Feb 9, 2021
The biggest dilemma at the start of the month was figuring how to fit the words ‘Celebrating Religious Life’ across a cake. It was for the second of February, the World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life, when the Church acknowledges in a special the contribution of sisters, brothers, and religious priests in the building up of the Kingdom of God.
In the Diocese of Rumbek, we are a broad church with missionaries from around the world working alongside local diocesan clergy and our lay teams. There are sisters from the Missionaries of Charity and the Evangelising Sisters in Cathedral parish, as well as our own Loreto Sisters, along with the brothers from De La Salle community just up the road in their new school for boys. You also have the Jesuits, the Spiritans, and of course one Missionary of the Sacred Heart who wandered in a few months ago and everyone has been too polite to ask what he is actually doing there in the first place.
In all we have over thirty religious sisters, brothers and priests from all across Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe. The ministry that they are involved in includes the usual schools and clinics that are usual in name only. The issues they face and the challenges they meet are well outside the norm of what we typically deal with in the West. This morning the Missionaries of Charity are going to a leper colony an hour outside of town. The Jesuits are setting up an English language course for their adult education programme and are trying to encourage as many women as possible to enrol to improve their future employment prospects. The Loreto sisters and the team in our clinic are getting ready for a possible surge in Covid cases, even though we have no testing kits and there are only four ventilators in the whole country of 11 million people. None are in Rumbek.
As for myself, I’m still working away on the local language. We had our first Children’s Liturgy last Sunday morning and when I enthusiastically greeted the kids in Dinka there was stony silence. Not a single word. Nothing. Then when one of the students said 100% exactly what I said they were beside themselves with excitement. When I said it again, I got nothing! Afterwards the student said I was doing well, but politely recommended that my accent needs a bit of work. I suspect she is going to be an excellent, if somewhat demanding, teacher one day!
Last Friday we had another wonderful celebration. The children from Year 8 graduated from Loreto Primary School and this very week they will sit the national exams. They are another group you will need to add to your prayers. Seventy-two boys and girls successfully completed their studies. When I spoke with them during Mass, they talked about how their first lessons took place under a large tree in junior infants. It has been a long road and a tumultuous few years, but they persevered. Despite the school’s best efforts many students dropped out along the way due early enforced marriage or the need to go and work to support their family. Still the number of those who persevere continues to grow and education is increasingly seen as the key pathway out of poverty to a better life.
At the graduation Sr. Orla, the Director of Loreto, and Mr. Yuga, the Compound Manager, presented the children with some stationery supplies for their exams and a Bible. In the homily of the Mass, I explained that in life they could go anywhere and do anything as long as they remembered that their education was their passport and their Bible was their guide for the journey. It was day of real thanksgiving for all that was achieved and touched by sorrow as the students will now go on to different schools.
We hope that most of the girls will continue into Senior 1 in Loreto Secondary School. Many of the boys will join the De la Salle Brothers in their school or go to the Comboni school in town run by the Evangelising Sisters and the Diocese. Education is a foundational ministry and one of a number that the sisters, brothers, and priests carry out. As for the cake, well the decorator ran out of space and decided that Celebrating Holy Life was grand. On reflection we all agreed.
“Ben Nhialic areer keg a way!”,
Fr. Alan
Read more of Fr Alan’s journey:
– Looking for a Sign on the Way to South Sudan
– Building a Better Future in South Sudan
– Chirstmas greetings from Fr Alan in South Sudan
– A Cup of Sugar and Maybe a Goat
Images via Fr Alan & Loreto Rumbeck on Facebook
HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN
Feb 1, 2021
Life is filled with key moments that help shape us into the person we are today. Many are unique to our story and depend on our different circumstances, but some are shared and have become part of our culture. I would argue that in Ireland one of the biggest, most profoundly impactful events we have is the Leaving Cert. Even mentioning the words brings back memories of feverish late night study, wild prayers for inspiration, and the occasion desperate gamble on what part of each subject you choose to focus your time on.
Last week, Loreto Rumbek held the South Sudanese version of the mock Leaving Cert. Students had a week and a half of tests on English, maths, the sciences, geography, history, religious education, and business. Each day I would drop by the exam hall to see how they were doing, give a word of encouragement where needed, and say a prayer for them all. That said, I wouldn’t swap places with them for all the tea in China!
The importance of studies cannot be overemphasised. The girls have made real sacrifices to be here, going against societal expectations and cultural pressures. It is still an unfortunate reality that teenage girls here are more likely to die in childbirth than they are to graduate secondary school. Let that sink in for a second. It sounds unbelievable, but it is true. It gives you an idea of what these girls are fighting for – a better future for themselves and for future generations of young women in South Sudan. The change that needs to happen begins in earnest in that large, dusty exam hall in a place you would struggle to find on a map.
