Columban Mission Magazine December 2015

The Magazine of the Missionary Society of St. Columban

December 2015

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Volume 98 - Number 8 - December 2015

Columban Mission

o n t e n t s

Issue Theme – The Love of the Savior

Published By The Columban Fathers

Columban Mission (Issn 0095-4438) is published eight times a year. A minimum donation of $10 a year is required to receive a subscription.

Send address and other contact information changes by calling our toll-free number, by sending the information to our mailing address or by e-mailing us at MISSIONOFFICE@COLUMBAN.ORG. Mailing Address: Columban Mission PO Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056-0010 Toll-Free Phone: 877/299-1920 Website: WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG Copyright © 2015, The Columban Fathers (Legal Title)

The Subanens and the 12 A Christmas Dinner Story of Christmas Goes Wrong

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4 A Missionary Goes Home

Our Home Is with Christ

9 The Cross that Swims the Ocean and Rests on a Mountaintop

Mission Requires Faith and Perseverance

10 The Spirit of the Season, East and West

The Fullness of Cultural Insight

16 Taking St. Columban to Tonga

An Anniversary Celebration

17 Mission to the People’s Mall

The Real Meaning of Christmas

PUBLISHER REV. TIMOTHY MULROY, SSC DIRECTORUSA@COLUMBAN.ORG EDITOR KATE KENNY KKENNY@COLUMBAN.ORG EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS MARCI ANDERSON MANDERSON@COLUMBAN.ORG RHONDA FIRNHABER RFIRNHABER@COLUMBAN.ORG GRAPHIC DESIGNER KRISTIN ASHLEY EDITORIAL BOARD DAN EMINGER KATE KENNY REV. TIMOTHY MULROY, SSC JEFF NORTON GREG SIMON FR. RICHARD STEINHILBER, SSC SCOTT WRIGHT

20 The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Devotion to the Blessed Mother

21 The Vigor of Christmas Departments 3 In So Many Words 23 From the Director COLUMBAN MISSION DEC15.indd 2

The Missionary Society of St. Columban was founded in 1918 to proclaim and witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ.

The Society seeks to establish the Catholic Church where the Gospel has not been preached, help local churches evangelize their laity, promote dialogue with other faiths, and foster among all baptized people an awareness of their missionary responsibility.

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On Looking at the Crib

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ecently I was traveling by train from Yokohama, Japan, to Odawara. In the carriage sitting opposite me I watched a young mother cuddling her baby. The baby was so tiny, so vulnerable, so dependent on its mother. I wonder if any of us, given the choice, would come into this world in such a fragile condition. I doubt it!

But that is exactly what Jesus was willing to do for us. The Son, the second Person of the Trinity, chose to put aside the power and glory of God and become a weak, fragile human just like us. Jesus was a baby and like the baby in the train, He was completely dependent on His mother, Mary.

Let us look at the Christmas crib and ponder this: our God deliberately took on our human weakness and consequent reliance on another. Jesus did this because He loves each one of us in our human frailty.

That frailty which Jesus willingly accepted made Him one with us and also made Him our human representative before God. This is what led Him to offer His life for us, His brothers and sisters, on the Cross. The Crib and the Cross are intimately connected.

Jesus says to each of us, “Unless you become as a little child you cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matthew 18:3) Jesus does not mean that we become childish.

He means that as adults we acknowledge our human weakness and become completely dependent on God. He calls on us in our powerlessness to rely on God’s strength.

But we humans like to be in control! Christmas is a time when we look at the human infant Jesus in the crib. He is asking us to give up control and put ourselves into the hands of In So Many Words God. “Into your hands Abba, Father, God, I give my

By Fr. Barry Cairns life.” (Luke. 23:46) Our Abba-God is gentle and understanding towards ut that is exactly what Jesus us His children. He wants our happiness. We can trust Him when we put our lives in His hands. Let was willing to do for us. The us look at the infant Jesus in the crib and realize how utterly dependent and weak He was. If we ourselves Son, the second Person of acknowledge our human powerlessness and hand the Trinity, chose to put aside ourselves over to God we will become free, and more truly human. When God chose to become a weak the power and glory of God human like us, He chose to be very close to us. Our and become a weak, fragile God has experienced the human condition. He accepts as we are in our human frailty. That is love! That is the human just like us. meaning of Christmas!

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Columban Fr. Barry Cairns lives and works in Japan.

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A Missionary Goes Home Our Home Is with Christ

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he concept of home is a curious one. Is home a place or is it a feeling? Is it both?

For many of us the word home may bring to mind a welcoming image of comfort and warmth. Perhaps a vision of the place we were born and grew up, our parents’ house or even our hometown. It is often accompanied by a sense of belonging, a sense of safety, of friends and of comfort.

Many times when we are away we have a longing for home, and it is quite natural to yearn for our heavenly home. The lyrical chorus of country music sensation Carrie Underwood’s song Temporary Home speaks to this yearning, This is my temporary home It’s not where I belong Windows in rooms that I’m passin’ through This is just a stop, on the way to where I’m going I’m not afraid because I know this is my Temporary home.

For a word with such concrete meaning, home can seem an awfully

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abstract concept at times. Consider our missionaries. We often think of and admire their commitment to “leave home” and travel abroad to places where the culture is distinct, where a different language is spoken and belief systems and routines are unique and many times strange to

Something happens during the journey that is very Christlike...the meaning of home changes, it becomes deeper, and it is no longer confined to the memories of youth, but rather it takes on a new and stronger shape and form. us. Something happens during the journey that is very Christ-like...the meaning of home changes, it becomes deeper, and it is no longer confined to the memories of youth, but rather it takes on a new and stronger shape and form. The following is an account

of one missionary’s return “home,” and what it meant for his family to see him again as told through the eyes of someone who now has a new understanding and grateful appreciation for what home is.

