MONTHLY NEWSLETTER OF THE COMBONI MISSIONARIES OF THE HEART OF JESUS

GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

GENERAL NOTES

CONSULTA of AUGUST 2022

Appointment and duties of the Vicar General

After discernment by the members of the Council and considering the outcome of the election carried out according to RL 156.1, the Superior General and his Council appoint Fr David Costa Domingues as Vicar General.

Assignment of fields of geographical and sector interest to the General Assistants

In dialogue and after discernment, the following fields of geographical and sector interest were agreed upon and assigned:

•    Fr Domingues: AMERICA and ASIA, District of the Curia

•    Fr Codianni: EUROPE, accompaniment of the General Secretariat of Finance and legal representation

•    Bro Lamana: ANGLOPHONE AFRICA and MOZAMBIQUE, accompaniment of the General Secretariat of the Mission together with the Communications Office; contact person for the Comboni Family and in charge of the Brothers

•    Fr Sindjalim: FRANCOPHONE AFRICA, accompaniment of the General Secretariat of Formation.

General Secretariat of Formation

Until the next GSF is appointed, Fr Elias Sindjalim Essognimam will continue to carry out the function of General Secretary of Formation.

District of the Curia

The Council of the District of the Curia is composed of the Vicar General and another member of the GC, the Superiors of the three communities of the Generalate and the Superior of the Comboni Missionaries in Poland. Besides the Vicar General who is responsible for it, the GC has indicated Fr Codianni Luigi Fernando as a member of the Council of the District of the Curia.

Movements of the members of the GC

The following movements/commitments are planned by the members of the GC

•    Fr Sindjalim: Togo from 26.8 to 26.9;

•    Fr Tesfaye: LP from 7.9. to 15.9;

•    Bro Lamana: Spain from 10.9 to 25.9;

•    Fr Codianni: Verona from 29.8 to 5.9; possible periods of absence from the Curia, to conclude some questions pending in Italy.

E-mail addresses of the General Council

Regarding the use of e-mail, it is necessary to distinguish between institutional and personal addresses. The institutional e-mail addresses do not belong to individuals but to the Institute and they must be accessible also when offices are handed over. For this reason, the General Council continues to assign institutional addresses to the Councillors. These are:

Superior General                                                                                   generalmccj@comboni.org

Vicar General                                                                                         vicgenmccj@comboni.org

Asistant in charge of Francophone Africa                                        agafra@comboni.org

Assistant in charge of Francophone Africa and Mozambique     agapdesam@comboni.org

Assistant in charge of America-Asia                                                  agamesia@comboni.org

Assistant in charge of Europe                                                             ageuropa@comboni.org

Assistant in charge of the Brothers                                                    fratmccj@comboni.org

Since some Assistants may have more than one commitment, it is necessary to choose the email address proper to the question you wish to deal with in correspondence. It is also advisable, when intending to deal with topics concerning different fields of competence, to separate the topics and send separate messages, each one to the proper address.

Norms to be followed in correspondence

Considering the increasingly strict rules concerning data protection, the GC stresses that, in formal and official correspondence with the Curia in general and the members of the General Administration, the postal service or e-mail must be used. It is absolutely necessary to abandon the use of WhatsApp or other means of social messaging to transmit information of an institutional character. Since this norm is often ignored by several confreres, the GC makes it known that it will not take into account anything sent to the Curia by unprotected means, except in exceptionally urgent cases with the understanding that the same information will be sent, as soon as possible, by post/courier/e-mail.

Acts of the XIX General Chapter

The Post-Capitular Commission has completed the editing of the Chapter Acts and has handed over its work to the General Council which examined it during the August Consulta. The first version of the final text in Italian will be made available in digital form to all the Circumscriptions so that they may commence the process of animating the confreres. It is expected that Acts will be available in booklet form in the various languages by 10 October 2022. During the October Consulta, the GC will also consider the preparation of the Guide to the Implementation of the Chapter.

Electoral process

The GC has seen the results of the straw ballots relative to the election of the provincial superiors and has given the green light to the election phase which will start on 1 September 2022. In the meantime, the results of the straw ballots for the election of circumscription delegates are being received in Rome. Furthermore, the GC makes it known that in this electoral phase, no assignments have been made. Those already foreseen will be made during the October Consulta and will come into force on 1.1.2023.

Comboni Bishops

The Comboni bishops will gather in Rome, at the house in Via Lilio, for their traditional biennial Union of Comboni Bishops, from 12 to 18 September 2022. We pray for the success of their meeting and for their apostolic ministry.

