World Interfaith Harmony Week Celebrations in the Philippines

We received news of the participation of Xaverian seminarians in the Philippines celebration of World Interfaith Harmony Week.

Seminarians of the Xaverian Missionaries participating at the Sikh Temple

The Sikhs are famous for their open kitchen as part of their spiritual practice so the group was able to experience sitting on the floor and being served with the deliciously spicy Indian food. After the physical bodies were fed, food for the spirit was then served as they were toured inside the worship hall of the temple and were oriented to the basic teachings of the Sikh faith. At this point they were joined by Peacemakers' Circle members who are seminarians from the Xaverian Missionaries (Catholic) and who were also participating in the visitation.

This was followed by the highlight of the program: the Muslim and Christian youths then offered their gift of friendship-- a Muslim Maranao traditional dance called Singkil. The performance was warmly and heartily received by everyone. The deep feeling of gratitude and oneness spontaneously broke into a community song: We Are One Family.

At the Bahaí Center in Malate, Manila, the group were warmly welcomed by the Baha'i' community, in particular their youths. The short program started with interfaith prayers led by UMCPA elders, Pres. Eric Tomarompong (Muslim) and Nay Loreta Borlongan (Christian), while a youth sang a Bahaí prayer. After a brief orientation on the Bahai Faith and an explanation about the World Interfaith Harmony Week celebration, introductions were made around the circle.

View more photos here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2079508&id=1376771160&l=f6f470fc2a 

Lay Catholic Missionaries Killed by Somali Pirates

Fr. Michael Montoya from the US Catholic Mission Association shared on their blog this heart wrenching post. I thought to pass it on to you!

In January of 2009 the USCMA received a request for help with a mission.  The request for help and prayers came from Scott and Jean Adams.  On February 18, 2011 they were captured by Somali pirates and were killed on February 22, 2011.  The Adams were members of St. Monica Parish in Santa Monica, Ca.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O, Lord.
And let perpetual light shine upon them.

Here is the first correspondence from Jean to the USCMA:

My husband and I have a personal mission to distribute Bibles in the countries we visit on our boat, s/v Quest. Our past travels can be seen on our website, svquest.com We are interested in finding missions in the countries we plan to visit in 2009/10. These countries are: Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Caroline Islands (FSM), Palau, northern Philippines Islands, and Hong Kong. When we visit small islands it is not difficult to find the local church. We have found that local people are VERY interested in receiving our Bibles. We are MOST interested in Catholic contacts in the northern Philippines and Hong Kong. Is it possible to get Bibles into China? As we are in our "late middle age" we are NOT interested in breaking laws or landing in jail (in China)! However, if it is possible to legally take Bibles into Hong Kong/China we'd like to do that. We look forward to having a conversation with you folks, Blessings to you, Jean Adam

Read an email from Scott and Jean to Fr. Michael Montoya keeping the USCMA updated on their mission endeavors.  

January 14, 2009
Dear Michael,
We plan to have about 60 cases (maybe 3 pallets) of Bibles on board when we leave New Zealand in April. That will be 24 cases of Catholic Bibles. We do NOT want to go into Hong Kong with Bibles unless we are SURE that we can legally bring them into the country. We try to plan our mission so that we will be out of Bibles by our last port (in this case, Hong Kong). Many of the islands use the Bibles in their schools (and of course, Churches). We plan to have more children’s Bibles this year and we also are trying to bring “easy reader” versions. If we were sure that we could legally do this we might hold back 4 to 6 cases for Hong Kong. This might be 5 cases of The Good News (24 Bibles/case) and a case of Children’s (Contemporary English Version) – (10/case). We find that generally the Catholics are NOT keen on receiving non Catholic Bibles. The problem is that the Catholic Bibles are often more expensive. The children’s Bibles are also more expensive as they have pictures in them – which is good for children!
We will order and ship the Bibles from the States to NZ in February (This isn’t cheap either!!). We will arrive in NZ by air in March. This is where our boat is. We are having work done there for this very long trip. We’ll bring the boat to Auckland when the Bibles come in. Storage on land is also very costly, so we have to time it just right so we put the Bibles on the boat very soon after their arrival.
We were in Fiji last year and have friends that we promised to visit when we returned, so I think we have sufficient contacts there (unless you have someone special on the west side that you think we should meet).
We are looking for contacts in Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. When we go to the Fed States of Micronesia we’ll be stopping at various islands where we have found that there is usually one Church and one chief and one pastor on each island and we interact with them.
Our plans in the Philippines are to go through the San Bernardino Strait, visit the islands through the Sibuyan Sea to Manila, and eventually depart for Hong Kong from San Fernando. So, if you have contacts in these areas please let us know. I do have one contact from a member of my faith group (who comes from the Philippines). Scott & I are Catholic.
We’re looking forward to getting some ideas from you.
Warm regards,
Jean

