Rise Up and Walk
In the Gospel we hear how Jesus performed a miracle by saying to the paralyzed man, “Rise up and walk!” Today He continues to work the same miracle, maybe not directly, but through the intervention of people like us. As a Columban Missionary priest working in Peru, for many years I have served as chaplain to our school in Lima for special needs children. Some of these children suffer from cerebral palsy, which is a form of paralysis.
Thy Will Be Done
I can still remember that feeling when I first applied to join the Columban lay missionaries. I was not certain of anything, but I definitely pushed myself for it. I was arguing with myself whether or not I should join, but I found myself saying, “Well, nothing’s going to happen if I do not even try.” It was at that moment that I took a leap of faith. When the orientation program started, I was not really expecting much from it. I was telling myself the whole time,
The Pain of Prisoners
Sr. Tammy Saberon is a Filipina Columban missionary who ministered for many years in Hong Kong, and later in Myanmar. Her main apostolate in both places was the Biblical Pastoral Apostolate. At the request of the Bishops’ Conference of Myanmar, she headed up the Biblical Pastoral Ministry Commission. When all the materials for the ministry had been made available in Burmese and the other ethnic languages of the region, it was time to turn the ministry over to the local Church, which she did.
Prison Ministry in Fiji
One of the highlights of our week here in the Spiritual Year House is our visit to either the Prison Remand Facility in Suva or the Juvenile Rehabilitation Center also in the capital city.
Becoming a Member of the Catholic Church
Seventy years ago, if a person wanted to become a Catholic they attended “convert classes.” A priest usually gave weekly talks on the important Catholic dogmas and the Sacraments of the Church. Then the “converts” would be baptized, perhaps on a Sunday or perhaps not. The baptism would usually be celebrated separately from Mass.
My Treasure
I am Mary Ann T. Guial, the youngest and only girl in our family. I have five brothers and the eldest died when he was in grade three. I was not yet born when he died. My mother has many stories about him. And my mother said that my nickname was his own name. My mother is Lanie Turla. She is a single parent, and she raised all of us ...
The First Priest of the New Region of Oceania
Fr. Teakare Betero was ordained a Columban priest on Saturday November 30, 2019, the Feast of St. Andrew. He was ordained on his island home of Rabi by Fiji’s Archbishop, the most Rev. Peter Loy Chong.
Ayala Family Project Update
I’ve recently returned to Peru after my sabbatical year, and have been able to see first-hand progress made during 2019.
The Beauty of Intercultural Living
In 2019, I had the privilege of visiting our mission in Fiji where Columbans have ministered since 1952. Prior to visiting Fiji, I had read Fr. Frank Hoare’s account of the history of the Columban presence in his book, The Turning Wheel.
Finding God in All Things
Sometimes a line of poetry or the words of a hymn can stay in our mind for many years. Something in the turn of phrase resonates in our heart. For some reason, these lines have stuck with me over the years.
A Right to the Bounty
“They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, Jesus began to ask them, “What were you arguing about on the way?”
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.