Comboni Missionary Sisters

The Comboni Missionary Sisters will hold their General Chapter from 1 to 26 October 2022, during the 150th Anniversary of the Foundation of their Institute. The Chapter has as its theme “…150 years: transformed by our Charism. Missionary Women Disciples going out to the existential peripheries.” We join with them in prayer for a Chapter that will renew in each member gratitude to God and Saint Daniel Comboni for the great story of missionary apostolate implanted in their hearts and in the history of the Church.

Perpetual Professions

Sc. Muhindo Kyasalya Michel - Kisantu (RDC) - 24.06.2022

Sc. Mulu Ghebremeskel Azazi - Asmara (ER) - 30.07.2022

Ordinations

Fr. Mbusa Tulirwagho Jean Baptiste - Butembo/RDC - 31.07.2022

Fr. José Jeremias Salvador - Nampula/MO - 06.08.2022

Fr. Jean Koffi Attigan - Lomé/T - 06.08.2022

Fr. Adobo Mabolotu Séraphin - Isiro/RDC - 07.08.2022

Fr. Mopembu Mambuse Crispin - Lolo/RDC - 14.08.2022

Holy Redeemer Guild

September      01 – 15 NAP        16 – 30 PCA

October           01 – 07 RCA        08 – 15 TCH           16 – 31 RSA

Prayer intentions

September – We pray for all families in the most remote corners of the world who lack the most basic needs that they may feel the Lord’s company and receive a helping hand on their journey. Lord hear us.

October – We pray for the XXI General Chapter of the Comboni Missionary Sisters that, after 150 years, transformed by the Charism, they may live as Missionary Disciples among the existential peripheries. Lord hear us.

Comboni liturgical calendar

SEPTEMBER

9     Saint Peter Claver, priest

       Patron of the Institute, Solemnity

Meaningful anniversaries

SEPTEMBER

9     Saint Peter Claver, priest

       Patron of the Institute, Solemnity        Chad, Colombia

14   Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Comboni liturgical calendar

OCTOBER

1     Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus

       Virgin and Doctor of the Church

       Patron of the missions, Feast

10   Saint Daniel Comboni, bishop

       Founder of the Comboni Family, Solemnity

20   Blessed David Okelo

       and Blessed Gildo Irwa, Martyrs, Optional memoria

Meaningful recurrences

OCTOBER

1     Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus

10   Saint Daniel Comboni, bishop

       Founder of the Comboni Family

       Solemnity Italy, Khartoum, South Sudan, Curia, Egypt

12   Nossa Senhora Aparecida               Brazil

16   Saint Margaret Mary

       Alacoque, Virgin

19   Saints Jean Brébeuf,

 Isaac Jogues, priests

And companions, martyrs                        NAP (United States and Canada)

20   Blessed David Okelo and

       Blessed Gildo Irwa

       martyrs, optional memoria.               Northern Uganda

Publications

Antonio Furioli mccj, Historical-diplomatic correspondence between the Vatican and Ethiopia, Marcianum Press Venezia 2022 (568 pp.). The book presents the letters (in Latin and Italian) between Ethiopia and the Holy See, from 1177 to 1930. These comprise 76 letters among which the professions of faith of the emperors of Ethiopia are especially relevant. “Instead of a volume solely for experts, – Fr. Furioli writes in the Notices – I opted, without compromising in any way the validity of my work, for a broader public … to emphasise the universality of Christianity … and make it a more attractive and flowing read … I wanted to create a sort of actuality connecting the past and the present, which Christians are called to live with the same tenacity as Christians of other times, cultures and nationalities.

Alessio Geraci mccj, Buenas noticias en tiempo de pandemia. ¿Cómo nos habla Dios en este tiempo?, ed. Centro Estudios y Publicaciones del Instituto Bartolomé de las Casas, Lima, Perú, August 2022.

Right from the start of the pandemic, Fr Alessio, who worked for five years in Peru, daily broadcast on social networks brief reflections on the Gospel of the day. While following the itinerary of the life of Jesus and the affairs of a suffering people, the constant presence of God as a father who wants to make us all happy, in solidarity and willing to share, is underlined. The choice of texts contained in the book is by the author himself.

Specializations

Fr Pedro Pablo Leobardo Hernández Jaime mccj, on 20 June 2022, was awarded, Summa cum Laude, an MA in Sciences of Institutional Communication at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross (Rome), discussing the thesis entitled “The Guji of Ethiopia and their concept of God in oral tradition”. Congratulations Fr Pedro Pablo!

