“Make of the world one family”

Xaverian Mission
Volume 56 - No. 3 | August 2008
Newsletter

“The one who has hope lives differently...”

T he one who has hope lives dif-

ferently; the one who hopes has
been granted the gift of a new life.”
“To come to know God — the true God
— means to receive hope,” wrote the
Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI in his
first encyclical, On Christian Hope.

In the midst of what we often hear

going on in the world, signs of hope are
teeming, often surprising us in the most
extraordinary ways. David W. Shenk, a
highly prolific Mennonite missionary and
theologian deeply involved in interfaith
dialogue, called it the “gospel of recon-
ciliation in the wrath of nations.”

In this late summer issue of XMN, we

wish to share with you some vignettes
of this inexhaustible hope portrayed in
the experiences of missionaries and lay
people in Colombia, Africa, Brazil, and
the United States. They do what we do;
carve a path in the mire and obstacles
of life. The secret of that hope lies in
the power of the cross and resurrection
of Jesus Christ, and trust in what that
power is capable of through our faith.

In this issue, we see this hope arise

in the crises and faith-filled aspirations
of people like Fr. Pierfrancesco
Agostinis, Fr. Pietro Rinaldi, Fr. Giovanni
Villa, Yarlín Consuelo Mosquera, Fr.
Rocco Puopolo, Fr. Willy Mukucha and
his brother’s family, and Sister Dorothy
Stang.