Fr. Charlie Duster had been back to Fiji several times since being reassigned to the United States from his missionary assignment a decade ago, mostly to be present at an ordination or an official function. This trip was a little different. This trip was more of a “working pilgrimage,” if you will. A pilgrimage that would include visiting the people and the parishes where he spent 23 years of his life as a missionary priest, but also one that included active pastoral and missionary work throughout the country of Fiji. It would be a whirlwind trip of energy and activity for two weeks.

We started in Ba which is a town of roughly 15,000 people on the northwestern side of the the largest Fijian island of Viti Levu. Fr. Charlie introduced me to the town saying, WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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“I’m not sure how many towns in the world have only two letters in the name, but Ba is one of them!”

Fr. Charlie’s first official action was to celebrate Mass at Ba’s Christ the King Parish on the very day of our arrival! It’s a wonderful and bright church with an enormous window of the Risen Christ on the east and open windows overlooking the parish school yard with the ever present Fijian mountain scape to the west.

Although Fr. Charlie was never officially assigned at this parish, many people here knew him and anticipated his visit eagerly. Our few days in Ba were filled with the laughter of friends reconnecting and the celebration of the Eucharist. The harmonies of the Fijian people during Mass can only be described as angelic, and the wafting of their voices across the school yard and bouncing from the mountains could be heard early each morning as they practiced their hymns for Mass.

Accompanying the lovely melodies one Sunday morning were drums.

Fr. Charlie informed me that it was the Fijian lali, an ancient form of communication between villages using a log drum. Sunday morning we were treated to the Angelus as beat on the lali. It was purely divine.

After our stay in Ba, we took a painfully bumpy bus ride on the King’s Highway to Suva, one of only two highways in the country with the other highway being named the Queen’s Highway. The ride took nearly five hours. While we waited for our bus at the stand in Ba, the children who attend the parish school waited with us to catch their ride

The harmonies of the Fijian people during Mass can only be described as angelic, and the wafting of their voices across the school yard and bouncing from the mountains could be heard early each morning as they practiced their hymns for Mass. home. In Fiji, some children take the bus to school and others who live more remotely walk barefoot for hours along rainforest trails each day to get to and from school. They were talking about a dangerous game that Fr. Charlie and I had heard spoken of in the parish called “Charlie Charlie.”

Evidently it is a game similar to an Ouija board that professes to invoke

a spirit called “Charlie Charlie” to answer questions and move a pencil around unaided by human hand. The school masters and the ministry of education in Fiji seem to be doing a fine job of stamping out the harmful childhood game that has been imported to Fiji. When Fr. Charlie heard the children speaking of the game, he struck up a conversation with a few of the nine-year-olds. One little girl in particular wondered where we were going; she knew Fr. Charlie was a priest, but didn’t know his name. You could hear the anxiousness in her voice as she spoke of this game, “Charlie Charlie.” Fr. Charlie looked down at the girl and said “I’m Charlie…I’m Father Charlie.”

Suddenly the anxiousness of the “Charlie Charlie” conversation left the little girl, and with a quick and bright smile she laughed and climbed aboard her bus.

Our time in Suva, the capitol of Fiji, seemed brief. Fr. Charlie was able to visit the lay missionary formation program where he served as coordinator for some years as well as the Columban seminarian formation house. In both cases, Fr. Charlie was treated as an honored guest, and the seminarians and lay

Columban Fr. Charles Duster with the Fiji team WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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Fr. Charlie and students

missionary candidates were filled with questions for him. Community and family are the focal point of Fijian society. The questions that both the seminarians and the young women lay missionary candidates asked all seemed to all revolve around the angst of leaving family, community and home. Fr. Charlie adeptly guided the young candidates through their worries using his own journey of mission and parables about finding a home wherever you may be. We left the seminarians and lay missionary candidates in a much less worrisome state after good discussion and more singing!

While we were in Suva, we visited the cathedral. Fr. Charlie had been vicar general here to the first Fijian Archbishop, Archbishop Petero Mataca. We were able to visit his tomb at the cathedral and pay our respects.

We took a moment to pray inside the cathedral, as we often do; only this time was different.

I sat apart from Fr. Charlie and reflected on what he must be thinking and what he was praying about. So much of his life was spent here. He and other Columbans have been such 6

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Fijan lali

a part of the growth of the faith in Fiji, perhaps he was praying about that. Perhaps he prayed for his old friend the Archbishop, perhaps he prayed for friends back home.

Home, there was the word again.

Where was Fr. Charlie, if not home?

While we were at the cathedral, the current Archbiship, Archbishop Peter

Fr. Charlie spoke of the hard work of their parents and grandparents to build such a wonderful school for them along with assistance from people around the world who cared enough to sacrifice so that their school could be built.

Loy Chong spotted Fr. Charlie and in spite of being an incredibly busy man, he asked us to have tea with him and some of the priests with whom he was meeting. Following the tea, he asked Fr. Charlie if he could drop by the Columban Central House to visit with us before we left. We were blessed to

have a delightful visit and dinner with the Archbishop that lasted nearly two and a half hours!

We continued our journey to the smaller more northern island of Vanua Levu to the town of Labasa and Holy Family parish where Columban Fathers John Ryan and Paul Tierney are located. Fr. Charlie had been the acting parish priest here in this sugarcane town in very trying times.

During a flood in 2003, all of the parish’s school books were destroyed.

With over a foot of mud in the church sanctuary, the people worked hard to scoop the deposited mud from their church home so that Mass could be held on Sunday. They were successful, and Mass was held on time!

The people of Labasa and the surrounding area are used to tough work. The sugarcane here is cut all by hand and loaded on trucks to go to the sugarcane processing plant on the east side of town. Trucks loaded to the brim with cane sit unmoving in long lines for hours waiting for their opportunity to move forward toward the plant. Working in the cane fields is labor intensive and backbreaking work. There is no mechanization used, WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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Cane trucks waiting

The school at Ba

and in 2017 Fiji will have to compete, unsubsidized by the European Union, alongside mechanized nations on the world market. It remains to be seen what changes this will bring to the hardworking families of Labasa.

The school at Holy Family held a student body wide event to welcome Fr. Charlie home. The students’ parents and grandparents had heard of his arrival back in town and wanted him to speak to their children of how the parish and the school all began.

The students listened attentively as Fr. Charlie spoke of the devastation of the flood and also the hard work of their parents and grandparents to build such a wonderful school for them along with assistance from people around the world who cared enough to sacrifice so that their school could be built. He told them of the missionaries and how they had left home to make their home here. It was a moving presentation.

We were also able to visit the remote village of Solevu while on the island. Fr. Charlie had been here as parish priest for six years. It took us nearly four hours by four wheel drive to arrive at the remote parish.

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Fr. Charlie celebrated Mass to an overflowing church in this beautiful setting. His voice rang out strong and his Fijian true to form in the crowded church as he baptized a baby during the Mass, a fitting remembrance for any missionary priest’s return home!

Following the Mass, Fr. Charlie was able to reconnect with the “old

Working in the cane fields is labor intensive and backbreaking work. There is no mechanization used, and in 2017 Fiji will have to compete, unsubsidized by the European Union, alongside mechanized nations on the world market. team” that had worked so hard here in the bush to create this lovely parish.

They had invested time, energy and most certainly sweat to carve out a place for teachers to be housed and to build a school overlooking the church and one of the most scenic, but also remote places in the world.

Fr. Charlie seemed to be very much at home here. In fact, it was here that he had been presented with the tabua, (whale tooth) and the most coveted of all gifts presented in Fijian culture.

It was here that he had selected the place where he wanted to be buried, overlooking the sea were he to end his days in Fiji. As we stood looking at the sea he said, “There couldn’t be a more peaceful and beautiful place in the world to be laid to rest.”

There is no question that Fr. Charlie would have never left this place, his home, had it not been for a change in his health that required medical attention unavailable in Fiji,he was home. Home is where all of us belong, where we are welcomed, where we are with those we love and those who love us. Ultimately our home is with Christ. As St.Paul told the Corinthians, so he told us: “So we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight.

Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:8) CM

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We celebrate the perfect gift…

We celebrate the perfect gift of you this year. Your faithfulness to Columban missionary work around the world has made it possible for us to bring hope, love and support to so many who have so little. Together, we have made a difference and we want to let you know that you are a gift to us. We are told that “all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.” (James 1:17) This Christmas, as we celebrate the ultimate gift that is Christ, we also consider the transformational gift that He gave each of us through our Baptism. Baptism is the gift of the faithful to each other, and so we celebrate the gift that is you. Thank you for all that you have done, your prayers and your support have truly been a “gift from above.”

May God continue to bless you and reward you in the upcoming year and always.

For more information about gifts to Columban missionary work, please contact us at 1-877-299-1920.

We remain grateful to you and will always remember you in our Masses and prayers.

For information regarding gift annuities, membership in our Legacy Society, obtaining our legal title or for a handy booklet on how to prepare a will, contact us at:

Columban Fathers

P.O. Box 10

St. Columbans, NE 68056

toll free: 877/299-1920

phone: 402/291-1920

fax: 402/291-4984 mission@columban.org www.columban.org

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The Cross that Swims the Ocean and Rests on a Mountaintop Mission Requires Faith and Perseverance

By Lui as told to Columban Fr. Patrick Colgan

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n November 14, 2014, the Western Youth Evangelization Team lead by Columban lay missionary, Monaliza Esteban, Ms. Marguerita Glode from the Columban “Christ The King” Parish, Sainimili Dakai, (Western Youth President) and Maika Salababa Lesumaisolomone, joyfully traveled to the Yasawa group of islands for a mission, inspired by Mark 16:15, “Go throughout the whole and proclaim my Kingdom to all human races.” The mission requires faith and perseverance. The Western Evangelization team had visited a few parishes around the region, and Yawasa was the last parish to be visited. Columban priests had worked in Yasawa for 30 years, beginning with Fr. Martin Dobey who was regarded as a “great chief ” there in his time.

Listening to stories from some of the youths and elders of Vuaki village, I asked myself this question: Is it possible, to drag a large cross over the ocean like that? Well, faith has really driven these young people of Yasawa for twelve years, from 2000 till 2012. On September 14, 2012, which was the feast day of Holy Cross, the parish priest Fr. Dominiko Daurewa celebrated Mass in honor of the Cross that had been visiting for the last twelve years, and which now found its resting place on the top of the mountain called Vacukubaba, overlooking the beautiful island chain, clearly seen as far away as Treasure WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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Island, of tourist fame. It powerfully signifies faith and unity in Yasawa.

Geographically, the Yasawa group is really spread out, and you can see the beauty of these islands when you sit on top of Mt. Vacukubaba.

Climbing up the mountain is not that easy for first timers, but as you go up, you can feel the famous breeze of Yasawa. I felt my knees almost give up with exhaustion but then recalled Jesus on His way to Calvary. Meditating on His journey made my journey up to the cross more meaningful. The sun high up in the sky, sweat dribbling down my body, each step an effort, and the question kept on coming and reminding me of the youths of Yasawa — how was it possible for them to “swim” this Cross around the islands each Holy Week and eventually bring it up here?

I reached the top of the mountain trying to catch my breath and thanking the Lord for His guidance for His way is not an easy one, but with faith, nothing is impossible!

Sitting at the top of the mountain, overseeing Vuaki village, I could not stop the tears as I said a little prayer too for the late Archbishop, His Grace Petero Mataca, on the island where he belonged. No wonder this beautiful village bred a loving leader who went through so many trials, who as a humble servant of God never surrendered. His journey reminded me that whatever journey in life we go through as young people, if we are

On the boat

humble and strong in faith, God will guide us every day.