My part in this societal and cultural revolution is tiny, but enthusiastically carried out. The Religious Education teacher finished in the school at the end of 2020, so I naively volunteered to correct and give feedback on the exam papers. I have always been told it is good to help out where you can. In my middle age what I had forgotten was that mocks are always traditionally marked a lot harder than normal. The idea is that it highlights what the students need to focus on and encourages them to study more before the real exams. I was lucky to get out alive after the feedback class. The girls fought and argued for every percentage point, disputing the finer questions of theology, sociology, and moral philosophy with the wit and wisdom of a St. Thomas Aquinas or a St. Catherine of Siena. Here exams really count!
Life has now returned to normal, at least for the time being. In a normal school year, the students would sit their state exams in December. Of course, last year was anything but normal. Now we hope that they will be held in March, but we are still waiting for confirmation. As it stands only exams classes are allowed back in school, but there are signs of a gradual return to education. Most of the children will have been out of class for a year and in a country with no national power grid, let alone internet and computers, home schooling was never an option. So, it’s a new beginning and it will take time, but we will get there. In the meantime, do keep the girls in your prayers. There is a lot riding on how well they do.
God bless or as they say here Ben Nhialic areer keg a way,
Fr. Alan
Read more of Fr Alan’s journey:
– Looking for a Sign on the Way to South Sudan
– Building a Better Future in South Sudan
Images via Loreto Rumbeck on Facebook
HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN
Jan 25, 2021
Founded in 2002, the Holy Family Care Centre in South Africa has been run by the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart with the support of the MSC for almost 20 years, under the leadership of Sr Sally Duigan FDNSC.
The Holy Family facility provides invaluable care to young children who are seriously ill, and who, in the majority of cases, have been orphaned or abandoned. These children are primarily HIV positive and are in need of specialised care.
“The reasons for admission to the Holy Family Centre vary, but many children have been abandoned, sexually abused, physically abused, orphaned,or made vulnerable because of HIV/AIDS,” says Sr Sally. “Some come from horrific backgrounds and arrive here very ill, malnourished, frightened, lacking social skills, and generally very bewildered.”
The Holy Family Care Centre is, above all, a place of family, unity, and love.
“We love these children unconditionally,” says Sr Sally. “It doesn’t take long for them to feel at home and to change once they feel loved and cared for.”
With the resources to accommodate 70 children, the centre’s facilities are stretched to full capacity and beyond on a daily basis. Today, 76 children are resident at the centre, and of this number, 56 children attend the local primary school.
Last year, due to the challenges brought about by COVID-19, Sr Sally and the Holy Family team made the decision to home school the children for the year.This has proven to be very beneficial for the students, particularly those children with special needs who require extra care and attention.
Now that the school is returning for the new year, the Holy Family children are in need of help. The students need uniforms, shoes, books, pens, pencils,and bags, to prepare for their return to school and to be able to receive an education that will give them a solid foundation for a brighter, more hopeful future.
From pens and pencils to full school uniforms, even a small donation will make a big difference to Sr Sally and the Holy Family team.
Can you help to educate the Holy Family children?
“It is with deep appreciation that I say ‘Thank you!’ In the past year, you have helped our ministries very significantly, and in this time of uncertainty, you are helping us to help people affected by the coronavirus pandemic all over the world.”
“May you be blessed! Be assured of our continued prayers for your intentions, through the intercession of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart.”
Sr Marife Mendoza FDNSC
Congregational Leader of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart
CAN YOU HELP EDUCATE THE HOLY FAMILY CHILDREN?
Jan 14, 2021
Five academy learners that are greatly benefiting from your extremely generous donation very gratefully received : Koketso Mamogopodi, Lucky Marema, Vokois Mohlabini, Thato Moeti and Litha Lugalo.
Last year as part of our World Missions Appeal you helped us aid the students at Berea-Albion FC & Academy in Pretoria South Africa and we are glad to report the donations have been put to good use. The Academy helps young disadvantaged learners through quality education, accommodation, housing, nutrition, football training and development for a better future life. These youths often have struggled with poverty, HIV/AIDS, abuse, alcoholism, and poor educational backgrounds.
We are pleased to say that since then they have been able to fund the erection of water tanks and buildings which include an eatery/dining area and outdoor meeting and entertainment area for our academy learners.
Neil Bosman, co-founder of the Academy has expressed sincere gratitude for your continued support .