The great spiritual writer, Henri

Nouwen reminds us: “If we really want
to be living memories, offering guid-
ance to a new land, the Word of God
must be engraved in our hearts; it must
become our flesh and blood. This medi-
tation on God’s word is indispensable if
we want to be reminders of God and
not ourselves; if we want to radiate
hope and not despair, joy and not sad-
ness, life and not death.”
A community in Medellin, Colombia, building houses and hope seemingly up to the heavens.
May these pages strengthen that in “the God who has a human face and
hope alive you, despite the bad news who has loved us to the end, each one
that can overwhelm us like an over- of us and humanity in its entirety.” U
flowing inundation. May this hope give
you courage to ground all that you are – CC
“We Escaped from Hell”
X averian Missionaries
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Email: xavformation@hotmail.com
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Mission
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Chicago, IL 60608-0000
Tel. (312) 842-6777
Email: info_church@stthere-
sechinatown.org
Xaverian Mission Newsletter
Official publication of the
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Donation:
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2 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
“We Escaped from Hell”
T
wo Xaverian Missionary priests were
among the survivors of a plane crash
that left at least 100 people dead
and scores injured in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, East Africa. Xaverian
Missionary Fathers Pierfrancesco Agostinis,
39, and Pietro Rinaldi,
41, escaped from the
wreckage before it
burst into flames. The
DC-9 passenger jet
readying for takeoff
never managed to get
off the ground; it
crashed into a crowd-
ed market and busy
residential area in the
city of Goma April 15,
2008.
Father Agostinis related that one of the
plane’s tires blew out just before liftoff,
forcing the pilot to abort the takeoff.
However, the runway ended and the plane
rammed into a crowded market area, he
said.
“The hard crash on the ground was vio-
lent, and the aircraft fell apart in three sec-
tions. It all lasted just a few moments.
When the aircraft finally stopped, we were
thrown about and we found ourselves
wrapped in flames. Then panic set in, and
people screamed ‘Jesus! Jesus!’, the fire and
the smoke…”
Xaverian Missionaries in the World
communities. The families often lack
An Interview with Fr. Villa, strong values and are disintegrating, of
to the effects of which create difficul-
Xaverian Missionary in Columbia ties throughout society.
How does one become a missionary in
Colombia?
The first thing one must do is learn
the language, Spanish. Moreover, in
order to work effectively with the peo-
ple, missionaries are required for a lon-
ger period of time in order to guaran-
tee some type of continuity. For this,
we must pray to the Lord to inspire
young people to devote their lives to
Photo from the Telegraph.co.uk
those of others, sharing in their spiritu-
al and social experiences.
At the same time, we become mis-
sionary too, not just in faraway lands,
but in our Christian engagement where
we live. The missionary spirit is alive in
every corner of the earth. We do this
through our parishes and organizations
“Once we crawled out a broken fissure in
and give the opportunity to work with
the fuselage, an American child crying as
the poor. We become missionaries
she looked for parents she grabbed hold of
when we open ourselves to the others,
me. We searched for her parents and even-
and see the connections between our
tually found them in the hospital where the
A view of the sun on Cali, Colombia. home communities and those in other
F
child was re-united with them.”
parts of the world, with a vision that
How are things in Colombia? embraces the entire world. Without
Fr. Agostinis shared the ather Giovanni Villa, from Milan,
this, we remain isolated within the
deep regret for the death Italy, returned from Colombia
Our most difficult problems lie in “walls” of our own countries. U
he witnessed and the recently for a short period of
two areas: insecurity and violence. The
great suffering that rest with his family. From when six in
Xaverians are not in the war zones, but – By Fr. Angelo Berton, S.X.
weighed on the heavy Colombia? The following is taken from
the sense of insecurity and fear is so
hearts of the survivors an interview with him on his work in
pervasive that it echoes throughout the
and families of the vic- Colombia.
country. For example, in the evening
tims. “How much horror
What brought you to Colombia? we do not go out for fear of violence.
passed between those
flames, especially for
When I completed by theological Which message would you like to
those passengers who studies and was ordained in 1985, I was
leave for youth?