Since the cross has rested at Mt. Vacukubaba, no natural disasters have ever crossed Yasawa till now. Also something to remember about Vuaki is the monument that sits in front of the church on your right before you enter. It is to His Grace Petero Mataca finally on his home soil in Vuaki. The monument was blessed by his nephew Fr. Petero Mataca of St. Francis of Assisi of Navunibitu and the parish priest of Yasawa, Fr. Dominiko Daurewa, on October 18, 2014.

We were so blessed to have the youth of St. Patrick’s with us during the weekend. To all the villagers of Vuaki, vinaka na loloma (thank you for your love), and to our brothers and sisters we are looking forward to another grace-filled year Vina du riki Yasawa for keeping up the faith. From all the Western Fiji Catholic Youth, may you have a blessed Christmas and a prosperous New Year! CM December 2015

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The Spirit of the Season, East The Fullness of Cultural Insight

By James Morganite

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n China, the spirit of Christmas is in full swing. Stores stock Christmas decorations and trees, and many clerks wear Santa hats. All this, of course, is without any religious association. The mood is “Happy Holidays,” just like in the secular West, with hope for a retail stimulus.

The embrace of Christmas in the East, however, is not without ambivalence.

In my first year teaching in China, the school sponsored a Christmas performance party and recruited foreign teachers for contributions like Christmas songs. The following year, however, the party had disappeared amidst public debate about whether it was appropriate for the Chinese to be promoting Western customs.

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The question, however, takes on new light when considering the deep similarity at the root of Christmas and Chinese New Year. Both are acknowledged as the most important festivals of their respective cultures, yet their underlying commonality is overlooked. Both involve a confrontation with evil and death and victory over them, Christmas by implication and Chinese New Year more directly. The birth of Jesus would never be celebrated if the story of Jesus did not end with victory over death. The many Gospel healings along the way are just so many victories over the evil of sickness, with death as the most virulent form. The mythological seed of Chinese New

Year is victory over the monster Nian who always appears at the beginning of the New Year preying on people and killing them. After living for a long time under the scourge of this monster, he is finally overcome.

In essence, the stories at the root of Christmas and Chinese New Year are the same. The means of release from evil and death reveals their complementarity. With Christmas, it is an individual, the human-divine Jesus, who overcomes; with Chinese New Year, it is the concerted effort of the people working together, who frighten the monster away using the color red and the noise of firecrackers, gongs, drums, and cymbals (sometimes even “killing” him). The Western story focuses on individual effort and the Eastern story on that of the social group. In other versions of the Chinese myth, an elderly or divine wise man provides counsel about how to get rid of the monster, and this connection to divine wisdom reveals the fuller aspect of complementarity.

The West speaks of two healing traditions – the tradition of Asclepius, the male divine physician, and of Hygeia, the female divine teacher.

When people who are sick entreat Asclepius, he takes responsibility for bringing about healing. But once instructed by Hygeia about the wise rules of health, the people themselves are responsible for avoiding sickness.

Yet the two traditions — the one intervention and the other preventionWWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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and West oriented — work together. Prevention is not a panacea, and in the case of acute illness or accidents, the skill of the intervening physician becomes necessary. The complementary roles for intervention and prevention are visible in the stories of Jesus and the monster Nian: Jesus the divine physician intervenes to overcome sickness and death, but people also have an important role to play for keeping them at bay. Intervention and prevention are two parts of a whole.

Both traditions, in fact, do contain elements of the complete story. Jesus admonishes to avoid sickness by changing behavior, and he also confers the power to heal and even raise from the dead onto others. In some versions of the Chinese story, a god descends from heaven to confront Nian and takes the monster back to heaven with him. Yet the dominant tone in the West is individual divine intervention and in the East social prevention.

Together they express the fullness of cultural insight into overcoming evil and death – the ultimate solution may well lie beyond human reach within the domain of the gods, yet humans have a resistant role to play.

Critics will say that defying evil and death through mythical stories and cultural festivals is psychologically significant, but nothing more. Hope of protection or victory is futile and merely a dream. There is no defense against such demythologizing other than faith. But as the saying goes, or WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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and West

should go, if you’re going to dream, dream big. One can add, what else is culture for? And additionally, it is remarkable that people dream similarly in both the East and the West.

The hope of overcoming evil and death is an important subliminal message at this time of the year. It begins in the West with Christmas at the end of the solar year and extends almost two weeks into the New Year.

After the Western festival has faded away, this same spirit in a different form re-echoes in the East through

Chinese lunar New Year, lasting two weeks. Few, if any, think consciously about overcoming evil and death when celebrating these two festivals.

Nevertheless the spirit is there under the surface. Present at the beginning of each New Year, it is a spirit meant to pervade the entire year, East and West, if only as an undercurrent. CM James Morganite is an Aitece volunteer living and working in China. To learn more about the Aitece program, please visit our website, www.columban.org.

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The Subanens and the Story of Christmas Shared Experiences

By Fr. Vincent Busch

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he Gospels give us a good idea of the joys, fears, and struggles that Mary and Joseph experienced that first Christmas. Jesus was born after his parents had walked 100 kilometers over often rugged terrain. Mary gave birth in a stable because there was no room for them in the inn. Then, after visits from shepherds and wise men, Mary and Joseph had to flee to avoid Herod’s soldiers. Over the past several decades the Subanen people have experienced similar joys, fears, and struggles.

When Subanens hear the Christmas story, they say “Joseph and Mary are like us.”

The Subanens are an indigenous people who live in the forested mountains of the Zamboanga peninsula in the Philippines. For centuries, they fished, hunted, gardened, and foraged for their food, medicine, and household needs.

They also formed a close spiritual relationship with their tropical habitat, and they celebrated that relationship in song, dance, and ritual. Since the 1950s land-hungry settlers from other parts of the Philippines pushed the shy Subanens deeper into the forest.

In the 1960s and 1970s logging companies chain-sawed their forest.

Then, in the 1970s and 1980s, armed conflict broke out in the peninsula

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as government and anti-government forces carried out military operations which often included indiscriminate killing. And now, mining companies want to bulldoze their remaining habitat. Slowly, the Subanens are being evicted from their forest home. The “innkeepers” of extractive industries and of warring political factions have no room for the Subanens in their world.

Responding to the beauty and to the pain of the Subanen people, the Columban Sisters started the Subanen Ministry. For over 30 years the Sisters have worked with Subanen elders and leaders to find healthy and sustainable ways to protect, nurture, and celebrate the Subanen culture and their endangered habitat. In 2001, with the help of the Subanen Ministry, I began working with Subanens to form a livelihood project in which they could make use of their traditional crafting skills to make saleable jewelry, mandalas, children’s books, and cards.

Income from the Subanen Craft project helps the Subanen artists provide food, education, housing, and health care for their families. This income is especially useful during the “hunger season” which is the lean time between harvests.

Over the years the Subanen artists have crafted Christmas cards

whose subject matter connected their experiences with the experiences of Mary and Joseph in Bethlehem.

My contribution to the card-making process is to listen carefully to the Subanens and to study their habitat.

Then, with their corrective help, I draw and re-draw card designs until we agree that the images were true to the Christmas story and true to the Subanen story. Then, after the finished designs are printed on card stock, the Subanen artists transform the images into works of art. With colored pencils they carefully tint each mountain, hill, and stone, and with razor-sharp blades they cut out each human figure and inlaid the figures with colored paper. Each year it takes us about two months to design the cards and another five months to craft them.

Here are four examples of how we designed cards based on the experience of the Subanens and the experience of Joseph and Mary: 1) Subanens walk every day over precarious mountain trails and so when we designed cards about the journey of Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem we highlighted how they carefully helped each other and their donkey through the rugged hills to Bethlehem.

2) Like Mary, Subanen women also give birth in simple shelters WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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with their farm animals kept safely nearby. Subanens know that, in such circumstances, a mother needs supportive care, and so when we created manger scenes we portrayed a helpful Joseph who cleaned the stable, repaired the manger, gathered firewood, fetched water, made a warming fire, cooked a meal, and watched over Jesus as Mary rested.

3) Subanens have seen armed men killing innocent people, and they know the fear and sorrow of having to evacuate their homes and farms to save themselves and their children from such killings. And so when we created cards about their flight to Egypt we WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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drew attention to a frightened and sorrowful Mary and Joseph as they fled Herod’s soldiers and wept for the innocents.

4) Subanens know that the food they eat, the water they drink, the homes they build, the air they breathe, and the beauty they behold, depend on the soil, rivers, plants and animals of their habitat. They also know that their habitat is a gift from God. And so we crafted cards that thanked the God of Creation who so loved the world that He sent us His Son. My journey with the Subanen artists is an ongoing reflection about living and working within the limits

of God’s creation. It is a mutually beneficial experience. The Subanen artists get to work in a project that provides them with modest livelihoods, and I get to behold the miracle of creation through the eyes of a people who gracefully cooperate with that miracle. CM Fr. Vincent Busch lives and works in the Philippines.

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A Christmas Dinner Goes Wrong Anyone for Spam?

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

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olumban Fr. Jim Dwyer discovered a turkey somewhere. In the 1960s turkeys were a scarce species in the Philippines. We never discovered the origins of this particular bird other than it came from a freezer and would be the central dish for our Christmas dinner a few weeks hence. Jim took great pride in the presence of the bird.

As Christmas day approached, the rectory cook, a plump chap named Jaime, declared that the cooker was too small to accommodate such a large bird. Long intense discussions followed this declaration as to how and where this valued bird could be cooked and celebrated.

Eventually, a decision was reached on the advice of a local, church-going housewife. Her suggestion: the local bakery was the best option to have the turkey cooked. Accepting the popular wisdom, Fr. Jim would approach the local bakery and request that it cook the turkey in one of its ovens. He got into dialogue with the head baker who assured him that it would be a simple process. All he had to do was to produce the valued bird on Christmas morning and at an appropriate time cooking would take place. Fr. Jim had planned dinner after ceremonies and baptisms were completed. After 10 Masses and baptisms Fr. Jim figured that at about 5:00 p.m. we could sit down to dinner. In the meantime, Jaime would have all the minor supplementing bits and pieces ready once the cooked turkey appeared.

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With great aplomb Fr. Jim set off for the bakery to collect the central object of our longing. We expected Jim to return in a few minutes.

However, there was no sign of Jim or the bird. As we sat around waiting we wondered what was happening. We waited and waited with increasing curiosity and growing hunger.

Eventually, Fr. Jim returned. As he ascended the rectory stairs his blank stare told us that there was something seriously amiss. Moving slower than usual, carrying two paper bags he deposited one on the rectory table and exposed the contents which were mostly bones. Haltingly, he explained that this was the remnants of the

turkey. With our eyes and mouths open we viewed the remains of what looked like some kind of extinct bird. Essentially, it was the cremated remains of the turkey. A chorus of “what happened� greeted Fr. Jim and the paper bag.

Recovering his voice, Fr. Jim recounted that the baker having put the bird in the oven had a lapse of concentration. The baker forgot that the intense heat of the oven, while adequate for bread, was unsuitable for cooking a turkey. Hence the bare, cremated bones. The baker was highly embarrassed about the whole affair, so much so, that he left his bakery and went next door to the only convenience store open and made Fr. Jim a present of four cans of Spam.

These were the contents of the other paper bag Fr. Jim had in his hand.

As there was no point in getting angry we all laughed. Being Christmas Day we forgave Fr. Jim, the baker, the rectory cook, Jaime, and the housewife who suggested the bakery. We cracked open the cans of Spam, wished each other well and mourned the turkey.

Anyone for spam?

Happy Christmas! CM Columban Fr. Bobby Gilmore lives and works in Ireland.

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How do you live the missionary dimension of your Catholic faith?

