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.