remained in the rear of the aircraft.” immediately sent to Colombia. I’ve
been there ever since, except for a Enthusiastic young people, who like
“Many speak of miracles. I do not doubt
short period when I worked with youth to explore new things, will surely find
that we are still alive because of the Lord. I
in Salerno and Taranto, Italy. great challenges in their life in the work
certainly feel a new gratefulness for all of
like what we do in Colombia. This
life: the sun peering through the clouds, the
What was your impression of enthusiasm is a sign of a good heart
faces of the people around me, the intense
Colombia? and will...
green, the fresh air ...to taste the beauty of
still being alive is the most wonderful thing I
The Colombians, both black and But?
can imagine.” white, are good and hard working peo-
ple, many of whom are quite poor. With But Colombia is not the classic mis-
Along with Frs. Agostinis and Rinaldi, we
our other Xaverian Missionaries in the sion, where the basic structures like
too thank God almighty for sparing these hospitals and schools are lacking, much
four centers we work in Colombia, I
two missionaries in this most tragic acci- like what we see in Africa. In Colombia
found the work difficult but important.
dent. It seems apparent that the Lord has these structures exist already and are
Our main work is with the poor who Fr. Villa is a Xaverian Missionary
need of them yet in the work of His run by the Colombians themselves. The
live in the periphery of the cities of from Milan, Italy working in
Kingdom. U Cali, Medellin, Bogota, and help we often ask for is primarily for
— From an Interview in Missionari Columbia for 23 years.
Saveriani, Parma, Italy, May 2008. Buenaventura. the formation of the families and the
Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008 3
A Future of Hope and Peace in Columbia
Sometimes Hope Seems Crazy
Yarlin Mosquera with her class in Bogota.
Y
arlín Consuelo Mosquera, a
25-year old woman from Chocó,
reached the conclusion that
she is crazy, even more so than her
husband, Samuel.
More than ten years ago, Yarlín and
Samuel were a normal couple with a
son who was only a few months old.
Samuel worked for Coldeportes Chocó
and was trying to forget his dream of
being a center defense for the
Independiente Medellín soccer team, a
dream his mother suppressed because,
in their family, education came first.
Unfortunately, personal threats put
him among the long list of displaced
people who ended up in Bogotá. Yarlín,
not being able to stand the uncertainty
and the separation, traveled to Bogotá
after three months and found Samuel
working as a mason.
With the sole goal of survival, she
began working as a maid. Sometime
later, Samuel got a teaching job in a
school in Soacha, and they moved to a
small piece of land they bought in the
Luís Carlos Galán District of Cazucá.
However, happiness was short-lived.
The school was privatized and tuition
went up so high that the families of
many poor children in the area could
no longer afford it. That’s when
4 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
Samuel’s madness surfaced in the form
of a very progressive idea. “Together
with some colleagues, we started a
school in the community offering free
education to children.” An amazed
Yarlín watched as her home became a
school.
Soon, the couple had to move, rent-
ing in the neighborhood of El Espino at
the edge of Ciudad Bolívar. More mad-
ness followed when their house
became the head office of the
Asociación Creando Raíces (Association
for the Establishment of Roots), started
by Samuel and his friends in order to
obtain assistance to keep their school
going.
“At first I didn’t pay the idea of the
school the least bit of attention,
because without resources, it was total
madness,” exclaims Yarlín. Soon there-
after, there weren’t enough teachers
and more help was needed. “I ended
up helping Samuel and spending more
time with the school than doing house-
work.” She became a teacher, headed
the cafeteria, and was a secretary for
the foundation as well as performing
other functions. Her presence and
strength have made it possible for the
school program to continue in spite of
numerous limitations, and to grow
along with the establishment of a com-
munity dining hall sponsored by the
World Food Program (WFP).
Yarlin and Samuel remind us of the
tenacity of Catholics who, empowered
by the Holy Spirit, can overcome great
odds when the goal is to give oneself
for the sake of others. St. Paul reminds
us: “We always thank God for all of
you, mentioning you in our prayers. We
continually remember before our God
and Father your work produced by
faith, your labor prompted by love, and
your endurance inspired by hope in our
Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Thess 2-3) U
— Adopted from The Mechanics of Hope by
Fernando Chavez and Julian Lineros.
Journey of an American Missionary:
Thy Kingdom Come
B