In his address to all Catholics on World Mission Day 2015, Pope Francis spoke from his Apostolic Exhortation on Mission, Evangelii Gaudium. The Holy Father said,

“Being a missionary is not about proselytizing or mere strategy, mission is part of the ‘grammar’ of faith, something essential for those who listen to the voice of the Spirit who whispers ‘Come’ and ‘Go forth.’ Those who follow Christ cannot fail to be missionaries, for they know that Jesus walks with them, speaks to them, and breathes with them. They sense Jesus alive with them in the midst of the missionary enterprise.”

Through your prayerful and financial support of Columban missionaries, you live, speak and breathe your Catholic faith. As followers of Christ, you too, can be a missionary through your gift of support. Help us bring the Good News of the Gospel to the poor and suffering in places like Myanmar, Fiji, Philippines, Chile, Peru, Taiwan and Pakistan.

Columban missionaries are witnesses to the faith wherever they serve. Please join with us to help others see the depth of Jesus’ love.

Missionary Society of St. Columban P.O. Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056 877/299-1920 (toll free) mission@columban.org www.columban.org

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Taking St. Columban to Tonga An Anniversary Celebration

By Fr. Frank Hoare

The Occasion There are two Tongan priests in the Missionary Society of St. Columban, Fr. Palanapa Tavo who works in Chile and Fr. Felisiano Fatu in Fiji. Sitakio Semisi is a Columban seminarian in Fiji. We also have present and past Columban lay missionaries from Tonga. However, St.Columban is not well-known there. With 2015 being the 1400th anniversary of the death of St. Columban, it seemed like a good year to present him as a model of the missionary renewal which Pope Francis called for in his exhortation, “The Joy of the Gospel.”

Preparation Losana Vehaala, a former Columban lay missionary, translated a short drama about St. Columban into the 16

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Tongan language and Sr. Clare Tavo, Fr. Palanapa’s older sister, gathered a group of young people to practice it.

The drama has scenes of Columban leaving his mother to become a monk, and the power of his prayer in preventing his namesake, Columban, from dying. It also highlights the importance of obedience in scenes played out by Columban and Gall, one of his monks. It brings in his banishment from France by King Theuderic and his death in Bobbio in Italy.

I arranged with the parish priests of the eight parishes on the main island of Tongatapu to put on the drama and a multi-media presentation of the life of St. Columban for their parish youth groups on different nights of the week that I spent on Tonga.

The Performances Our first performance was in the parish of Houma on Sunday, May 31, 2015. The eight boys were ferried by van while the four girls came by car with me. Fr. Sepa, the parish priest, welcomed us, and Losana gave the commentary on the slide presentation of St. Columban’s life in Tongan. This gave a context for understanding the drama which followed. Afterwards Fr. Sepa asked jokingly if there were any Columban monasteries in the world today, as he would like to join.

On Monday night we arrived at the Nukualofa parish to find about 25 young people already assembled there with the Vicar General of the diocese, Fr. Lutoviko. We were welcomed formally by one of the youth and by Fr. Lutoviko. He was impressed by WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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the story of St. Columban and urged me to show the slide presentation at Tonga High School during their religion hour on the following Friday.

We had to round up our actors early on Tuesday to get to Kalonga Parish by 6:00 p.m. as suggested by Fr. Paea. He suggested the earlier time so as to catch the youth and children after their catechism classes. This was a difficult session for Losana, as commentator, because the children were more distracted than the youth in other parishes.

Challenges On Wednesday night, we performed for Fr. Aleki, the parish priest, and a group of 30 youths of Pea Parish.

This hall, like Houma, has a fine stage, which made the drama more WWW.COLUMBAN.ORG

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impressive. Afterwards we found that the van carrying the boys had a flat tire and no spare wheel. Soane, our driver, took it to a nearby garage which luckily was still open and he was able to get the tire fixed there.

On Thursday, the girl taking Columban’s mother’s part did not arrive. The other girls discussed which of them would take over, if Mele didn’t turn up. But she got her mother to drop her off in time for the drama at Vaini village hall, an outstation of Kauvai Parish. The parish priest, Fr. Aisake, is also the Principal of Apifo’ou College. As always, we started and finished with a hymn and prayer. The actors, following advice, were tweaking their parts at each performance so the drama improved with every presentation.

Our program on Friday night at Maufanga Cathedral Parish clashed with a kindergarten school concert. Fr. Mateo, the administrator, suggested that we use the Cathedral and Nanuma, the parish secretary, agreed to help us with their multimedia system. Though the audience size was disappointing, it was interesting to stage the presentations in a Cathedral, and the background certainly added to its effect. If only it had been full of people!

Heavy rain was falling on Saturday evening. It was evident that we couldn’t take the boys in the open van. Losana saved the day by getting permission from Fr. Lutoviko to use the Basilika van to transport the boys.

The bad weather affected the crowd too at Lapaha Parish. Fr. Epiloka, the December 2015

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parish priest, welcomed us warmly.

Then our projector died. The bulb had burnt out, and we couldn’t show the slides. So Losana gave a summary introduction of St. Columban, and the play was then performed. Some Servants of Holiness Sisters, including Sr. Clare, sang hymns softly at appropriate places during the play.

Celebration Sunday was bright and breezy so we could use the open van, as before, to get to Hihifo Parish. The choir of Sisters was again with us. Losana mentioned that our two Tongan priests and two lay missionaries come from Hihifo Parish. The actors put on a confident performance in what was their last outing. Fr. Taniela Enosi, the

parish priest thanked us and invited me for a bowl of kava. Fr. Palanapa’s elder sister, Mariana, provided buns, cakes, puddings, soft drinks and coffee for us visitors. Then, after a couple of bowls of kava we set off for home.

On Monday we celebrated with a BBQ at the youth’s sector hall. Some played cards, drank kava, cooked, and broke into song every so often. Before the meal, Sloane, our car owner and van driver, offered a thanksgiving kava on my behalf. During the meal, as is Tongan practice, Sr. Clare and three youths stood up to make a speech.