Fr Domara Komlan Alagbe mccj, on 4 July 2022, presented his doctorate thesis entitled “The philosophical and social approach of political law. A reading based upon the juridical dialectic of Michel Villey and the African Jurisdiction of the word", at the Salesian Pontifical University. Congratulations, Fr Domara!

Fr Désiré Badola Tigine mccj, on 12 July 2022 defended the doctoral thesis entitled “Le concept thomiste de Création (Summa Theologiae I, QQ. 44-49 et 65-74) selon l’interprétation de Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange”, at the Pontifical Salesian University. Congratulations, Fr Badola!

CURIA

First consulta of the new General Council

From 18 to 25 August, at the General Curia in Rome, a joint session was held with the new General Council during which the outgoing GC, at the end of its period of service, handed over to the new General Council for the six-year period 2022-28. On Sunday 21 August, the new GC and the communities of the Curia greeted the outgoing General Assistants – Fr Pietro Ciuciulla, Fr Alcides Costa and Fr Jeremias dos Santos Martins – with a Eucharistic celebration presided over by Fr Pietro and a moment of fraternal conviviality. Fr Jeremias was absent as he was in Portugal for his mother’s funeral.

Fr Tesfaye Tadesse, Superiore General, thanked the outgoing Assistants for their service to the Institute and the Church during the past six years and also thanked his personal secretary, Fr. Antonio Guirao Casanova, who has been assigned to a new mission in Nairobi, Kenya, despite his eighty years which he celebrated on 27 July last. Fr Antonio has already worked in Kenya for 23 years.

Activities of the Ongoing Formation Centre

The Comboni Ongoing Formation Centre (OGFC) in Rome is continuing its work. After the Comboni Year of Ongoing Formation, which ended in mid-July, the Comboni Seniority Course will be held in September and October and the Comboni Renewal Course from January to May 2023. This will be followed by a new Comboni Year of Ongoing Formation.

The purpose of this note is to make known to all the confreres the possibilities offered by the OGFC in Rome and to remind everyone that their ongoing formation is in view of a missionary service renewed in passion, motivation and modalities. OGF is a right and a duty. The time, energy and resources used are not a luxury, but an "investment". We would also like to remind the superiors of the circumscriptions that it is part of their service to dialogue with the confreres and motivate them to participate in these activities.

In particular, for the next Comboni Renewal Course, we have so far less than ten confreres enrolled. We ask the confreres who are in the age range to participate in this course (around 50-60 years old) to dialogue with their district superiors to organize their participation and, we ask the superiors, to motivate these confreres.

For further information and registration, you can use these two email addresses: fermberna@gmail.com or ccfpmccj@comboni.org, in addition to the OGFC address, Comboni Missionaries, via Luigi Lilio 80, 00142, Rome.

ASIA

Twenty-five years of priesthood

Víctor Manuel Aguilar Sánchez was ordained a priest on 10 August 1997. Born in Tierra Blanca, Costa Rica, he turned 53 on 7 August. In 1997 he arrived in Asia, in Manila, in the Philippines, and since 2002 he has been working in Macau, China.

On the occasion of his priestly silver jubilee, on 10 August last, he wanted to share with his confreres, family and friends a message of profound gratitude for God's fidelity in these twenty-five years and for the gift of life, of faith. and the mission. "I have no doubt - he said - that after the gift of life and baptism, the greatest blessing, talent and grace I have received from the Lord is the priestly religious vocation as a Comboni missionary".

BRASIL

Tenth Pan-Amazonian Social Forum

The Tenth Pan-Amazonian Social Forum (X FOSPA) was held in Belém do Pará from 28 to 31 July on the theme "Weaving hope in the Amazon" and was attended by about thirty representatives of the Comboni Family: Comboni Missionaries, Comboni Missionary Sisters, Seculars and Comboni Lay Missionaries.

The Forum, which began with a great march through the centre of Belém, was held at the Federal University of Pará (UFPA) with over 200 volunteers available to assist the thousands of participants from America, Africa, Asia and Europe so that they could enjoy all the thematic richness offered by the Forum.

During the Forum, various topics concerning the Amazon were discussed: mother earth, its biodiversity, the peoples who inhabit it, their millenary cultures and their right to live well. As Pope Francis reminds us, it is essential to listen to the cry of mother earth and to the cry of the poor and oppressed.