ack in 1984 as I acclimated
back to life and ministry in the
USA after a second assignment
in Sierra Leone, West Africa, I joined
the newly formed Africa Faith and
Justice Network, with offices in
Washington DC and whose mission was
to advocate and educate for better US
policies and relations with the peoples
of Africa, rooted in Catholic Social
Teaching.
It was formed by four missionary
communities like ours who saw the
need to capture the experiences and
insights of those who served in Africa
to educate people in the US, especially
policy makers in Washington DC, to the
Africa we know as well as advocate for
justice.
The staff of AFJN assisted me in
1995, 1997 and 1999 as I served again in
Sierra Leone during a time of war with
ways to get the story of those troubling
times to people who work the various
offices in Washington. Each time I
came to Washington to meet my con-
gressman or senators, or visit other Non
Government Agency offices, I found
Xaverian Missionaries in the USA
that sharing our perspective as people
of faith and as a witness of how some
of our US policies actually impede the
development and freedom of African
peoples made a difference.
After my years in Chicago as the
Rector of our students which ended in
2006, I was invited to become the
executive director of AFJN, and I
accepted. It is a new mission service
for the Xaverians in the USA, but an
important one. What once was a net-
work comprised of only returned US
missioners from Africa has
become a network of oth-
ers who have either
worked in a variety of
humanitarian agencies,
Africa immigrants who
wish to be part of our
mission to justice, parish-
es and dioceses that are
twinned with African par-
ishes and dioceses and
more.
In its 25 years AFJN has
grown to involve over 700
individual members and
Fr. Rocco Puopolo and staff at a visit to Congressman
Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
the Xaverian Missionaries join 34 other
congregational members that form and
support this net- work. Through our
website, www.afjn.org, we keep all
who visit us up to date on issues that
range from child soldiers, HIV/AIDS, the
upcoming Africa Synod, post conflict
development and more. There are
tool kits for school children and advo-
cacy tools for the common citizen that
can aid all to be engaged in shaping a
fair and just US policy towards Africa.
The influence of our country, its pol-
icies and projects have direct impact
on many in Africa, at times for better,
and other times not for the better.
Militarization and economic exploitation
runs deep. Trade is far from fair and
the burden of unfair and long-standing
debts that go back to the 1970’s contin-
ue to cripple any hope of progress for
African peoples. The seeds of much of
the conflicts in Africa that we so often
hear about are rooted in policies that
keep Africa poor and vulnerable.
AFJN works to change that, together
with many other advocates for develop-
ment, peace and progress. Little did I
think that this would be my ministry
many years ago, but I embrace it
wholeheartedly as a way to bring the
voices, hopes and aspirations of the
many I have befriended those years in
Sierra Leone, as well as many others
who have been served by colleagues in
Mission to Africa who are members of
this network. It has become a way of
living out the prayer, “thy Kingdom,
come!” U
– Fr. Rocco Puopolo, SX
Bobby Rush of Chicago.
5
World Food Crisis
World Food Crisis 2008:
I
n the past few weeks, riots over food prices
have been erupting in several countries around
the world, including Egypt, Bangladesh, Haiti
and Cameroon, among others. The riots are in
response to the sharp spike in the price of basic
foods made from wheat, rice and corn. Prices of
these commodities have almost doubled in the last
12 months, but most of the increase has been seen
and felt since January 2008. This sharp increase in
prices is making it dangerously difficult for people
to buy the foods they need for basic survival.
People who are the poorest have been particu-
larly hard hit, because the foods they normally pur-
chase to secure their only
meal for the day are now
priced far beyond their
reach. Those living in pov-
erty spend a higher per-
centage of their income
on food, and therefore
suffer more when food
prices go up. As a result,
people in general, and the
poor in particular, are in
real danger of malnutri-
tion and starvation
because they cannot
afford to buy food. While
social unrest and violence
give way to political instability, the gravest danger
remains the impact that hunger and malnutrition
have on the human person.
Immigrants Sending Food Home
Jovy Mark showed up at Manila Oriental, a Falls
Church grocery that doubles as an agent for Filipino
shipping companies, lugging two hefty boxes des-
tined for relatives in the Philippines. Inside: Four
25-pound bags of Japanese rice, purchased at a
Korean supermarket in Virginia and about to make a
6 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
trip back to Asia. “They are really short of rice over
there,” said Jovy, 59, a nanny who lives in
Manassas. “My brother said the [price of] rice is
going up. So what I did, I said, ‘All right, I’ll look for
rice that is cheaper over here.’ “
As the United Nations met in Rome recently to
discuss shortages and high prices of food and inter-
national charities scramble to help the nations
hardest-hit by the global food crisis, some immi-
grants in the United States are providing their own
version of food aid. They are paying to have provi-
sions delivered to hungry relatives at home.
These blips on the global
food shipment landscape,
of course, are not going
to lift poor nations out of
crisis. In interviews,
immigrants from several
countries said most of
their compatriots are
sending more money, if
anything, to help rela-
tives deal with food
costs.
“That would be too
expensive!” said Celestin
Njibeck, about shipping
food to his native
Cameroon, where high prices have also triggered
civil unrest. He was rolling napkins at the Silver
Spring restaurant he manages, which is struggling
with food cost problems. Njibeck is considering rais-
ing menu prices.
The Vision of Catholic Social Teaching
Catholic social teaching places the life and digni-
ty of the human person at the center of the discus-
sion on agriculture and explores the moral dimen-
Our Catholic Response
sions of agricultural policies in light of
the global common good. Because food
is essential for life, ensuring that every
human person has enough to eat is a
moral imperative and a gospel man-
date.
Food a Basic Human Right in Modern
World
...There is a growing awareness of
the exalted dignity proper to the
human person, since... his or her rights
and duties are universal and inviolable.
Therefore, there must be made avail-
able to all everything necessary for
leading a life truly human, such as
Filipino Immigrants in the USA sending food home to a country suffering from a rice crisis.
food, clothing, and shelter... In view of
the increasingly close ties of mutual
dependence today between all the
inhabitants and peoples of the earth...
the... common good now requires of
the community of nations that it orga-
nize itself in a manner suited to its
present responsibilities, especially
toward the many parts of the world,
which are still suffering from unbear-
able want.... Organizations of the inter-
national community, for their part,
must make provision for different needs
...in the fields of social life-such as food
supplies, health, education, labor...”
Gaudium et Spes, 965, #26, #84
Profiteering on Food Condemned
by Church
Although the quest for equitable
profit is acceptable in economic and
financial activity, recourse to usury is
to be morally condemned: “Those
whose usurious and avaricious dealings
lead to the hunger and death of their
brothers and sisters in the human fami-
ly indirectly commit homicide, which is
imputable to them.” This condemnation
extends also to international economic
relations, especially with regard to the
situation in less advanced countries,
which must never be made to suffer
“abusive if not usurious financial sys-
tems.” More recently, the Magisterium
used strong and clear words against this
practice, which is still tragically wide-
spread, describing usury as “a scourge
that is also a reality in our time and
that has a stranglehold on many peo-
ples’ lives.” Compendium of Social
Doctrine of the Church, 2004, p. 148,
#341
A Catholic Response
Facts and figures, words and exhor-
tations about persons suffering from
hunger usually do not move hearts,
minds and bodies into concrete actions
Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
World Food Crisis
that solve in some way the underlying
causes of world problems. The myth
that “I am nothing in face of these hor-
rible world problems” paralyzes the
overwhelming majority of society.
Jesus, however, contradicts this myth
with, “Amen, I say to you, whatever
you did for one of these least brothers
and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
(Mt. 25:40) U
Steps to Act in Solidarity
with Those Who are Hungry
Accept the reality that “I can be
part of the solution to systems that
harm human beings today.”
As the quotation from Matthew
suggests, acting compassionately
is first an encounter with God, a
prayer in action. Enter into your
own prayerful space and listen to a
starving person asking you to help.
Try meditating on Jesus’ words
above or these from the “Our
Father”: “Give us this day our daily
bread.”
Act locally and think globally.
Some suggested actions are:
• Resolve to learn more about
world food distribution, agricultur-
al policies, global trade and what
is happening to farmers in your
country.
• Find others in your local commu-
nity who are interested in just food
policies and join their efforts.