The Pope Announces the Date of Canonization of Blessed GM Conforti

Pope Benedict XVI announced today that the canonization of our Founder, Blessed Guido Maria Conforti, Founder of the Xaverian Missionaries. He will be canonized, along with two others on Sunday, October 23 2011 in Rome. Father Luigi Guanella, founder of the Congregation for the Servants of Charity and Daughters of Our Lady of Providence and Sister Bonifacia Rodriquez de Castro, foundress of the Servants of St. Joseph will also be canonized along with Blessed Conforti.

Blessed GM Conforti was born on Mach 30, 1865 at Ravadese, Italy. At the age of 17, Conforti entered the diocesan seminary in Parma. After a brilliant course of studies, he was ordained a priest on September 22, 1888, and was in turn professor, Vice Rector of the seminary, and Vicar General of the diocese. Consumed with zeal for the proclamation of the Gospel among those who did not know Christ, he founded the St. Francis Xavier Foreign Mission Society on December 3, 1895.
In 1902, he was appointed Archbishop of Ravenna, Italy. His health however obliged him to resign in October 1904. In 1907, he was put in charge of the Diocese of  Parma, Italy, where he displayed pastoral activity that as just short of prodigious in its extent and variety.
He died in Parma on November 5, 1931. Pope John Paul II declared Archbishop Conforti Venerable on February 11, 1982 and Blessed on March 17, 1996. He will be canonized a new missionary saint of the Church on October 23, 2011.
We will be posting on a regular basis aspects of the legacy and spirituality of Blessed Guido Conforti, whose congregation today represents more than 800 missionary priests and brothers in 18 countries worldwide.

Acoustic Africa

Muchatuta - Oliver Mtukudzi from IMN World on Vimeo.

The second installment of International Music Network's exhilarating musical journey focuses on the richness of the African guitar tradition. The Acoustic Africa tour includes Habib Koité, the Malian superstar whose exciting concerts have endeared him to audiences worldwide, Oliver Mtukudzi, the best-selling artist in his home country of Zimbabwe, and Afel Bocoum, a guitarist, singer, and composer from Mali whose songs evoke the evolution of traditional Malian society.

One of Africa’s most exciting performers, Habib Koite plays music that reflects the diverse musical traditions of his Malian homeland. Accompanied by his band Bamada, Koite has released a number of successful and critically acclaimed albums and has appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman and in major magazines such as People and Rolling Stone. Over the past 10 years, Habib and his band have performed over 600 concerts for adoring audiences in far-flung locations such as Japan, Australia, Brazil and Kazakhstan. With their engaging stage presence and expert musicianship, Habib Koite and Bamada always put on a show to remember.

Check out US Tour dates!
Listen to samples or purchase the CD that inspired the tour

My Missionary Life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Fr. Nardo talking with the mother of Fr. Alfredo Turco in a special gathering of Xaverian families

I am in Italy for medical treatment and for a little vacation. I was invited to write something about my mission experience and  I do it willingly for Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where I have been working for 38 years. The mission of the Xaverian Missionaries are scattered all over the world and have the task of bearing witness to the gospel that was entrusted to us by Christ. The contexts are different and the missionary is called upon to adapt to different situations that arise with the passing years.

Lots of Changes
When I left for Africa in 1972, it was a different world. In those days we worked to the bone in the forest. Now it is much harder after many years of hard work, as if we should start over. Missionary work in the last 15 years is of particular importance, given the state of war that surrounds and affects all life in the Congo. The war is over mineral resources and the interests of great business and governmental powers.