CAN YOU HELP OUR MSC MISSIONS IN SOUTH AFRICA?
Jan 7, 2021
Missionaries of Charity Community
Neighbours are important. I think we’ve come to a deeper realisation of this over these last twelve months. If there is to be anything positive taken from 2020 it must surely be our shared reliance on one another. In addition to the heroic efforts of front-line workers, we have seen neighbours arrange shopping, collect prescriptions, and perhaps most importantly pick up the phone and call to make sure people are doing alright. Some might argue that we had lost this sense of community, but even if we did it’s back in a big way and not likely to be forgotten anytime soon.
Since I wrote last, we had our own Christmas in Loreto, which was both simple and wonderful. There were about thirty students and interns who had stayed with Sr. Orla and me for the holidays. On Christmas Eve we had a prayer service that began at sunset and ended with us singing Silent Night under a perfectly clear, stary sky. For Christmas Day itself Mass was celebrated in the school yard and some of the local villagers joined us in giving thanks for the birth of Our Lord.
This was followed by a special festive lunch of goat, chapatis, ingera, sukumawiki, and (for those of us Irish missionaries who might be feeling a little home sick) potatoes and tripe (an enthusiastic yes to the first and a hard no to the second!). Traditionally you eat the food using the flatbreads instead of cutlery. Sr. Orla managed without difficulty. I brought a fork. Eleven years in the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland taught me to be prepared!
Mary Immaculate Hospital is run by the Comboni congregation and is one of the few health care facilities in the region with a surgical unit. This is led by Br. Rosario, who is also one of the hospital’s surgeons.
Christmas in South Sudan is all about visiting. People travel home to be with family and friends. They catch up with the local news, laugh over good times, shed a tear if there has been a tragedy, but above all they spend time together. The same is true for religious communities. Throughout the Diocese of Rumbek we have sisters, brothers, and priests from all over the world, working in a number of key ministries. There is little opportunity for down time, as the demands can seem unending. Visiting one another for a cup of tea, chatting over some lunch, or gathering for some prayer is truly priceless. Hospitality is both a special and necessary grace.
Our first port of call during Christmastime was to the Missionaries of Charity or Mother Theresa’s sisters to you and me. They work close to the Cathedral in a number of ministries for the poor, including a post-natal residential nutrition programme and an outreach project to a village of people with leprosy. The students came along as we celebrated an early morning Mass with them, followed by breakfast, which went down very well.
Our next stop during the holidays was Holy Cross Parish which is run by Spiritan Fathers, including Monaghan native Fr. John as the PP and Fr. Nolasco from Tanzania as the assistant pastor. They had just installed solar power in their church in time for the Christmas vigil. It is a real gift in a town without an operational power grid and where light at night-time is rare. In addition to their parish ministry, they are also in the process of building a primary school in the bush. St. Joseph’s should be ready for its first students later this year.
There is a firm belief that education is foundational in the development of South Sudan. While Loreto emphasises the importance of schooling for girls, our neighbours, Br. Eustace from Sri Lanka and Br. Joseph from South Sudan, are doing the same for the boys in the De La Salle Secondary School. What they are trying to achieve is more than just academic excellence. The schools promote a philosophy of education that is respectful of local culture, is rooted in Catholic values,and which forms the leaders of the future.
Our last visit was to the town of Mapourdit. Don’t bother trying to find it on Google maps. I’ve looked and it’s not there. The town itself was once a refugee camp but has now taken on a life of its own, in part because of the work of the Comboni Missionaries and our MSC sister congregation, the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. Br. Rosario, from Italy, is one of the two surgeons in Mary Immaculate Hospital.A brief tour of the facility showed us how they use the little they have to provide maternity care, malaria treatment, surgery for gunshot wounds, hepatitis vaccinations, HIV / AIDS programmes, and basically anything else you can imagine – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Comboni hospital, the schools, and the parish are supported by Sr. Wendy, Sr. Rita and their lay associate Pauline, all from Australia, who have worked there for twenty years.
On leaving we found that we had an addition passenger. Fr. Placide, the PP who come from the Democratic Republic of Congo, surprised us with a goat to thank us for our visit. It was a long two and a half hours home over a bumpy road with a clearly irate and aggressively incontinent goat. In case you are wondering she is settling in fine in Loreto, but later this afternoon I have to clean out the back of the truck. A small price to pay to for seeing the remarkable difference religious are making here in South Sudan.
All in all, it was a very special Christmas indeed.
God bless,
Fr. Alan
HELP US TO TRANSFORM LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN
