Jul 11, 2024
The MSC community in Manila, capital of the Philippines, have been working on an ongoing project where discarded plastic bottles are repurposed and made into “ecobricks”, finding new life as fences, planter boxes, outdoor furniture, altar decorations, and even chapel walls.
Part of the “Sowing Hope for the Planet” campaign, a worldwide movement to promote environmental awareness, the ecobricks project is just one of many efforts in the MSC mission for ecological sustainability and care of our common home. MSCs in the Philippine Province are also extremely active in the Laudato Si’ Action Platform, a Vatican initiative based on Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’, not least with the remarkable efforts of the community at the MSC Centre for the Poor and their accompanying agricultural co-operative.
Fr James Espuerta MSC was rector at the Manila seminary from 2018 to 2023, where he led countless workshops in the construction and use of the ecobricks. Each brick is comprised of a 1.5 litre plastic bottle, which is then stuffed with smaller pieces of plastic, all compressed with a bamboo stick. Often, the plastics and bottles are painted in bright, appealing colours. The creation of a single brick is time-consuming, and can take a full day to be produced.
“If we have plastics, instead of throwing them away or into the trash or to the garbage cart, better to keep them and then organize ecobrick-making,” says Fr James.
A recent article by Earthbeat reports how the MSC ecobrick initiative began in 2019, at the seminary in Manila, and has since expanded into 15 parishes in the care of our MSC brothers. A chapel in Santo Nino Parish, on Camotes Island in Cebu, has been constructed using ecobricks, and several plastic banks are in operation, whereby people in need can trade plastic they bring from home, or pick up on the street, for food.
Ecobricks help to reduce the costs of building materials while also promoting recycling and ecological awareness, and MSCs in the Philippines are very much aware of the need to reduce the use of single-use plastics in addition. “We have to care for our common home. And plastics destroy creation,” explains Fr James. “Human beings are not the only residents in the world. We also have our brother creatures, and we have to take care of them.”
“Being responsible for the use of the plastic could be a good way to save our environment,” Fr James says. With the support of our mission friends here in the Irish Province and around the globe, MSCs in the Philippines continue in their mission to work in harmony with the natural world, while developing sustainable and self-sufficient lifestyles for the vulnerable and disadvantaged communities in their care.
Original article and images via Earthbeat:
https://www.ncronline.org/earthbeat/science/philippines-catholic-priests-tackle-plastic-waste-brick-brick
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Jul 9, 2024
Welcome to the Summer 2024 edition of the MSC Message!
• Read a special greeting from Fr John Fitzgerald MSC, Director of the MSC Missions Office.
• Read all about the ordination of Fr Gabriel Shikongo MSC, which took place in Swakopmund, Namibia, as he celebrates his first year as an MSC priest.
• Catch up on the latest news from the mission fields, including updates from the Holy Family Care Centre in Africa, from our OLSH Sisters in Papua New Guinea and Burkina Faso, West Africa, and from our MSC brothers as they celebrated Holy Week & Easter around the world, .
• Join us as we celebrate the new Province of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in India.
• Find out the latest updates from the team at the MSC Centre for the Poor in the Philippines.
• Discover more from Centro Faustino Villanueva in Guatemala, where staff and students are celebrating 40 years of ministry at the MSC-run vocational centre this year.
• Fr Alan Neville MSC writes from South Sudan, where he is currently ministering with the Loreto team in Rumbek.
Read the Summer 2024 edition of the MSC Message
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Jul 3, 2024
The month of June saw great celebrations in the MSC Missions Office in Cork, as we marked the outstanding dedication and loyalty of our Missions Office team with long-service awards for six of our staff members.
Fr John Fitzgerald and Fr Joe McGee celebrate the long-service awards of Anne, Patricia, Mary, Fiona, and Ann – not forgetting Maura, who wasn’t able to be with us on the day.
Our Missions Office on the Western Road, Cork, is manned by a small but mighty team of long-serving staff members whose commitment and enthusiasm is second to none, and has only grown stronger throughout the years. Patricia and Ann both celebrated 45 years of working with our MSC Missions, Mary and Fiona each hit the 35-year milestone, and Maura and Anne marked 10 years of service each – a combined total of 180 years!
Irish Provincial Leader Fr Joe McGee and Missions Office Director Fr John Fitzgerald were on hand to lead the celebrations, and to present each of the team with a token of appreciation to commemorate their outstanding contribution throughout the years. We often speak of our extended Sacred Heart family, which is made up of our religious members and lay friends alike; it is only with our combined efforts that we have the power to generate positive change, and it is in unity that we have strength. Our six long-standing ladies have each played an invaluable role during their time to date with the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart, and we would like to thank them sincerely for their hard work, their unwavering reliability, and their positive energy as they keep things running smoothly behind the scenes. We look forward many more years on our shared journey as we work together to bring the love of the Sacred Heart to life across the world.
Sincere congratulations and a heartfelt thank you
to Patricia, Ann, Mary, Fiona, Maura, and Anne!
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Apr 30, 2024
Image Source: NBC
All of us here in the MSC Community are sending our warmest congratulations as he is nearing his first anniversary on becoming a fully ordained MSC. This is a piece that NBC Digital News did on his ordination.
Fr Gabriel was ordained as a Deacon by Bishop Emeritus Hugh Slattery, MSC in Otjiwaronago on 10 December 2022 and his ordination to the priesthood took place on Saturday the 17th June 2023. The Archbishop of Windoek presided over the ordination which took place at Holy Rosary Parish, Swakopmund and Fr Carl Tratner MSC, our former Irish Provincial was also in attendance. It was such a joyous occasion for Fr Gabriel, his very proud family, his community, The South African Section of the MSC and the Irish Province.
Apr 18, 2024
The MSC Centre for the Poor in the Philippines has launched the first phase of a feeding programme for vulnerable children in Libis Baesa, a highly populated region in the city of Calcoon.
The feeding programme will run for several months, with this first stage haven taken place over a six-week period throughout February and March, feeding 40 children in Libis Baesa Elementary School. The second phase of the programme will take place in April, in the regions of Libis Dulo and Reparo, and the third stage is planned for May, covering East Libis and Centro.
The Facebook page for the MSC Mission Office in the Philippines shared these photos from the programme, noting “Observe the joy on the faces of the children currently benefiting from the feeding program in Libis Baesa.”
The MSC Centre for the Poor is highly active in its ministry throughout several regions of the Philippines. Its core values centre on working together in harmony with the earth – nurturing our natural environment, while reaping its benefits in creating a sustainable lifestyle that will help poor and struggling families and communities to build the foundation for a brighter future. From agricultural programmes, to clean water projects, to plastic-free and zero-waste initiatives, the MSC Centre for the Poor encourages participants to develop the skills needed to create and maintain an improved quality of life for disadvantaged communities in both urban and rural areas.
The community at the Centre are also extremely responsive in terms of providing emergency aid where necessary, providing urgent care to survivors of the typhoons and tropical storms that frequently hit the country. From building and repairing homes to distributing emergency care packages, their outreach programmes provide practical and very necessary help to families and communities in real need; these photos of the Libis Baesa children receiving much-needed nourishment is a testament to the wonderful work they do at the most fundamental level.
A whole host of willing participants came together to make the food drive possible, with posts on the Facebook page expressing sincere thanks:
“On behalf of the MSC Center for the Poor, we extend our gratitude to the volunteer cooks, the Principal of Libis Baesa Elementary School, Teacher Myrna, the MSC Brothers, Chapel Presidents, Fr. Gab, and Fr. Sam.
Special thanks to our sponsors, RJF Primo Corporation, Felicidad T. Sy Foundation, and Casao Kids. May God bless you abundantly.”
“We are grateful for the visit from our donor, Mrs. Falcon, accompanied by her daughter Cazandra and her classmates from Miriam College: Aurora, Althea, and Jan Jan. The children greatly enjoyed their presence and were overjoyed with the gifts they received.
We also wish to express our thanks to our IC brothers, Bro Erwin and Bro Borge; to the Principal of Libis Baesa Elementary School, Ms. Maria Idel C. Malay; to the Teacher Coordinator, Mam Myrna; the Coordinator of MSC Center for the Poor, Ms. Joy; the MSC Mission Office Board of Trustees and Staff, and the MSC Manila District, Fr. Sam & Fr. Gabby.”
Please keep our MSC communities in the Philippines in your prayers as they continue in their remarkable work in bringing hope to people who people who have very little, and in putting food on the plates of children who would otherwise go hungry. We wish them every blessing in support and friendship as they look ahead to phase two of this vital programme.
Images via the Facebook page for the MSC Mission Office Philippines, Inc.
IF YOU CAN, PLEASE SUPPORT THE MSC CENTRE FOR THE POOR
Apr 11, 2024
Phone calls from home have bemoaned the state of the weather with a familiar regularity. Ireland, they say, is a great country, if only you could roof it. While a strong argument could be made for such a national feat of engineering, I believe that the constant rain, drizzle, mist, and downpours have shaped our psyche in a way that has left an optimistic, if somewhat damp mark on the people. It has to stop sometime, surely, or so we hope. In spite of only hazy memories of sun as a child, such as the time it was so hot the butter melted on a primary school trip to Bere Island (certainly a shock to all of us), rain certainly predominates my image of growing up in the seventies and the eighties.
So it was something of a challenge to find myself in South Sudan, with six months of heavy, if sporadic rain, followed by six months of absolute roasting aridity. After over three years here I thought I was coming to terms with the worst my new home could offer, but this year it really outdid itself. You know something is up when at the end of March the National Ministry of Education and General Instruction decided to close schools for two weeks because of an especially acute heatwave.
On the surface this could be welcomed, as many children walk more than five kilometres a day to get to school, and while the morning can be cooler, the return journey in 43ºC is a problem. The issue for us is that our primary school offers children food during the day, along with access to our clinic, and the closure meant the former was no longer available and the latter was seriously curtailed. The school made an effort with a mobile outreach by our nursing team into the community to help support those in most urgent need.
Our secondary school, despite being a boarding school, was ordered to close too and most students had to head home. A small group of about forty remained, as they lived far enough away that it would have been almost impossible to make it home and return again. So, our community for Easter this year was greatly diminished, but still full of life. Our Palm Sunday procession from the convent to the secondary school was solemn and prayerful. I had considered getting a donkey, but after an unfortunate incident during an outdoor Nativity production in a barrio in Caracas that had Mary and Joseph walking most of the way to Bethlehem (a story for another day), I swore I’d never work with animals again!
During Holy Week the University continued, heatwave or no. The lecture halls have a corrugated metal roof, but no ceiling, turning them in to a large-scale oven by the early afternoon. In fairness to the students, they did not complain, especially as exams are beginning this coming Monday. We bought extra water pots and placed the around the campus to help alleviate the problem. This year we’re hoping to fix up the building completely, installing windows, a proper floor, ceilings, and (God willing) some fans.
“No matter how overwhelming the darkness, the light of one Easter candle is enough to set the world on fire.”
Maundy Thursday’s Mass of the Last Supper was beautiful. It began in the cool of the later afternoon, just before the sunset. Our twelve Apostles were drawn from students, interns, teachers, members of the clinic team, and people from the local community. The washing of the feet by Jesus in John’s Gospel was a powerful reminder for all of us of the need to see the ministry we offer as an act of humble service. Like Pope Francis washing the feet of women in a prison in Rome this year, all that we do should try to echo the authenticity and humility of Jesus.
On Good Friday at 7:00am we ferried all our students to Sacred Heart Parish in Rumbek for the Stations of the Cross. The Loreto Interns had been practicing all week and getting costumes ready to lead the event. It was a live-action Stations and we made our way through the centre of the town towards Holy Family Cathedral. As we walked, sang, and prayed, you could see that those we passed were moved. There is something visceral about the suffering and humiliation Jesus endured for us that speaks to all hearts. On arrival at the Cathedral, Jesus and the two thieves were tied to their crosses and hoisted into position. After finding a bit of shade, I spent the rest of the liturgy praying fervently that the crosses wouldn’t collapse and our students wouldn’t be crushed. Thankfully, our Romans knew their jobs.
The highlight of Easter is of course the Vigil. The entire celebration from the lighting of the Paschal fire and blessing of the candle, to the readings from the Old and New Testaments, the renewal of our baptismal vows, and the Eucharist are liturgy at its best. The symbols of fire and water, light and darkness, hope and resurrection would move even the most stoic of hearts.
As you can see from the photos, our teachers in Loreto were all in for the preparation of the Paschal fire and the flames reached up to Heaven itself. As South Sudan continues to struggle in these early years of independence and persistent difficulties are everywhere, it is good to remember the promise of our Catholic faith, that no matter how overwhelming the darkness, the light of one Easter candle is enough to set the world on fire.
Happy Easter,
Fr Alan
Read more from Fr Alan’s missionary journey in South Sudan:
