Taiwan New Foundation January
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Dear sisters, To live in the hearts of those we love is never die. so, 18th of January is the Memorable Death Anniversary of Our Mother Euphrasie Barbier. May our foundress intercede for each one of us as we continue to follow her footsteps by doing mission and sharing our mission stories. We wish you a very Happy New Year 2020! May this New Year bring joy, peace, happiness and prosperity to each one of you dear Sisters across the Congregation. Dear sister Josephine, team members, the chapter organization group and all the delegates wishing you all the best and may the Spirit of God be with you and anoint all of you, praying for the success of the General Chapter. With grateful hearts we thank God for the blessings and graces we received, and we are happy that many faithful attended the Eucharistic Celebration on the Christmas Eve, December 24, 2019. Also we are happy that some migrants had come for Mass on December 31, 2019 and attended the morning New Year Mass on January 1, 2020. It is indeed a tremendous joy of experiencing God's love in many ways .EVERY STEP I TAKE, GOD LEADS ME WITH HIS GRACE “Filled with zeal, we witness and proclaim the Gospel message of love, unity, peace and justice. With free, joyful and generous hearts, as disciples of Jesus we go wherever we are sent…” (Const. 34) After nearly two years of studying Chinese at the Providence University, I was sent to the Parish of Douliu from 1st of June to start practicing my ministry. Every weekend, I came to Douliu Parish for Mass; in this parish I have opportunities to work with the parishioners, eg. Sharing the word of God with them, listening to their sharing and praying with different groups. Every Monday, together with the parish priest and some parishioners, we go to visit and also give Holy Communion to the sick and the elderly. Sunday after Mass, there are many activities for the children, the youth and adults. I join the children in their catechism classes. This gives me another opportunity to practice my Chinese pronunciation. Therefore, I always keep in my handbag the children’s book. These children are so simple! When I practiced Chinese with them, they said: “Sister, if you want to pronounce the word correctly, you need to roll your tongue or let the air get through your teeth…. otherwise, you might pronounce another word and of course, its meaning is totally changed…” Thank God for sending these lovely teachers to me! I always appreciate the time I have spent with them. Regarding to the sick and the elderly, I thank God for sending me to be with them. I can see in their eyes how much they long for receiving “the Body of Christ”. How much they have to struggle in dealing with all the difficulties in their daily life, but they always have beautiful smiles on their faces and they still promise that they will pray for me, a missionary in Taiwan. These make me reflect deeply on my mission, asking myself ‘What more can I offer to support them?’ The time I have been working in Douliu parish is so meaningful to me; it draws me into a deeper relationship with God and with our parishioners. My second ministry was at the High School of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. I was replaced sister Minh Trang for three months. As a result, I joined Our Lady of Perpetual Help school from September 9th and working at this school has made me so stressful because of the schedule which has a lot of activities. I was worrying about the language barrier which could limit me to operate some kinds of activities. To be honest, I have spent a lot of time in front of God crying and begging for help! Thank God that He did not give me too heavy cross beyond my capacity. On the other hand, He is pouring upon me abundant blessings. He has provided me a good friend, a lovely sister, Sr. Minh Trang, and a very good supporting team: Mr. Zhang, the principal and his staff. They know and understand how limited I am, therefore each one of them tries to help me in different ways: for example, every day one teacher comes to help me improving speaking skill for fifteen minutes. This gives me opportunities to prepare for our monthly Masses, and weekly Bible sharing with staff. Together with the teachers and staff at the school, we pray for the wellbeing of the school throughout the year. With regard to the students, I had a chance to accompany students at the camp “Preparation to adulthood for third year senior students”. They learn to become future leaders by practicing how to guide others, how to make others believe in their guidance, how to trust in others and how to let others guide them. They have time to think of the meaning of their name. The highlight of the camp was the ritual of washing of the feet, a symbol of love and serving in the Bible: the teachers first washed the feet of the students; then the students in return, washed their teachers’ feet. At night, the teachers and students spent time together to build up their friendship. This event makes me recall a lovely and special time that I had in Balay Euphrasie Davao, Philippines. It was the time of grace, the time that God engraved His love in my heart and I deeply experienced His love for me. Whenever the challenge or struggles arise, I let my mind go back to the time in Balay Euphrasie, the time of “honey and milk” that energizes me in order to continue carrying out God’s mission in Taiwan. Anna Kim Hanh Rndm Encounter with Indonesian Muslim brother-sisters in Douliu, Chiayi Diocese: From 2019 May, I was invited to join as a member of Inter- religious Dialogue Group. This office includes 2 priests, one sister and 3 Taiwanese lay people from the diocese. My mission is to take care of the Indonesian Muslim brothers- sisters who come to work in Taiwan since they have no one to company them because of different religion and the type of work. They (Ladies) mainly take care of elderly people in private families. Therefore, they rarely have free time to come out. Some men work in the factories. Since I was entrusted this, I started to find them at the weekends in the church, visiting families, at the railway station where many come to relax, or in the public park where they bring the elderly to get fresh air. Some Ladies are afraid of their employer when they stop and talk with me even though they are happy to share their life with me. They expressed their joy whenever I greet them with a few Arabic that I picked some greetings from my home land, Bangladesh. I also try to use a few Indonesians words/phases to dialogue with them which gives them extra joy. Thus, every day I am learning the importance of having the language of the heart, and a listening heart is one of the ways to participate in the Divine mission in a simple manner. Molina Rndm God’s countless blessings through RNDM Family: July 10th - 19th, 2019. I had an opportunity to make my annual retreat with North East Province of India, which is very near to Bangladesh. In fact, we can greet each other from both sides. I am grateful to CLT for allowing me to cross the Indian-Bangladesh border to have my annual retreat during my home leave, I also express my heartfelt gratitude to Sr. Mildred K, Provincial of INE who welcomed me to join them and to arranging for me to visit some nearby communities, to see the sisters whom I had met in different places and time as an rndm . The retreat theme was on Echo-Spirituality, directed by Fr. Robert, SJ. His meaningful presentation, and creative liturgy prepared by our sisters helped me to make deeper dialogue with God, I enjoyed and appreciated it so much along with the beautiful weather and marvelous nature. I feel also blessed by God for able to spend time with my mother during her eye treatment in Dhaka, near RNDM convent during my home leave. I express my heartfelt gratitude to Sr. Reba De Costa, Provincial and her team members for giving my mother a place to stay in the convent during the that time, which was a great help to my mother and me. At the same time, I was able to help her and also do the necessary required work for my returning back to Taiwan mission. I am grateful to each of you, dear sisters in provincial, Progaloy, and Marialoy community for your love, generosity and kindness. May God bless you. Love and Gratitude. Molina Rndm Journeying with migrants: On 21st July 2019, with a group of migrants, we attended the funeral of a migrant as well as accompany his loved ones at the cremation sight. It is a heart-broken experience for us each time to be with such a tragic situation when the migrant come to Taiwan to work but lost their life due to heat-attack or accidents either inside or outside the workplace. In cases not relating to working accidents, they are not got any compensation and support from their company. Their families even have to spend the money to come to get the remain of their loved one.