Merry Christmas!
I'm just returning from a few days spent in the villages, about 200 km from Bangassou. Here too, despite everything, these are very intense days. Between Thursday, December 18th and Sunday, December 21st, the diocese organized the Jubilee of Catechists. They were days of training and exchange, with about a hundred catechists (those closest to us from the surrounding villages).
Here in Central Africa, the role of the catechist is fundamental. Priests are few, and in the villages, the catechist leads Sunday and weekday prayers, teaches catechism, and accompanies the community. One of them, Zachèe, is celebrating 50 years of service here in Bangassou. On Sunday the 21st, in the morning I celebrated Mass in the parish of Tokoyo, and in the afternoon I stopped by to bring greetings to our "pearls," the children of the Orphanage and the elderly of the Casa Espoir. I won't be with them on Christmas Day, when they'll receive some gifts and a nice festive meal. I'll bring them some chocolate, and that's how they will start celebrating Christmas! On Monday afternoon, I'm leaving for the North, to Bakouma and then to Nzacko the next day.
I also am bringing some tarps with me, which are used to cover the nursery school. It was destroyed in 2017, along with the church, the hospital, and the rectory. This too is a construction site and a work in progress!
On December 24th, Wednesday evening, at 7:00 p.m., I celebrated Christmas Eve Mass: a few rare lights, but much warmth for this community that welcomes nine newly baptized people and that, despite the war, has remained steadfast in its faith. And here too, the singing of the Gloria explodes, like in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago! On December 25th, we left before 5:00 a.m., because we needed to arrive in Bakouma in time for Mass. There are 13 baptisms here too: typically, on Christmas Day, children's baptisms are celebrated, while at Easter it's time for children, youth, and adults. It was a very beautiful Mass, in a stone chapel. As we celebrated, the cries of the election campaign could often be heard: these are the final days, because on December 28th we will vote for President, Parliament, the Regional Council, and the Municipalities. Tensions remain high, and there is little room for those not from the party in power. But hope and faith in common sense remain!
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| Formazione dei catechisti Formation des catéchistes Formación de catequistas |
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| I bambini del Centro orfani Maman Tongolo Les enfants du Centre des Orphélins Maman Tongolo Los niños del orfanato Maman Tongolo |
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| La campagna elettorale La campagne éléctorale La campaña electoral |
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| La scuola materna di Nzacko, ora! L'école maternelle de Nzacko, maintenant! Escuela infantil en Nzacko, ¡ahora! |
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| Bakouma |
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