Restart
The time continues for re-departures.
Between Thursday and Saturday, the catechists of the villages and those of the city underwent a period of formation.
On Sunday, September 26th we celebrated together, here in the parish, the opening of the Pastoral Year. I also took part in the solemn Mass at 9 o'clock, during which the catechists renewed their commitment to evangelization.
In the afternoon I accompanied some of them to Samba Bougoulou, 45 km from Baoro, to facilitate their return. I took advantage of the trip to see the chapel of Pate Bonambolo, where we have just finished the refurbishment work. The chapel is now bright, and has a painting recalling, in an African setting, the event of the Annunciation of the Angel to Mary.
On Saturday, September 25th I spent the morning with the teachers, the village leaders and the representatives of the parents of the pupils of our 9 village schools. It is the General Assembly: the meeting in which the villages sign an agreement with the teachers and with the Mission.
I was very worried about the reopening of the schools, because last year, due to the elections and the war, the number of pupils had decreased by 60% compared to the previous year. Precisely for this reason we had set, as a condition for the reopening, the achievement of a minimum number of students. And for now, thanks to God and to our commitment and that of our parents, the number of members has already exceeded one thousand.
On Monday and Tuesday I was in Bangui, to follow the work on the new convent, which is going well.
Today, Thursday, I was making Limoncello, and the phone rang. It was the bishop, who asked me if we could meet. I hurried to Bouar (about sixty kilometers), and he asked me, like Caritas, to do something for the populations of the northwestern area of the diocese, especially around centers such as Niem, Ndim, Bocaranga and Ngaoundaye. Here the presence of rebels and soldiers (Russians and Central Africans) is very strong, and the tension is very high. Just today there would have been yet another massacre in Bezere, between Bocaranga and Mann.
The population is threatened, and they cannot go to the fields. Many villages have been abandoned, and even some roads are dangerous due to mines.
For them, starting again will be very difficult!
The time continues for re-departures.
Between Thursday and Saturday, the catechists of the villages and those of the city underwent a period of formation.
On Sunday, September 26th we celebrated together, here in the parish, the opening of the Pastoral Year. I also took part in the solemn Mass at 9 o'clock, during which the catechists renewed their commitment to evangelization.
In the afternoon I accompanied some of them to Samba Bougoulou, 45 km from Baoro, to facilitate their return. I took advantage of the trip to see the chapel of Pate Bonambolo, where we have just finished the refurbishment work. The chapel is now bright, and has a painting recalling, in an African setting, the event of the Annunciation of the Angel to Mary.
On Saturday, September 25th I spent the morning with the teachers, the village leaders and the representatives of the parents of the pupils of our 9 village schools. It is the General Assembly: the meeting in which the villages sign an agreement with the teachers and with the Mission.
I was very worried about the reopening of the schools, because last year, due to the elections and the war, the number of pupils had decreased by 60% compared to the previous year. Precisely for this reason we had set, as a condition for the reopening, the achievement of a minimum number of students. And for now, thanks to God and to our commitment and that of our parents, the number of members has already exceeded one thousand.
On Monday and Tuesday I was in Bangui, to follow the work on the new convent, which is going well.
Today, Thursday, I was making Limoncello, and the phone rang. It was the bishop, who asked me if we could meet. I hurried to Bouar (about sixty kilometers), and he asked me, like Caritas, to do something for the populations of the northwestern area of the diocese, especially around centers such as Niem, Ndim, Bocaranga and Ngaoundaye. Here the presence of rebels and soldiers (Russians and Central Africans) is very strong, and the tension is very high. Just today there would have been yet another massacre in Bezere, between Bocaranga and Mann.
The population is threatened, and they cannot go to the fields. Many villages have been abandoned, and even some roads are dangerous due to mines.
For them, starting again will be very difficult!
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| Pate Bonambolo |
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| Cantiere del nuovo Convento a Bangui Le chantier du nouveau couvent à Bangui |
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