They were happy and thanked those who made the performances possible.

In the different parishes we visited, I distributed a pamphlet on St. Columban to the audience and

presented a book or magazine on St. Columban to the priests. In this way they could read and remember the example of a life devoted to Christ according to St. Columban’s own motto, “We belong to Christ, not to ourselves.” All in all, it was a fruitful venture to Tonga to celebrate 1400th anniversary of St. Columban’s death. CM Columban Fr. Frank Hoare lives and works in Fiji.

Mission to the People’s Mall The Real Meaning of Christmas

By Fr. Mike Hoban

W

ith the return of democracy, Chile began to experience a new prosperity. The signs of that new prosperity are visible in the many new cars on the road, the building of skyscrapers in the center of Santiago, the use of credit cards and the new

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shopping malls which have sprung up in different parts of the city. The problem with this new prosperity is that the country’s wealth is not fairly distributed. The OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) publishes a “Better Life Index” which reveals that the top 20%

of Chile’s population has a median income of U.S. $454,313 dollars per year while the bottom 20% live on U.S. $8,496 dollars per year.

In the days before Christmas, Santiago’s shopping malls are crowded with consumers window shopping or buying gifts for Christmas.

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Unfortunately, the malls are not located close to the poorest areas of the city, and families in these areas prefer to avoid the costs of travelling to the shopping malls. Instead, they have found another solution—La Feria Navideña. Las Ferias Navideñas are open air markets where local residents set up stalls on the street and sell all kinds of things—costume jewelry, toys, clothes, perfumes and toiletries, handicrafts, DVDs, books etc. Many of the stalls sell food— sandwiches, ice cream, pastries and more. In the evenings of the Chilean summer, the ferias are packed with people doing the exact same things which the better off are doing in the shopping malls — window shopping, eating and buying affordable gifts. The stalls open around 7:00 P.M. and close shortly after midnight.

There is no doubt that the Ferias Navideñas are a tribute to the resourcefulness of the poor, but at the same time they present a challenge to the way in which Chileans have celebrated Christmas.

The traditional Chilean way of celebrating Christmas has a very set order: participation in the Misa del Gallo (Midnight Mass), the family Christmas supper, exchange

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of gifts and visits to neighbors. The celebration of Christmas was centered on faith and family. On Christmas Eve, most of the stalls stay open until after midnight accommodating last-minute shoppers. That means that they do not participate in the Misa del Gallo and instead rush home to prepare the Christmas supper. Now Christmas celebrations are less centered on faith and family and more on consumerism.

In the Columban parish of San Matías on the outskirts of Santiago, a group of lay people decided to do something to remind their fellow pobladores (residents of the poorer housing estates) of the real meaning of Christmas. A mission to one of the local Ferias Navideñas was organized.

Several nights before Christmas, a group of eight missionaries joined me in a plaza in the middle of the Feria Navideña. Armed with a portable amplifying system, we sang traditional Chilean villancicos (Christmas hymns).

The Christmas story was read from one of the Gospels, and I gave a short homily reminding the shoppers of the meaning of the Birth of Christ and the way in which Chileans traditionally have celebrated the feast of the Incarnation. Then we prayed together for all the families in the area.

Once this short liturgy was finished, the missionaries spread out through the feria to hand out a simple poster which could be placed in the window of the homes of the people. The message of the poster was “en esta familia esperamos la venida de Jesús” (“in this family, we are waiting for the coming of Jesus.”) We repeated the same liturgy in two more locations in the feria.

When the missionaries handed out the posters, they invited their friends and neighbors to place the poster in one of the windows of their homes.

With few exceptions, the poster was accepted gratefully.

The missionaries also extended an invitation to participate in the Misa del Gallo on Christmas Eve. I am happy to report that the program worked. On Christmas Eve, the local chapel of Sagrada Familia (Holy Family) was packed. Some of the stalls were still open but many had packed up and gone home to celebrate Christmas the proper Chilean way.

Next year, we hope to continue the program in several more Ferias Navideñas. CM Columban Fr. Mike Hoban lives and works in Chile.

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The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Devotion to the Blessed Mother

By Sainiana Tamatawale

D

ecember 12 is always a big celebration in Mexico, when the feast day of the Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated.When I first came to Mexico from Fiji, I saw the statues and images of the Lady of Guadalupe in every house I visited or entered and even in the buses, cars and carts. It was obvious that the people really are devotees to the Blessed Mother.

I was sharing with one of our parishioners, a catechist, about their devotion to our lady, and he said that in that decade the Blessed Mother appeared to save their ancestors from their sufferings and pains, especially the indigenous. From that time and until today he said when they went through difficulties, they pray to Our Lady of Guadalupe asking her to intervene for them to Jesus. Many times I have heard people pray or say Santa Maria purisima ayudanos or protegenos Virgencita de Guadalupe or Santa Maria Madre cuidanos. They called on the Blessed Mother whom they believe protects and guides them in this life.

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When I was in language school in Cuernavaca, Mexico, studying Spanish, we had a field trip to some historical places in Mexico. One of the places we visited was the Basilica of Guadalupe.

When I was standing on the hill where our lady appeared, I just said to myself, “I am standing on the Holy Ground.” Since it was Sunday, people were walking on their knees as a sacrifice praying the rosary for special intentions.

On December 7, the children of our parish ages 14 to 15 years, prepare to put on a drama or a play about the appearance of the Our Lady to Juan Diego in 1531 on the hill at Tepeyac where the Basilica is at in Mexico City.

It was emotional seeing the children acting out the story of apparition of the Our Lady. This is one of the stories their grandmothers used to tell them.

