- El Chasqui October 2015 Ordination of the Deacon Carlos With a great sense of gratitude in our hearts we thank God for the ordination of the Deacon Carlos. He will be ordained as a priest on 6th November in La Tomilla at 7.00 p.m. At the moment he is helping Fr. Marcel in the Parish of Stma. Cruz, La Tomilla. On Wednesday, 4th November we have a prayer vigil in our Regional House from 9.00 p.m. to 10.00 p.m. We will be praying together with Carlos for his ordination. Then, on Thursday 5th November there will be another prayer vigil from 7.00 pm until 9.00 p.m. and this time it will be held in the Parish of La Tomilla where he has been working for the last 10 months. May I ask you to join us in your prayers! I would like to take this opportunity to thank the International House of Formation for all the years of companionship in the formation of Carlos. Thank you very much, Fr. Mark and Fr. Hector.
Regional Chapter September 2015 We had a week together between the 22nd and the 25th September. It was a very enriching experience. During the first day we had a day of reflection about the rapid changing reality of Peru with the help of sociologist Pilar Arrollo. She gave three very interesting talks about the politics, economy and education here in Peru. Then we had three full days to discuss themes such as brotherhood, accountability, new ministries, ongoing formation and vocations. We also had on the agenda the possibility of a new mission. We are grateful that we have walked a long way, while being aware that there are areas which still need to be strengthened. We had a very good facilitator who helped us during the whole process of the chapter. You can see the photos on Facebook. Our appointment is for the next Regional Chapter 2018.
Missionary Experiences. We have no words to thank you enough for the two missionary experiences that we had this year. The first mission was accomplished by Fr. Silvio Bezzina and another 9 volunteers that came here to help in our mission. They went to Aplao and worked very hard there together with Fr. Nicholas and Fr. Teo. Thanks for their donations and support. Then we had the visit of Fr. Louis Mallia together with 18 volunteers who came from Malta. They did a great mission here and all the families they visited are very happy with the help they received. Fr. Louis also sent us two big containers, together with all the donations they brought with them. We are all witnesses of the blessings received from such missions. While I am sure that the Maltese really had a great stay with us here, they have also enriched us with their enthusiasm and encouragement. Thanks a million!
Course in Missiology At the moment Fr. Beto Laura is in Bogota, Colombia. He went there on the 26th September and will be coming back towards the end of November. He is doing a missiology course in Celam Institute. Fr Beto is a full time vocational promoter and this course in missiology will surely help him a lot in his ministry. Thanks to the Casa Generalizia for the sponsorship.
Vincent Magro He is on his way back to Malta. Fr. Vicente Magro has been with us for the last 3 months. We really appreciate his enthusiasm, his energy and his zeal for our missionary work here in Peru. He is 78 years old and I can tell you that he is still very young in spirit. Something noticeable in the ministry is his passion and dedication. Thank you, ´Sensu´, for all your dedication and support. That is the way a Vietnamese nun used to pronounce his name!
Manuel Parnis It is time to show our appreciation towards Fr. Manuel Parnis for the long years of hard work here in Peru. He worked for 7 years in Lima, and then he went for 2 years in Aplao and another 4 years here in Arequipa. He did a great job amongst us especially with his Pauline drive and enthusiasm in his ministry. Thank you, Leli!
New Ministries We are very much encouraged by the General Council to look beyond our usual methods in ministries of our parishes. Here in Arequipa we encounter people with family problems every day. So as a community we are thinking of a new beginning! Thanks to Fr. Alex, a part of the infrastructure of the Aldea (Orphanage) will be used for family therapy. We will be offering counseling, psychological assessment, legal advice, spiritual direction and prevention programs. We will be helping women with posttrauma effects of abortion, or those who want to do the abortion etc. Fr. Alex is in contact with the bishop to start this new ministry and the bishop is providing some of the professional staff. We will be referring all the families in difficulty living in our parishes to such programs. Obviously a huge emphasis will be focused on the prevention programs and on the formation of laity.
Projects under construction Here in Arequipa, we are going through a very quiet moment in the sense of projects and constructions. Most of us are dedicated to ministries and the formation of laity. I think that our parishes are now furnished enough with infrastructures thanks to the benefactors, the dedication and the hard work that has been done years before. But in Aplao, Fr. Nicholas Schembri is building a retreat complex which is very nicely situated in Mascapampa. He is doing it bit by bit according to the means available. He
is receiving a lot of support from the Mayor of Aplao. Surely it will be a nice complex when it will be finished. About 2 years ago, also in Aplao, we were given a huge piece of land which belongs to Kolpin (a German institution with philanthropic aim). It seems that they are not interested anymore in working in Aplao and they wanted that an institution with the same purpose will be in charge of it. So at the moment Fr. Nicholas is also arranging the place for retreats and conferences there. This is a strategic place because it is very close to Aplao. At the moment we are trying to transfer the land to the MSSP. Thanks a lot for the hard work, Fr. Nicholas, together with Fr. Teo.
May I take this opportunity to thank all the MSSP members here in Peru for their dedication and hard work. We are few in numbers but big at heart. Thanks also to all the members in general for your support and prayers. May God bless you all.
Fr. Giovanni