Apostles For Today
Prayer & Reflection
November 2017
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THE PALLOTTINE MISSION IN PERU
Is our life is truly inspired by God?
How many things
do I put before God every day?
(Pope Francis)
On February 10th next, we will celebrate four years of the
Pallottine mission in the province of Vilcashuamán, Ayacucho, Perù.
The arrival of the Pallottine missionaries took place in a situation of
the abbandonment of places of worship and also of the life of faith of many of
the faithful who were not able to count on the presence of priests for the
celebration of the sacraments and on the pastoral care necessary in order to
live and strengthen their faith.
The missionaries spared no effort and began the work of reviving and
rekindling charity. At the beginning there were only three communities to
serve, because of the distance between them. In a short time, the Pallottines
were already serving the entire province, which is almost four hundred
kilometers long, containing eight districts with their villages.
The challenges are enormous, but progress can already be seen and
celebrated. Mastery of the language, particularly the native language of the
people of that region, Quechua, was initially a great difficulty, but with the
grace of God and the help of the people it was overcome. Now the language is no
longer a problem. Celebrations and pastoral visits take place in many villages
which haven’t had the presence of a priest for a long time. Many sacraments and
patronal feasts were celebrated in all of the villages.
The parish, which did not seem to have any life, has received a new
vitality in the faith and in the religious expression of the people. Today it
has a new face, with the presence of young people, children and families at
Mass. A demanding work, but one which produces good fruit, is our presence in
the schools, with Masses and talks for the preparation of sacraments, as well
as formation in human and religious values.
The Sisters of the Cenacle Pallottine Sisters
have given a new expression to this mission with their charism. They support
all of the pastoral activities of the parish. Another very important presence
is that of the Missionary Sisters of Mary Immaculate: they are Mexican sisters
who carry out missionary activities in another part of the of our parish,
especially in catechetical and faith
animation in many villages.
God has blessed the Pallottine mission in these parts of Peru with a
candidate who has already begun his Pallottine formation in the Pallottine
postulancy in Brazil. The mission is developing and growing. The Pallottine
missionaries are conscious that much has already been done, but that much also
remains to be done. In this way, the hearts of the missionaries are filled with
a feeling of gratitude along with all of those who pray for and support this
mission.
Through the intercession of our founder, Saint Vincent Pallotti, may God
bless all of us.
Fr.
Manoel Santana Vieira SAC,
Peru.
Note: The above
text which we received a short time ago is very similar to an article in the
SAC AsiaOceania E-BULLETIN #227 - apologies to those who may feel a sense of
deja-vu.
Questions for personal and communal
reflection:
1. How strong is
our sense of co-responsibility for and practical commitment to supporting
overseas mission projects?
2. How are we
involved in supporting such projects materially and/or through prayer? Is there
something further that we are being called to do?
3. How can we live
and promote a deeper sense of missionary co-responsibility in our Pallottine
family and in the wider Church?
____________________________________________________
Segretariato Generale,
Unione dell’Apostolato Cattolico
Piazza San Vincenzo Pallotti 204,
00187 Roma, Italia uac@uniopal.org
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