The majority of children knew the story. During the play I remembered the words of Jesus to Peter, “You are Peter and on this rock I will build my church.” (Mt. 16:18) In relation to these powerful words, I reflected that Our Lady is leading the people to Jesus because in the Church is where the Blessed Eucharist is celebrated with Jesus’ presence in His Body and Blood for our salvation. CM Originally from Fiji, Columban lay missionary Sainiana Tamatawale lives and works in Anapra, Mexico.

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The Vigor of Christmas The vigor, the strife, the motorized rush The organized clamor of the industrialized push Am I lost, forgotten, sidelined, rejected Is there no where I can live to feel protected?

My life. Who am I? Is there nowhere to flee?

Can I live as a person with some dignity?

If someone wants to rescue and lay his hands on me Have I lost the reason why I should be!

Am I sure that I can hear in the distance the toll of a bell There is so much to hear I just can’t tell But the tolling and sparkling are insisting on me I must stop. I must pause. It’s a Christmas tree.

So I stop and I pause. Good God, I am not free The infant Jesus who was born gives me dignity The Divine came on line as Jesus in a manger To lose this sacred message is an absolute danger I will go. I will go to that manger of the poor Will I ever forget how He rescued me before The message of Jesus is calling to me I kneel at the manger Forget all the danger Pursue as a stranger The love of the Savior Who was born for me.

Columban Fr. Maurice Foley lives in Ireland.

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The Red Lacquered Gate The early days of the Columban Fathers and the courage and faith of its founder, Fr. Edward Galvin

Fr. Edward “Ned� Galvin was born in Ireland in 1882, the oldest in a family of seven children. After he was ordained to the Catholic priesthood, he realized that there were more priests in his native land then parishes. So Ned Galvin immigrated to the United States and turned a struggling church in Brooklyn into a thriving parish. But Father Galvin had a secret desire to do missionary work. He was especially attracted to China and had read all the books on the subject his local library could provide. Finally, his wish was granted, and he set out with a group of dedicated helpers on a mission to the Far East.

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William E. Barrett created this colorful, dramatic portrait of an unusual man whose strong Catholic faith helped him survive the horrors and heartbreak of his demanding mission to China.

Order your copy today!

Call 888-795-4274, visit your local bookstore or order online at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com and Xlibris.com in paperback, hardback and eBook formats.

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His Abundant Blessings

D

uring the course of this past year I have received numerous thank-you cards from Columban friends and supporters.

Since they are so colorful and contain handwritten, heartwarming messages, I place them on my desk or bookcase for a week or more in order to brighten my office and my life. During moments of discouragement they serve as a visible reminder of the gratitude that so many people feel for the various ways in which Columban missionaries share the Good News in different places around the world.

Sometimes these thank-you cards express gratitude for a recent event, such as the inspiration someone received from reading an article in our mission magazine, or the consolation of knowing that Columban missionaries have prayed for one’s family as it went through some kind of crisis. At other times, however, the sender

From the Director

By Fr. Tim Mulroy

recalls a deep sense of gratitude for an event that happened on the other side of the globe many years ago, such as an encounter between a U.S. soldier and a Columban priest during the Korean War, or between a Filipina nurse and Columban missionaries during the era of martial law in her home country. I am often amazed by how deeply people are touched by brief encounters in key moments of their lives, and how strongly they cherish such encounters for decades afterwards.

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May God give all of us the gift of joy that flows from a heart filled with gratitude for His abundant blessings during this past year!

As I write this message, there is a thank-you card sitting next to my computer screen that is particularly special to me as I look back on this past year. The sender of this decorative card with a lengthy, personal message in legible handwriting is Columban priest, Fr. Bernard Toal, who turned 100 years old in October, and resides in a nursing home in Bristol, Rhode Island. Whenever I take a moment to look at this card I am in awe that Fr. Barney – as he is affectionately known – not only writes so clearly, but more importantly that he still treasures the importance of expressing gratitude for small acts of kindness. Despite the various physical limitations that he struggles with daily, Fr. Barney sees his glass as half full, has a ready smile for whoever happens to cross his path, and maintains a wide circle of friends. The joy that he radiates is the fruit of a grateful heart for the blessings of each day.

As we approach the season of Christmas, I want to say a sincere “Thank You” for your generous support of Columban mission during 2015. May God give all of us the gift of joy that flows from a heart filled with gratitude for His abundant blessings during this past year!

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Columban Fathers PO Box 10 St. Columbans, NE 68056

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Transform the Lives of Others…Enrich the World…Give Hope Columban Mission magazine is published eight times each year and tells the stories of our missionaries and the people they are called to serve. Columban missionaries live in solidarity with their people and, together, they move forward to improve their social, economic and spiritual lives, always with Our Savior as their guide and their eyes on God’s Kingdom.

For a $10 donation or more, you or a friend or loved one can share in our baptismal call to mission and the Columban Father’s mission work around the world through Columban Mission magazine.

To begin receiving your Columban Mission magazine or to provide a gift to a loved one, simply visit our website at www.columban.org, call our toll-free number 877-299-1920 or write to us at:

Columban Mission

Magazine Subscription

Missionary Society of

St. Columban

P.O. Box 10

St. Columbans, NE 68056

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“Said Jesus to Simon, ‘do not be afraid, from now on you will be catching people.’”— Luke 5:10 Indeed, if you feel called to help with Jesus’ nets, do not be afraid to call us and discuss a life of mission service.

We invite you to join this new generation by becoming a Columban Father or Columban Sister.

If you are interested in the missionary priesthood, write or call…

Fr. Bill Morton National Vocation Director Columban Fathers St. Columbans, NE 68056 877-299-1920 Email: vocations@columban.org Website: www.columban.org

If you are interested in becoming a Columban Sister, write or call…

Sr. Carmen Maldonado Columban Sisters 2500 S. Freemont Avenue, #E Alhambra, CA 91803-4300 626-458-1869 Websites: www.columbansisters.org www.columbansistersusa.com

Japan + Korea + Peru + Hong Kong + Philippines + Pakistan + Chile + Fiji + Taiwan + North America

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