The Forum ended with a beautiful artistic-cultural festival of the different Amazonian peoples and the reading of the Pan-Amazon Declaration which contains 15 political proposals that are an action plan to continue fighting in defence of the Common Home and all its inhabitants, but in particular to save Amazonia.

Comboni meeting on Integral Ecology

Immediately after the 10th Forum, from 1 to 3 August, the representatives of the Comboni Family gathered to reflect on "Integral Ecology and Mission". This was the first meeting on this theme of the Comboni Family, to find a way to implement the conclusions of the Tenth Forum and reflect on how to proceed toward the integral ecology requested by Pope Francis from the Catholic world.

On the first day, after a moment of prayer, the reading of the Declaration of the Tenth Forum followed.

Doing mission with integral ecology as its backbone means embarking on a path of conversion and openness to others in order to make common cause with the poor and marginalized, demands that we must "Amazonise ourselves" - it was said - and make the defence of the common home and of all living beings that inhabit it our own.

Listening to different, meaningful and transforming experiences, in many cases well integrated into the life of the people, was very relevant.

In conclusion, it was reiterated that now is "the time" to act by learning to feel and live in an ecological way, to invest in formation and to animate the Church and the Comboni Family to get more involved in this struggle for life. The meeting ended with an Afro-style Liturgy of the Word. (Fr Fernando González Galarza mccj)

Escola Panamazónica de Direitos Humanos

Bro Simone Bauce, coordinator of the "A vida por um fio" campaign in Roraima, in the Amazonia region of Brazil, participated, on behalf of the Comboni Missionaries of Brazil in the third session of the "Escola Panamazónica de Direitos Humanos" of the REPAM, which was held from 4 to 29 July 2022, in Xare, a structure belonging to the Indigenist Missionary Council (CIMI), on the outskirts of Manaus (AM).

CIMI is a body linked to the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) which for 49 years has been involved in defending the rights of indigenous peoples in Brazil.

It brings together people from nine Amazonian countries who have the task of presenting concrete cases of human rights violations in their territories. In this third edition (postponed several times due to the covid pandemic), six countries were represented: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Brazil (host country). Thirteen cases were presented concerning in particular the invasion of indigenous territories, environmental protection, hydroelectric mega-projects, the pollution of rivers, discrimination against women, cultural taxation and the trafficking of people at the borders.

This "Escola" is only the second stage of a process. All the participants, in fact, are already concretely committed in the territory to follow the communities. The four-week course offers them further tools to carry out these commitments. (Bro Simone Bauce mccj)

VII Pilgrimage for Fr Ramin

On 24 July, in Cacoal (RO) and Rondolândia (MT), the seventh pilgrimage for Fr Ezechiele Ramin took place, 37 years after his martyrdom. About 800 people participated by walking to the place of his death and an equal number were present at the Eucharistic celebration in Cacoal on the previous day. The event was prepared with the involvement of lay people, pastoral groups and movements and with the constant participation in the online meetings of the bishop of Ji-Paraná, Mgr. Norberto Foerster. Mons. Norberto also participated in the two days of celebrations together with Mons. Roque Paloschi, archbishop of Porto Velho, and five diocesan priests. It is clear that the legacy of Fr Ezechiel is not only a Comboni heritage but belongs to the Church of Rondônia and Brazil. He still lives in the heart of this Church, in the affection and living memory of the Surui indigenous people and in the constant commitment of the various popular organizations and movements.

Obituary of Fr Guido Piccoli

Fr. Guido was a Comboni for 41 years and then left the Institute to become incardinated in the diocese of Campo Limpo (San Paolo).

He was born in Verona (Italy) on 11 November 1926. He entered the Comboni seminary as a young man and was ordained a priest in March 1951. He worked in Portugal as Rector of Viseu seminary. He was then assigned to Brazil, at the Ibiraçu seminary. In 1959 he was sent to the parish of Caxingui, in Sao Paulo. A dynamic and enthusiastic priest, he gave a strong impulse to the parish and, as proposed by the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB), began to promote the participation of the laity in ministries. He encouraged various popular movements and organizations such as the fruit and vegetable cooperative, the pharmacy, the outpatient clinic, the maids' movement and adult literacy with the “Paulo Freire method”. Guido gave great importance to catechesis, introducing an innovative style such as "catechesis in the neighbourhoods", to reach not only children but also the whole family. During the period of the military dictatorship, he assumed a role and an opening of great importance, hiding and welcoming many who were persecuted by the regime.