The Regard of the People 
We wish to cry out to the injustices that occur almost daily in our country and the lack of interest on the part of the rest of the world regarding Africa's problems. We missionaries live with the people and their challenges with dangers of every kind because we feel less alone. With all our faults, we can say that the people look at us with love, because we are their only refuge. At the slightest hint of danger international organizations escape. But we stay with the people.

One evening, after several days of looting, some mothers asked if we had eaten something. They brought us bananas and rice and they told us: "We stayed here because you are left behind. You are the only ones who love us, do not go away and stay with us."  What better affirmation could one want.

Widows and Children
The city teems with people, especially mothers and children who flock from the countryside and forests to escape the violence and looting in their villages. The cost of living has increased. Then there is the problem in such a state to send their children to school which requires a monthly fee. Thus, the most disadvantaged are the children who are often illiterate. In my small way, according to the possibilities, I try to help some girls to complete primary school, so that one day they should not be ashamed because they can not write their own name.

Then there are the poor widows who can not pay the rent for half a hut to shelter themselves. We are the days of the Old Testament, where the widows are the poorest of the poor. How many of them are forced into prostitution in order to have something for them and their children!

Health care 
A third priority in my opinion is healthcare. There is no assistance. We are in daily contact with people who need care and should undergo surgery, but have no money.

We read the end of the Gospel of Matthew that the corporal works of mercy are the best proof we give to show our missionary identity. What is given with love has a value greater than any sermon because we love in deed and not in mere words.

I invite all to pray for us, because the Lord gives us strength and grace to witness the gospel without fear and without losing sight of the vocation we have received.

Father Riccardo Nardo, SX (Xaverian Missionary in Africa)

World Interfaith Harmony Week 2011

The World Interfaith Harmony Week is the latest initiative by HM King Abdullah II of Jordan to foster harmony between both people of the same faith and those of different faiths.

In 2005, under the directive of HM King Abdullah II of Jordan, HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad drafted the three points of the Amman Message. These points aimed at building a consensus among the Islamic community on what “Islam is and what it is not, and what actions represent it and what actions do not. Its goal was to clarify to the modern world the true nature of Islam and the nature of true Islam.”

George Yeo, the Foreign Minister of Singapore, declared in the 60th Session of the U.N. General Assembly (about the Amman Message): “Without this clarification, the war against terrorism would be much harder to fight.”

In 2007, again at HM King Abdullah II’s behest, HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad wrote the ‘A Common Word Between Us and You’. This document declared the common ground between Islam and Christianity based on the two great commandments of ‘Love of God, and Love of the Neighbour’.

As His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI noted on his visit to the King Hussein Mosque in Amman, Jordan: ‘the more recent A Common Word letter …. echoed a theme consonant with my first encyclical: the unbreakable bond between love of God and love of neighbor, and the fundamental contradiction of resorting to violence or exclusion in the name of God (cf. Deus Caritas Est, 16)’.

This document has been a starting point for dialogue, cooperation and worldwide co-ordination, between major leaders and scholars of the Muslims and Christian community. It has lead to historic meetings (such as the first delegation of Muslims to meet the pope at the Vatican), conferences, and ongoing dialogue.

In 2010, HM King Abdullah II addressed the 65th UN General Assembly and proposed the idea for a ‘World Interfaith Harmony Week’ to further broaden his goals of faith-driven world harmony by extending his call beyond the Muslim and Christian community to include people of all beliefs, those with no set religious beliefs as well. A few weeks later, HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad presented the proposal to the UN General Assembly, where it was adopted unanimously as a UN Observance Event.

The World Interfaith Harmony Week, like all the previous endeavors of HM King Abdullah, is not a call to water down one's faith, but rather it's a call to respect our differences and personal beliefs and to unite around the basic principles that people of all beliefs agree upon and to understand that harmony can only come if we build upon a solid foundation of dialogue that has “Love of God and love of the neighbor or, love of Good and love of the neighbor” as its core principle for engagement.

READ THE UN RESOLUTION
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