my grandmothers place I only spent one month and was taken to join a program for children in need which was an intervention from a women’s group that my grandmother was a member. The program was held in Rowland camp in Nairobi, where I stayed for one year, all this time we were having informal education and during these period different organizations would come to take few children and accommodate them in their centers’. On 23rd May 1995, I was lucky when one priest came and picked ten small boys from the camp and I was among them and this is how I ended up in Don Bosco Boys which is a rehabilitation centre for children in need. I was happy to be back to school again. The priest (Fr. John Peter -sdb) took the ten of us to Bosco Boys Kariua which is one among other centers that Don Bosco is running for the needy children. I stayed there for one year; the centre provided informal

2ND QUARTER 31 education which was divided into three levels according to age and literacy level. After one year in the center, those who were good, persevered and eager to get education were enrolled into public government schools. I joined class two at Parklands primary school and completed my primary education in the same school under the sponsorship of Don Bosco. After the Kenya certificate of primary education I managed to secure myself a chance to join secondary school in 2003. I did my Kenya certificate of secondary education at Upper Hill High School in Nairobi and also secured myself another chance to qualify for higher learning in 2006. I volunteered to help my fellow brothers who were behind me in the centre for one year and luckily in July 2007 I was given a job as a trainer in Don Bosco Life choices program which conducted life skills education in schools and provided awareness on HIV/AIDS. I worked for three years and in July 2010 I joined Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Langata campus in Nairobi. Jasani Trust which is one of the benefactors of Bosco Boys centre accepted to pay my university fees until my completion of Bachelor of education, where I managed to graduate with second class honors, upper division in October, 2013. With the help of Bosco Boys centre I have been able to travel to many places such as Uganda, Tanzania, Spain- Madrid and Rome-Italy, just to mention but a few. They have molded me into a successful young Christian with a profession and I am looking forward to be ready to give back to the society as I seek for an employment. Kevin Otieno Juma An Experience “I was about 10 years old when I got the sickness of epilepsy which was preventing me to go on well with my studies. I could not be left alone and neither could I go alone anywhere. Since it was disturbing me even at night, up to 3 times per night, I was compelled to sleep with my parents. They would never leave me. They started to give me tablets and injections, but there was no change. My mother was going time by time to the Subukia and once, while she was praying, she heard a voice telling her: “Leah should not take medicine anymore”. At home she shared the fact with my father who could not believe and therefore I continued taking the medicine. My mother did not lose faith and kept telling my father that I should stop taking medicine and stop as well to go to hospital. Finally my father agreed and I abandoned every treatment. At my surprise the disease stopped too and since then, already 10 years now, I never experienced a relapse of the disease: I am completely cured. I Thank the Lord for his love and I thank my parents for their closeness to me, giving me courage. I ask our Mother Mary to continue to protect me and them and to help me now in discerning my vocation in this wonderful Congregation of the Servants of the Visitation.”

Leah Servants of the Visitation Kindaruma Road, Nairobi

32 2ND QUARTER John Paul II, John XXIII Canonized April 27, 2014 on Divine Mercy Sunday, the Church celebrated the John XXIII and John Paul II, two of the most influential figures of the 20th century. Two tapestries, each bearing the image of the newly-declared saints, hung from the façade of Saint Peter’s basilica, overlooking the hundreds of thousands of people who had filled Saint Peter’s Square for the occasion. Thousands more poured into the streets around the Vatican, took part in the by watching it on giant screens. Most notable was the vast number of pilgrims from Poland who have travelled to Rome – by bus, plane, and even on foot – to witness the canonization of the first Polish pope. One of the special guests attending the Mass was Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI who himself had beatified John Paul II, his predecessor and friend. Opening his , Pope Francis noted that the coincide with Divine Mercy Sunday, a feast instituted by John Paul II. To mark this feast, the Holy Father reflected on “the glorious wounds of the risen Jesus”. John XXIII and John Paul II, he said, were “, bishops and popes of the twentieth century”: they “lived through the tragic events of that century, but they were not overwhelmed by them. For them, God was more powerful; faith was more powerful – faith in Jesus Christ the Redeemer of man and the Lord of history; the mercy of God, shown by those five wounds, was more powerful; and more powerful too was the closeness of Mary our Mother”. Pope Francis also recalled how “John XXIII and John Paul II cooperated with the Holy Spirit in renewing and updating the Church in keeping with her pristine features, those features which the saints have given her throughout the centuries”. “In convening the Council, John XXIII showed an exquisite openness to the Holy Spirit. He let himself be led and he was for the Church a pastor, a servant-leader. This was his great service to the Church”. For his part, the Holy Father continued, “John Paul II was the pope of the family,” recalling the upcoming Synod on the family. “From his place in heaven,” he said, “he guides and sustains” in the journey toward the Synod. Pope Francis called on the faithful to look to these saints to learn how “not to be scandalized by the wounds of Christ and to enter ever more deeply into the mystery of divine mercy, which always hopes and always forgives, because it always loves”. In the hours leading up to Sunday’s canonization, thousands of pilgrims gathered along the streets surrounding the Vatican for a chance to make it into the Square. Despite feeling “shoved” and “squeezed,” the smiling pilgrims said that “nothing could contain their joy.” Zenit