He died on 5 August 2022 at House of the Clergy, in Negrar (Verona), where he had lived since 2016. There are many in Italy and Brazil who remember him for his goodness and for his “contagious” faith. (Fr. Enzo Santangelo mccj)

COLOMBIA

Annual assembly for ongoing formation

The annual assembly of the Delegation dedicated to ongoing formation was held in Bogotà from 17 to 19 August. It was a beautiful experience of Comboni fraternity, synodality and missionary reaffirmation.

There were three particular moments. One morning was dedicated to the Colombian reality in a period of important political transition, with the help of prof. Héctor Olasono, a university professor.

An entire day was set aside for receiving the XIX General Chapter and reflecting on what the Chapter envisages for our community and missionary life: this process will end in the January 2023 assembly in which the corresponding programming of the Delegation will be made.

Another day was dedicated to the celebration of the 25 years of priesthood of Fr. Chinguel Núñez José Irenio and Fr. Monsengo Pwobe Jacques Théodore, and to the 50 years of priesthood of Archbishop Eugenio Arellano Fernández: all three, by pure coincidence, work in the community of Tumaco.

ERITREA

Perpetual vows and ordination to the diaconate

On the evening of 30 July, after the annual retreat of Comboni Missionary Sisters and the Comboni Missionaries together, Sc. Mulu Ghebremeskel, in the presence of the Superior Delegate, Fr Habtu Teklay, made his perpetual vows in the chapel of the delegation headquarters in Asmara.

Mulu was presented by his parents. It was a beautiful and joyful celebration, during which Fr. Habtu expressed his sincere appreciation and thanked the parents for the support and encouragement in Mulu's vocational journey: the parents have already given two more children to the Church, a son and a daughter consecrated in other congregations.

On Sunday 31 July, Mulu was ordained a deacon by Archbishop Menghesteab Tesfamariam of Asmara, in the parish of Kidane Mihret Sembel, where our scholasticate is located.

In his homily, the archbishop stressed the importance of diakonia in the life of the Church and encouraged the newly ordained to exercise this ministry fully. He also expressed gratitude to his family and to those who accompanied him in formation.

During lunch, students and postulants entertained those present with a short show on the role of the family in Mulu's vocation.

ITALIA

Verona "Comboni Gardens"

The olive grove around the Comboni monument, erected in Verona's Piazza Isolo in 1957, now has a new name, 75 years after the death of the Founder.

From 1 June 2022, it is called: "Giardini San Daniele Comboni", as is inscribed on the inaugural plaque erected by the Municipality of Verona, in the presence of the mayor, the municipal authorities and a large number of Comboni missionaries.

The choice of 1 June corresponds to two significant historical events for the Comboni Missionaries: 1. On June 1, 1867, Fr Daniele Comboni founded the Institute of Missions for Africa in Verona; 2. After 155 years, the XIX General Chapter of the Comboni Missionaries opened on that day in Rome, with a sizable proportion of African members, testifying to the relevance of the Founder's missionary intuitions. (Fr Romeo Ballan mccj).

“To you, I dedicate this short poem of mine”

On August 15 last, Fr Manuel João Pereira Correia celebrated 44 years of priestly ordination. On that occasion, he wrote: “The number 44 has no particular value, although I would be tempted to give it one. In fact, it is 40 + 4, in which - wanting to bring out the biblical symbology - the ideal period of 40 is hidden, to which is added the 4, a characteristic of what is terrestrial (the four basic elements of nature and the four Cardinal points). Therefore, a life lived between the ideal and human and earthly fragility”. The message, with its gratitude to friends for their constant closeness, was accompanied by a short poem: "May my life not be a ship in port with furled sails as if it had just arrived after a long voyage, but in reality, not having ever left port, being anchored by fear. Risk all, my ship, unfold your sails and take to the ocean, leaping, for you were made for the high seas. Whether driven by breezes, winds or storms, you will win your freedom since a life without adventure is already shipwrecked! Fly, fly, my ship, the Infinite Sea awaits you!”.

MÉXICO

Provincial Assembly

After a week of spiritual exercises preached by Fr. David Glenday using the Zoom platform, the Comboni Missionaries of the Province celebrated their annual provincial assembly which began on 22 August with a dynamic of presentation and sharing on a personal level of the situation of each individual. This dynamic was of great help in ensuring that the atmosphere was serene and fraternal throughout the assembly.

The meeting focused on the celebration of the XIX General Chapter. Fr Enrique Sánchez, Fr Jesús Villaseñor and Fr Rafael Güitrón, representatives of the Province at the Chapter, shared both its content and their experiences of what they lived in Rome from 1 June to 1 July and presented a draft of the Chapter Acts.