• Call a local soup kitchen and
find out about hunger in your own
area.
• Talk to your parish or house of
worship to find out what efforts
are made for those who are strug-
gling to put food on the table.
7
World Mission Spirituality
What is Christian Hope
Catechesis
T
o be human is to
desire a life of hap-
piness. Our desire
for happiness is one of the
most basic facts of human
existence. We are a “gener-
ation of seekers,” in the
words of the United States
Catholic Catechism for
Adults.
Walk into a favorite book-
store and you will notice
countless shelves of books
offering popular advice on
“For in hope we were
how to live a happy life.
saved. Now hope that Guidance on how to achieve
happiness effortlessly and
sees for itself is not instantly is a million dollar
hope. industry today Typically
happiness is equated with
fame and celebrities, finan-
For who hopes for
what one sees? But if
we hope for what we
do not see, we wait
with endurance.”
(Romans 8: 24 – 25)
cial prosperity, professional
success, physical appear-
ance, material prosperity –
cars, homes, dream vaca-
tions – all of which are
offered as measures of
human happiness.
“In hope we were saved”
(Romans 8:24). These words
of Saint Paul begin the papal
encyclical, (On Christian
8 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
Hope) Spe Salvi. We focus
our attention on the mean-
ing and importance of
Christian hope. And we are
reminded that for a
Christian true human happi-
ness is ultimately to be
found in our relationship
with God, the foundation of
our hope, “the God who has
a human face and who has
loved us to the end, each
one of us and humanity in
its entirety.”
The Virtue of Hope
The Catechism of the
Catholic Church teaches us
that hope is one of three
theological virtues along
with faith and charity.
“Hope,” notes the
Catechism, “is the theologi-
cal virtue by which we
desire the kingdom of heav-
en and eternal life as our
happiness, placing our trust
in Christ’s promises and rely-
ing not on our own strength,
but on the help of the grace
of the Holy Spirit” (CCC
1817). Hope is the confi-
dence that God abides with
us on the journey of life into
eternity.
From the Encyclical, On
Christian Hope
“Let us say once again:
we need the greater and
lesser hopes that keep us
going day by day. But these
are not enough without the
great hope, which must sur-
pass everything else. This
great hope can only be God,
who encompasses the whole
of reality and who can
bestow upon us what we, by
ourselves, cannot attain.
The fact that it comes to us
as a gift is actually part of
hope. God is the foundation
of hope: not any god, but
the God who has a human
face and who has loved us
to the end, each one of us
and humanity in its entire-
ty.” (Spe salvi, 31) U
Questions for Prayer,
Discussion and Reflection
1. Name some of the
hopes and desires –
greater and lesser - of
your life. How do you
measure human happi-
ness?
2. Share how you strive to
live by Christian hope. In
what way is hope essen-
tial to Christian living
today?
3. Each day society pres-
ents us with multiple
paths to human happiness
– celebrity fame, pleasure,
material goods, profes-
sional success, to name
only a few. What does
faith in Jesus Christ offer?
Why can we say with con-
fidence that “Christ is
our hope?”
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Sister Dorothy Stang:
Her Dying Shows Us How to Live
S
ister Dorothy Stang,
an advocate for the
peasant farmers in
the rainforests of Brazil,
made powerful enemies who
eventually gunned her down
as she read from scripture.
IN A RAINY FEBRUARY DAY
in 2005 in the middle of the
Brazilian jungle, Sister
Dorothy Stang faced a pair of
hired assassins as she was
walking to a meeting to dis-
cuss a recent spate of house
burnings by ranchers meant
to intimidate poor farmers
into abandoning their land.
“You men are armed,” she
said. “I am not. The only
defense I carry is the Word
of God.” She began to read
from scripture, “Blessed are
the poor in spirit, for theirs
is the kingdom of heaven.”
The two gunmen listened for
a moment, took a few steps
back, and fired. The 74-year-
old Stang died quickly from
six shots to the head and
chest.
Stang, a Notre Dame de
Namur Sister, had made pow-
erful enemies during her
nearly 40 years of ministry in
Brazil. She and four other
SNDdeN sisters from the Ohio
Province were sent to Brazil
in response to Pope John
XXIII’s request that religious
communities commit a por-
tion of their members to ser-
vice in Latin America.
During the 1960s and early
1970s the sisters taught and
trained religious catechists.
They became immersed in
the peasants’ struggle for
basic human rights against
centuries of oppression from
wealthy landowners.
In early 1970 the Brazilian
government offered land in
Missionary Stories of Courage
the Amazon interior to poor
farmers willing to move
there and farm in a sustain-
able way. Sister Dorothy