2ND QUARTER 33 TEACHERS’ SEMINAR IN MAKUYU

evening Sr. Chantal Mukase, the FMA Provincial in AFE gave the good night to the teachers and challenged them to live a life worthy of their call as Christian teachers and to show kindness to all those who need their help. On the 13th Fr. Selvam Sahaya, sdb facilitated two main topics for the day: Self Awareness and Stress Management. However before the sessions he started by presiding over the Palm Sunday Eucharistic celebration of Jesus’ solemn entry to Jerusalem for his passion. The morning of the 14th was facilitated by Sr. Eleanor Gibson, fma who dealt with the treasured Salesian 11TH – 16TH APRIL 2014 legacy left to us by Don Bosco – the The yearly Teachers’ Seminar Preventive System which has been organized by the FMA of AFE Province christianed as a System of Expression. took place from the 11th to 16th April 2014 In the introduction she stressed the at Mother Mazzarello Village Makuyu. importance of experience as the It was attended by 61 teachers from the prerequisite for the effective living educational institutions run by the FMA and practice of the preventive system. communities in AFE Province. However In the afternoon Madam Josephine the SDB community and the FMA Laura Waweru a lecturer at Tangaza Vicuna community in Makuyu also were College facilitated a session on Child of great support in offering additional Protection. She guided the teachers facilities for accommodation, games, in the understanding of the concepts prayer and training. of child protection, child abuse and its On Saturday the 12th at the opening various forms, and the role of a teacher mass Fr. Stephan, sdb invited the in child protection. teachers to open themselves to the The final full day which was facilitated Lord and thus make of their life a by Fr. Benard Njeru of Embu sanctuary – a dwelling place for the Diocese. It was a day of prayer with Lord. The morning session of that day the theme ‘I am the vine you are the dealt with the topic of Guidance and branches’. The afternoon was spent in Counseling facilitated by Sr. Mary silent reflection and the opportunity Ngina, fma. In her presentation she for the of reconciliation. led the teachers towards differentiating The day concluded with the Eucharistic between counseling and advising celebration in the evening. The seminar stressing the importance of using concluded on the 16th with an evaluation listening skills. In the afternoon Madam and words from Sr. Jane Wanjiru to go Joyce (lecturer at Marist International and put into practice what they have University College Nairobi) facilitated a learned in becoming better educators. session on Class Management and Control. She led the teachers towards Sr. Letizia Ngari, fma understanding that class management and control involves various aspects in the education as a profession. In the

34 2ND QUARTER SIGNIS WORLD CONGRESS ROME 2014 The Video Journalists (VJs) who made the difference SIGNIS is the World Catholic Association for Communication, comprising of and Social Communication Professionals from over 100 countries across the globe. Guided by their Vision, SIGNIS aims to be a network that inspires, educates and transforms our societies, building a global culture of peace. The SIGNIS World Congress was held in Rome from Feb 28th to st 1 of March 2014, with the theme: Media team that was to cover the event from for a Culture of Peace, Creating Images the point of view of young people. All the with the New Generation. It bought activities were covered by SIGNIS VJs. together delegates from all over the world. The VJs were guided and trained by a Different activities took place during team of trainers: Fr. Sebastian Koladiyil the congress, including different from DBYES Kenya, Karen Arukesamy workshops highlighting the importance and Melissa Fernando from . The of preaching peace through the media. VJs were Clemens De Souza from , Different media professionals shared Joseph Ssewaali from Uganda, Kevin how to work towards attaining this Juma and Lawrence Njoroge from Kenya, vision. Apart from the workshops, Fransiscus Borgia from , Vi Cao delegates had a day set aside for the from , San May Nwe from Myan Papal Audience where they joined other Mar and Vann Sambath from . Catholic faithfuls at St. Peter’s Square The congress came to an end with a to hear Pope Francis’ message, with the future search which involved coming up SIGNIS leaders having a privilege to with a way forward for SIGNIS aiming at meet and have a chat with Pope. making SIGNIS better. The search was The congress also included the election conducted with lot of fun filled activities of the new leaders of SIGNIS, with which everyone enjoyed. Gustavo Andújar (), appointed as The congress came to an end with the the President and Frank Frost (USA) and delegates leaving Rome with the spirit Lawrence John Sinniah (Malaysia) as the of togetherness to build a culture for Vice Presidents. The Outgoing President peace, with the next Congress already of SIGNIS Mr. Augustine Loorthusamy set in 2018. was invested as a Knight of the Order of Saint Sylvester by Pope Francis. Lawrence Njoroge Two days before the SIGNIS congress started seven Video Journalist from Asia and Africa arrived in Rome to build the 2ND QUARTER 35 South Sudan’s Frontline Nuns Nuns in South Sudan know a thing or two about war. “We learned fast with the bullets whistling past our ears,” said Sister Barbara Paleczny, chuckling at the memory of her younger self when she moved here five years ago. Paleczny, 70, a teacher with the Rome-based NGO Solidarity with South Sudan, has lived in the United States, United Kingdom, and . But it’s the city of Malakal - where civil war has raged in recent months - that she calls home. Each attack and counterattack has led to fresh atrocities, which the nuns have done their best to prevent. The sisters have confronted military chiefs about rape, negotiated for civilian protection amid rocket-propelled grenade fire, and held their ground when international humanitarians and peacekeepers left. Fifty-years ago, the Sudanese government expelled the missionaries. When independence was granted to the predominantly Christian south in 2011, the missionaries pinned their hopes on a lasting peace. But two-and-a-half years later, their hopes are smashed. A split within South Sudan’s ruling party boiled over into armed conflict shortly before Christmas 2013. The war pits rebels loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar against President Salva Kiir. Experts agree that civilians have borne the brunt of the crisis - at least 10,000 people are believed to be dead and the killings still continue. Paleczny had survived a number of attacks on Malakal before the recent outbreak of violence. “We stayed through all the battles when the NGOs cleared out,” she said. While the nuns carried on with their business - improving education, healthcare, journalism, agriculture - the NGOs sometimes took months to return. Recently, Sister Paleczny agreed to leave Malakal. “What can I do for people hiding in this tiny room?” she asked herself. Soon after leaving Malakal, she began to have nightmares for the first time in her life. Her mind was re-enacting atrocities in her dreams. Paleczny spent the first two months of this year teaching in Rumbek, a town yet to be touched by the fighting. Meanwhile, her fellow Sister Elena Balatti stayed on. Balatti belongs to the Comboni Missionaries, a powerful, elite unit of church workers whose history in South Sudan dates back nearly 200 years. In her dispatch for the Comboni Mission, she wrote that roughly 100 of the town’s most vulnerable people were taking shelter in her church compound - most of them elderly, disabled or women with young children. Balatti reassured the displaced people that she would not leave. As the ceasefire signed between the warring parties failed on February 18, Balatti reported the White Army militia - comprised of members of the Nuer ethnic group - arrived in town. People trying to escape on a truck were caught in the gunfire, hurling themselves from the vehicle and running to the church compound. Its walls provided protection from bullets, but only until 10am when the rebels breached the compound and started making demands of the sisters. By evening, there were 30 gunmen in front of the cathedral searching for a pro- government fighter. One of the men readied his rocket-propelled grenade launcher and threatened to hit the church. The sisters stood their ground, doggedly negotiating for the protection of civilians. Early the next morning, Balatti and the other sisters gathered the civilians and left for the Presbyterian church, which was being used as a UN base, where they coordinated a rescue mission for those left behind. But Sister Paleczny is eager to get back to work, adamant that she will never retire and showing no fear of her own mortality. “I’m too old to die young,” she said with a wry smile.

Courtesy of Al Jazeera

36 2ND QUARTER Nuns help displaced people in South Sudan

A group of Indian Catholic sisters in South Sudan are helping people displaced by the political crisis in the country to get back to their lives, instilling a sense of hope and reconciliation among them. Hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced and thousands are believed to have been killed since mid- December by the fighting between pro and anti- government forces. From the first moments of the violence, camp residents have been accompanied by the group of Catholic sisters. “We’ve been working in the bush with war-affected people, but when we heard the cry of the people here, we came on the first day to provide trauma counseling and to work with the women and children,” said Sr. Amala Francis, project coordinator in South Sudan for the Daughters of Mary Immaculate. The sisters return daily, bringing food, counseling women and organizing activities for the children. There are no formal schools in the camp, so were it not for the opportunity to gather with the sisters in a few large tents donated by UNICEF, the kids would have nothing to do. “We want to give the children an opportunity to leave their trauma behind for a few minutes, to give them some freedom. We teach them English and some of their letters,” said Sr. Amala. The nuns also work for reconciliation. “We see that tribalism is very high,” she explained. “The people focus on their tribe, not on the development of the whole country. So we work with the children to quit thinking about just me, but rather about us, about the larger community, which is the only way you can develop this country. As we make headway with the children, they go home and teach their parents, who rather than thinking about just me and you, need to think about the whole country,” she added. The congregation has about 20 sisters in South Sudan. Half of them serve a remote area near Wau, while the others are in Juba and have made the camp their parish, despite sporadic outbreaks of violence.