The assembly then dedicated a moment to focus on the coming six years and, in particular, on next year, 2023, when we will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Comboni Missionaries in Mexico. For this reason, a small commission has been appointed, in charge of organizing and planning the various activities that can be carried out to celebrate the anniversary.

On the 23rd, during the closing Mass of the Assembly, we thanked Fr. Enrique Sánchez for all his years of service to the Province and Fr. Guillermo Medina for the years in which he served as provincial treasurer.

SOUTH AFRICA

Provincial Assembly

The annual Provincial Assembly was held at the Lumko Centre, on the outskirts of Johannesburg, from 25 to 29 July 2022, on the theme "Bringing home the XIX General Chapter". The biblical icon chosen was the episode of the apostolic messengers who hand over to the people the decisions made by the Apostles and the Elders at the Council of Jerusalem, with the result that the Churches were strengthened in their faith and increased in number every day (cf. Acts 16: 4-5). We hope that our provincial community will experience a similar effect! 20 confreres participated in the assembly, in a very fraternal atmosphere.

The first phase was dedicated to listening to the various reports: from the communities, the secretariats, the magazine and the provincial superior who urged all the participants "to become truly South African in order to fully understand the context of our mission here and respond adequately to the challenges". We also had two valuable sessions facilitated by Fr. Bruce Botha, SJ, on the theme of synodality.

The presentation of the highlights of the XIX General Chapter by our two representatives, Fr Jude Burgers, provincial superior, and Fr Anthony Mkhari, was the highlight of the Assembly.

In presiding over the concluding Eucharistic concelebration, Fr. Jude thanked all the confreres for their participation and for having accepted to serve in the South African mission. He expressed particular gratitude to Fr. Janito Joseph Aldrin Palacios, who returns to the Philippines - his birthplace - after 16 years in South Africa.

In conclusion, he honoured the four confreres celebrating special jubilees: Fr. Benno Singer (60 years of priestly ordination in 2023), Fr. Francisco Alberto Almeida de Medeiros (50 years of religious profession), Fr. John Baptist Keraryo Opargiw (40 years of religious profession) and Fr. Jérôme Anakese (25 years of perpetual profession). All four, together with Fr. Aldrin, each received a candle with the missionary mandate to continue sharing the light of Christ with all people. (Fr. John Baptist Keraryo Opargiw mccj).

TOGO

Priestly ordinations

On the solemnity of the transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus, in the parish of Ste Thérèse de l'Enfant Jésus et de la Sainte Face d'Adamavo, in the archdiocese of Lomé, the priestly ordination of eleven young religious was celebrated, including our brother, Jean Koffi Attigan.

The mass was presided over by the Metropolitan Archbishop of Lomé, Mgr Nicodème Barrigah-Bénissan, in the presence of the major superiors of the various religious institutes of the candidates, of other institutes present in the archdiocese, priests, civil, administrative and traditional authorities, families, friends and benefactors who came in large numbers to pray and support the new priests.

In an atmosphere of great joy and gladness for the grace of ordination, the archbishop, starting from the Transfiguration, first of all called the new priests to prayer, to contemplate the radiant face of Christ - only in this way can the priest carry his crosses, he said - and to return immediately afterwards to the real and concrete commitment, to the daily efforts, without giving in to the great temptation to "settle down in comfort".

Fr Jean Attigan will continue his mission in the Province.

LET US PRAY FOR OUR BELOVED DEAD

THE FATHERS: Fernando, of Fr José Miguel Córdova Alcazar (ET); Alessandro, of Fr Stefano Fazion (I).

THE MOTHERS: Antonietta, of Fr Mario Fugazza (I) and sister of Fr Ambrogio Grassi (†); Laura, of Fr Aurelio Riganti (I); Isabel Augusta, of Fr Jeremias dos Santos Martins.

THE SISTERS: Akiar, of Fr Merke Zemichael (I); María Elena, of Fr Jorge Decelis Burguete (PE); Leticia, of Fr Fernando González Galarza (C).

THE COMBONI MISSIONARY SISTERS: Sr. Mariangela Sardi, Sr. Marylisa Franceschetto, Sr. Giacinta Caterina Niboli, Sr. M. Antonia Frison, Sr. Zegga Woldeghiorghis Ghebremussie, Sr. Lidia Balsemin, Sr. M. Leda Ceccato, Sr. M. Regina Cominotti.

THE SECULAR COMBONI MISSIONARY: Cecilia Carollo.