moved into the rainforest to
be with the farmers and
instruct them in sustainable
farming and recycling the
resources of the forest.
Loggers and ranchers, hungry
for the land the farmers
were trying to protect,
began an aggressive cam-
paign of intimidation and
threats against the farmers
and their beloved advocate,
Stang. Complaints were filed
with the government and
local authorities, but to little
effect. Stang had no inten-
tion of going away. She said
shortly before her death, “I
am grateful to Notre Dame
for not asking me to leave.
This shows we are aware of
the needs of the poor.”
Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
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Resource: Catholic Religious
Vocation Network (Vision Vocation
Guide) http://www.vocation-network.
org/articles/read/41
Stang’s faithfulness to the
gospel and commitment to
her community’s mission to
educate and stand with the
poor is a profile in courage
and true Christian disciple-
ship. Stang is her communi-
ty’s first martyr. They have
pledged to continue the
struggle for a world of jus-
tice and peace.
“I feel like a river without
water, a forest without
trees. It’s like losing a
mother,” said Fernando Anjos
da Silva, whom Stang had
helped obtain medical care
after a crippling logging
accident. Stang’s death was
decried throughout the
world. Sister Dorothy Stang
did not set out to be a
martyr, but she was deeply
committed to doing God’s
work. U
9
 World Mission News Digest
Typhoon in the Philippines that
killed hundreds in capsized ferry.
Prayer in a Mosque in
Mozambique, Africa.
Tainted elections in Zimbabwe
that claimed many lives.
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10 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008
World Mission News Digest
PHILIPPINES
Another Journalist Killed,
Union Calls For Government
Action
Robert “Bert” Sison, host of
a radio station programme in
the Quezon province and
editorialist for a weekly
newspaper, was shot dead
yesterday by two gunmen on
a motorcycle, while return-
ing home on his car with his
daughters in the city of
Sariaya (around 100km south
of Manila). The local press
today gives wide coverage to
the killing of another jour-
nalist in the Philippines, con-
sidered among the most dan-
gerous nations for media
workers.
COLOMBIA
Caritas Worker Killed
A Caritas aid worker was
murdered in Candelilla de la
Mar, near Tumaco, at the
border with Ecuador, last
June 24; Felipe Landazury
worked for Caritas in a proj-
ect to help refugees in one
of the most intense areas of
conflict in Colombia. Armed
men entered the city and
took some people – says a
Caritas Internationalis com-
muniqué – threatened them
with death, accusing them of
having given information
concerning their movement
to the Colombian army and
to the rebels; Landazury was
taken away and a few hours
later his body was found
with two bullet wounds to
the head.
MOZAMBIQUE
Portugal Cancels Debt
Portugal cancelled more than
$390-million in debt owed by
Mozambique and signed a
line of credit of around
$75-million to help develop
economic sectors such as
agriculture and mining. After
a 17-year international con-
flicted that ended din 1992,
Mozambique’s economy
began to recover over the
past decade, though a large
part of its around 21-million
people still live in conditions
of poverty. The debt relief
should contribute to the con-
solidation of the recovery
with possible positive effects
also for the part of the pop-
ulation in most difficulty.
CAMEROON
Catholic Churches Begin
Pauline Jubilee Year
The Jubilee Year to span
from June 28, 2008 to June
29, 2009 is steeped in the
belief by historians that St.
Paul was born between 7
and 10 AD. According to a
pastoral letter of the Bishops
of Cameroon to the faithful
and all persons of goodwill
signed by the President of
the organising committee,
His Grace Cornelius Fontem
Esua, Archbishop of
Bamenda, the celebrations
kicked off across churches in
Cameroon yesterday, June
29.
Vatican
Pope’s Message for World
Peace Day 2009 to Focus on
Combatting Poverty
Pope Benedict XVI’s message
for World Peace Day 2009
will focus on the connection
between poverty and a lack
of peace in the world, the
Vatican said. Poverty and
malnutrition are signs that
too many people have
ignored the obligation to pro-
mote the common good, a
commitment that is essential
for promoting peace, said the
Vatican’s July 1 statement.
World Peace Day is celebrat-
ed Jan. 1 each year. The
2009 theme, “Combating
Poverty, Building Peace,” is
meant “to underline the
need for an urgent response
by the human family to the
serious question of poverty,
understood as a material
problem, but even more as a
moral and spiritual problem.”
ZIMBABAWE
“Some of Zimbabwe’s
Catholic religious communi-
ties have been pressured to
stop religious service servic-
es. But Masses are held regu-
larly in most parishes except
those in certain remote areas