2ND QUARTER 37 “At first the sounds of gunfire made us worry a lot, but we reminded ourselves that it was God who called us to this service,” Sr. Amala said. “And then slowly, as we have lived with the people amid their fear and needs, our own fears and worries were lost. It is God’s plan, not ours, so the more we focus on God’s work, the less space there is for worry,” she said. The sisters also provide the framework for a larger Catholic presence in the camp. Several priests and other religious regularly visit the sick in the small camp hospital. Sunday Mass is celebrated by priests from Juba. Among recent celebrants was Maryknoll Father Jim Noonan from the United States. He said the singing and dancing during Mass left him convinced that camp residents retain “a deep sense of God’s presence” amid the many challenges they face. “They are not prisoners there, but neither are they home where they want to be,” Father Noonan said. “They told me that it is their faith that allows them to endure hardship, and that despite the difficulties, God is with them. So they enthusiastically celebrated that they have not been abandoned.”

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38 2ND QUARTER Pope to Seminarians: We Have Too Many ‘Half Priests’ Who Fail to Imitate Jesus

Escape Pope Francis met in the Vatican Francis affirmed that the seminary is with seminarians from regions around not an escape. It’s “not a refuge for the Rome, warning them that the Church many limitations we might have,” he said, has “many half priests” who fail to reach “a refuge from psychological lacks or a their potential because they are not refuge because I don’t have the courage to “pastors in the image of Jesus.” go forward in life and I seek there a place The seminarians are members of the that defends me. No, it’s not this. Pontifical Leonine College of Anagni, “If your seminary was this, it would a regional seminary for several of the become a mortgage for the Church! No, dioceses around the city of Rome. the seminary is precisely to go forward.” “We have so many, so many half way The Holy Father discussed that prayer, priests,” the Pope told the young men. study, fraternity, and apostolic life interact “It is a sorrow, that they do not succeed and are the “four pillars, four dimensions in reaching the fullness. on which a seminary must live.” “They have something about them of The Pontiff focused on necessary employees, a bureaucratic dimension attributes of the role of the priest, and this does no good to the Church. I including not being frightened, going advise you, be careful that you do not to , and daily conversion. fall into this!” Following this path of becoming a priest He continued, “You are becoming “means to meditate every day on the pastors in the image of Jesus, the Good Gospel, to transmit it with your life and Shepherd, to be like Him and in His person your preaching.” in the midst of his flock, to feed his sheep.” He closed by calling upon Mary. He Acknowledging the hesitation said, “Never forget her! The Russian common in men contemplating the mystics said that in the moment of priesthood, Francis noted: “We can spiritual turbulence it is necessary to answer as Mary did to the angel: ‘How seek refuge under the mantle of the is this possible?’ Holy Mother of God.” (D.C.L.) “To become ‘good pastors’ in the ZENIT image of Jesus is something too great, and we are so small …. It’s true! ... We are among the smallest of men. It’s true, it is too great, but it’s not our work! It is the work of the Holy Spirit, with our collaboration,” he said. Encouraging them not to be overwhelmed, Francis explained the process involves sacrifice: “It is about offering oneself humbly, as clay to be molded, so that the potter, who is God, can shape it with water and fire, with the Word and the Spirit.”

2ND QUARTER 39 ‘Do theology on your knees,’ Pope tells students in Rome

The study of theology is “fruitful only if it is done with an open mind and on one’s knees,” Pope Francis said in an April 10 address to students at the Gregorian University in Rome In his talk the Pope reminded the students that the Gregorian University and its affiliates—the Pontifical Biblical Institute and the Pontifical Oriental Institute—were united by Pope Pius XI under the direction of the Jesuit order. Each student at these institutions, he added, is expected “to serve as a soldier of God beneath the banner of the Cross.” The Holy Father encouraged the students to make use of their time studying in Rome. “Here are the roots of the faith,” he remarked; “the memories of the apostles and of the . And here is the ecclesial ‘today.’” Yet the students, drawn from all over the world, also bring their own diversity to the educational experience, he said. The purpose of studying philosophy and theology, the Pope said, is to develop a capacity for “transmitting the knowledge and offering a key for vital comprehension, not a heap of notions unconnected to one another.” In that context he said that this study “will be all the more fertile and efficacious as it is more fully animated by the love of Christ and of the Church.” “The theologian who is satisfied with his complete and conclusive thought is mediocre,” the Pope said. A theologian should always seek to learn more about God and about the truths of faith. Therefore, the Pope said that “the theologian who does not pray and who does not worship God ends up sunk in the most disgusting narcissism”—which he described as “an ecclesiastical illness” that causes harm to the faithful.