out of reach for security rea-
sons”. Following the re-elec-
tion of Robert Mugabwe in a
farcical second round of
presidential elections, the
Catholic Church in Zimbabwe
to condemns continuing
harassment of Christians. The
Bishops of Zimbabwe on June
12 issued a statement con-
demned violence leading up
to the June 27 elections: “it
is sad to see Christians and
even Catholics among those
responsible for this violence.
What has happened to our
Christian principles and val-
ues? Hatred and intimidation
and violence cannot have the
last word in our society and
the property of all citizens.”
News from our USA Communities
F r. Willy Mukucha, a
Xaverian Missionary
from the Democratic
Republic of the Congo stud-
ied psychotherapy at Loyola
University in Chicago and
assisted our community in
Hyde Park, Chicago. He was
preparing himself to further
his work in Sierra Leone,
West Africa.
His brother, Leopold
Mboko came to Canada as a
refugee claimant in 2001,
after having survived an
attempt on his life for advo-
cating peace between war-
ring ethnic tribes in the
Democratic Republic of
Congo.
He settled in London
(Canada) and was a parish-
ioner of St. Michael’s Parish.
In 2003 he was accepted as
a genuine refugee and start-
ed the process of bringing
his wife, Godelive, and their
six children to safety in
Canada.
One tragic day, Fr. Willy
received a call from
Leopold’s employer saying he
his brother was gravely ill.
Leopold died tragically in
Ottawa of a brain aneurism
on January 24, 2005.
Meanwhile, Leopold’s fam-
ily left the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and
lived in a refugee camp in
Kenya, anxiously waiting for
news from Leopold about
their transfer to Canada.
That news was never to
arrive from their beloved
husband and father.
In March 2006 St.
Michael’s Parish in London,
Ontario, agreed to sponsor
Leopold’s family at the
request of Fr. Willy, and a
year later Godelive and the
children arrived in Canada.
Arriving in a new land
with a strange language,
they grieved the death of
The family mof Fr. Willy’s brother, Leopold. The mother, Godelive
Milambo, and her children from left to right: Robert, Leon, Willy,
Leopold, and undertook the
arduous journey of adapting
to a new country, language,
culture.
If things could not get
worse, the mother of the
children, Godelive, found
herself in horrendous car
accident that left her with
two broken legs and an arm.
As a result, she had a series
of operations to repair the
broken bones and wounds.
Godelive’s recovery has
been slow and painful, and
in the midst of the sudden
death of her husband and
her family thrust into a new
environment, her sadness
and remorse became acute
at times.
From our USA Communities
Fr. Willy is returning to his
work in Sierra Leone, but
before he leaves he has one
more task for his brother’s
family. The place they were
The children struggled in
school with a language they
could not understand. They
speak Swahili and French,
and settled in a English
located in is gang-infested, speaking country. Deborah
and they fear for the future says, “I didn’t know anything
of the children in this diffi- because of the language. So,
I cried every day in school.
I felt bad because I didn’t
understand anything. I
began to hate school and
hide under chairs or in bath-
rooms. “
Her older sister,
Jacqueline, the second old-
est says, “Thanks to my
uncle, Fr. Willy, who found
us volunteers to help us at
home with our homework.
Every week, once or twice
a week, they come to our
home to help us. I thought
if we moved away, maybe
they can’t come again. But I
was surprised to hear that
they will continue to teach
us at home. U
cult neighborhood. At the
writing of this article, they
are now moving to a safer
area, yet smaller house.
The oldest son, Robert,
worries as he will assist his
mother in the welfare of the
family. He says, “God, I beg
you to help me with my Mom
Fr. Willy Mukucha
who takes care of us; but is
now sick. Who will now take
care of us? But I am confi-
dent that God cares…that’s
what my uncle Fr. Willy has
always told us… I also
remember the advice of my
father’s employer in August
2007, when we were visiting
the tomb of my father in
Laval. He told me to work
hard in school and he hopes Godelive recovering in
that I’ll succeed.” the hospital.
Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008 11
 Xaverian Mission Newsletter • August 2008

Dear Friends,
We welcome your feedback and
commentary about the articles we
share with you in our newsletter.
Depending on space, selected
comments will be published in
the next issue. Email them to:
xaverianmissionnewsletter@gmail.com
Let’s carry on the dialogue
about the global mission of the
Church we are all called to.
Fr. Carl Chudy, S.X.
Coordinating Editor

Getting ready for a mass in a small hut with one of our missionaries in Chad, Africa.

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