UCAN, India

40 2ND QUARTER Groaning beyond Words - Our Deeper Way of Praying

When we no longer know how to pray, the Spirit, groans within us too deep for words, prays through us. Saint Paul wrote those words and they contain both a stunning revelation and a wonderful consolation, namely, there is deep prayer happening inside us beyond our conscious awareness and independent of our deliberate efforts. What is this unconscious prayer? It is our deep innate desire, relentlessly on fire, forever somewhat frustrated, making itself felt through the groaning of our bodies and souls, silently begging the very energies of the universe, not least God Himself, to let it come to consummation. Allow me an analogy: Some years ago, its own ends, irrespective of resistance. a friend of mine bought a house that had Sometimes resistance does kill it. There sat empty and abandoned for a number are, as the saying goes, storms we cannot of years. The surface of the driveway weather. But we do weather most of was cracked and a bamboo plant, now what life throws at us and our deep life- several feet high, had grown up through principle remains strong and robust, the pavement. My friend cut down the even as on the surface the frustrations bamboo tree, chopped down several we have experienced and the dreams feet into its roots to try to destroy them, in us that have been shamed slowly poured a chemical poison into the root muzzle us into a mute despair so that system in hopes of killing whatever was our prayer-lives begin to express less left, packed some gravel over the spot, and less of what we are actually feeling. and paved over the top with a thick layer But it is through that very frustration of concrete. But the little tree was not that the Spirit prays, darkly, silently, so easily thwarted. Two years later, the in groans too deep for words. In our pavement began to heave as the bamboo striving, our yearning, our broken plant again began to assert itself. Its dreams, our tears, in the daydreams powerful life-force was still blindly we escape into, and even in our sexual pushing outward and upward, cement desire, the Spirit of God prays through blockage notwithstanding. us, as does our soul, our life-principle. Life, all life, has powerful inner Like the life-forces innate in that pressures and is not easily thwarted. It bamboo plant, powerful forces are pushes relentlessly and blindly towards blindly working inside us too, pushing

2ND QUARTER 41 which to pray. But, after failing over and over again, we eventually despair of finding a quiet, contemplative space for prayer in our lives. Although we need to continue to search for that, we can already live with the consolation that, deep down, our us outward and upward to eventually very frustration in throw off whatever cement lies on top not being able to find that quiet space of us. This is true, of course, also of is already a prayer. In the groans of our our joys. The Spirit also prays through inadequacy the Spirit is already praying our gratitude, both when we express through our bodies and souls in a way it consciously and even when we only deeper than words. sense it unconsciously. One of the oldest, classical definitions Our deepest prayers are mostly not of prayer defines it this way: Prayer is those we express in our churches and lifting one’s mind and heart to God. Too private oratories. Our deepest prayers often in our efforts to pray formally, are spoken in our silent gratitude and both communally and privately, we fail silent tears. The person praising God’s to do that, namely, to actually lift our name ecstatically and the person bitterly hearts and minds to God. Why? Because cursing God’s name in anger are, in what is really in our hearts and minds, different ways, in radically different alongside our gratitude and more ways of groaning, both praying. gracious thoughts, is not something There are many lessons to be drawn we generally connect with prayer at all. from this. First, from this we can Our frustrations, bitterness, jealousies, learn to forgive life a little more for its lusts, curses, sloth, and quiet despair frustrations and we can learn to give are usually understood to be the very ourselves permission to be more patient antithesis of prayer, something to be with life and with ourselves. Who of us overcome in order to pray. does not lament that the pressures and But a deeper thing is happening under frustrations of life keep us from fully the surface: Our frustration, longing, enjoying life’s pleasures, from smelling lust, jealousy, and escapist daydreams, the flowers, from being more present to things we are ashamed to take to prayer, family, from celebrating with friends, are in fact already lifting our hearts and from peaceful solitude, and from deeper minds to God in more honest ways that prayer? So we are forever making we ever do consciously. resolutions to slow down, to find a quiet space inside our pressured lives in Ronald Rolheiser

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