SAINT CAMILLUS WITH OUR LADY AND CHILD – Villaggio San Camillo (Sassari)
Dio ha rivelato la pienezza dell’amore nel mistero dell’Incarnazione; in Cristo Gesù si sono manifestate la bontà di Dio Salvatore nostro e la sua umanità (Tit 3,4). Assumendo la natura umana Cristo, con solidarietà soprannaturale, ha legato a sé, come una famiglia, l’intero genere umano. Costituzione – Camilliani, n. 3
God revealed the fullness of love in the mystery of the Incarnation; in Jesus Christ, the kindness of God our Saviour and his humanity has become manifest (Tit 3:4). In assuming human nature, Christ, in supernatural solidarity, has united to himself all humanity as a family.
Constitution – Camilllians, n. 3
Dieu nous a révélé la plénitude de l’amour dans le mystère de l’incarnation; en Jésus, ont été manifestées la bonté de Dieu notre Sauveur et son humanité (Tit 3,4). En assumant la nature humaine, il s’est uni, par solidarité surnaturelle, comme une famille, l’humanité toute entière.
Constitution – Camilliens, n. 3
Dios ha revelado la plenitud del amor en el misterio de la Encarnación; en Cristo Jesús se ha manifestado la bondad de Dios nuestro Salvador y su humanidad (Tit 3,4). Cristo, asumiendo la naturaleza humana, ha unido a sí, con solidaridad sobrenatural, a todo el género humano como una sola familia. Constitución – Camilos, n. 3
HAPPY CHRISTMAS!
THE DELEGATION OF TAIWAN
On 12 November of this year, the date of birth of the father of the country, Sun Yat Sen, who was a medical doctor, was celebrated in Taiwan. On this day all the ‘medical doctors’ who work in the field of health care are celebrated.
On 10 October 1911, Sun Yat Sen, with his associates, overthrew the Chinese imperial monarchy, which had lasted for millennia, and founded the Republic of China (1 January 1912).
On 14 November 2018 there took place the blessing of the new physiotherapy department of the new multifunctional centre dedicated to the Camillian missionary religious ‘Br. Renato Marinello’.
Every year, on 16 November, Camillians in the world celebrate with solemnity the feast day of ‘Our Lady of Health’ who is prayed to as the patron saint of the sick. ‘The teaching that St. Camillus bequeathed to us was to help the sick in the way that a mother cares for her sick only child. The characteristic of maternity occupies a primary place in the spirituality of St. Camillus’, Fr. Giuseppe Didonè MO, a missionary in Lotung, in the Pescadores Islands located in the archipelago between Taiwan and China, told Agenzia Fides READ HERE
In Taiwan, Christian Health Care, an organisation to which both Catholic and Protestant Catholic medical doctors belong, organised a series of meetings on service to the sick (15-16 November 2018). The closing ceremony was presided over by Fr. Giuseppe Didonè.
CADIS – THE FIFTH CONFERENCE ON FORMATION IN BANGKOK
Report on the fifth conference of CADIS held in Bangkok
This year (November 2018) the Camillian Pastoral Care Center of Bangkok hosted the fifth annual meeting on formation and assessment for the leaders and partners of the CADIS Foundation. The name of the meeting was ‘the Bangkok Leadership Conference’.
Coming from thirteen nations, the 36 participants (religious, lay faithful and partners) reflected for six days (12-17 November 2018) on the subject: ‘Servant Leadership: Looking Back into our Past, Facing the Challenges of the Present and Projecting our Desired Future Situation in the Service of the Most Vulnerable Communities’. The subject was approached with reference to three different fields: climate change, leadership in the style of serving, and the search for funds.
THE PROVINCE OF THAILAND
In the chapel dedicated to St. Camillus of the Camillian community of Sampran (Thailand), on Saturday 24 November 2018, our Camillian religious celebrated the feast day of Our Lady of Health, postponing it in order to organise on the same day the perpetual profession of the temporary professed religious Giovanni Chatchawan Wapeetao. As is customary, there was a good participation by the Camillian religious. As well as priests and religious there were also members of other religious institutes and at least 400 lay faithful.
The liturgy was marked by ‘sober solemnity’. After a period of stasis, there is finally a new religious of ‘Thai’ origins. We are grateful to the Lord for this gift, and we venerate his holy Mother, Health of the Sick. We pray to the ‘Lord of the Harvest’ that he may send us other workers for his harvest and above all that they may be good and holy religious.
THE DELEGATION IN VIETNAM
The Superior General, Fr. Leocir Pessini, with the agreement of the members of the General Consulta, has admitted to the profession of perpetual vows the following temporary professed religious of the Camillian Delegation of Vietnam (the Province of Thailand):
THE PROVINCE OF BRAZIL
Download here the invitation to the priestly ordination of the deacon Elielton José da Silvia. The celebration will be presided over by Reverend Fr. José Luiz Majella Delgado, the Archbishop of Pouso Alegre (Brazil), at the Sanctuary of Santa Rita da Cassia.
THE DELEGATION IN INDONESIA
On 29 October of this year Fr. Luigi Galvani, the Delegate of Indonesia, gave an official welcome to the twenty new candidates with the handing over to them of the ‘little red cross’ during the celebration of the Eucharist that took place in the chapel of the Camillian ‘Blessed Enrico Rebuschini Seminary of Ruteng on the Island of Flores.
Helped by those providing formation to them, namely Fr. Ignasius Sibar and the cleric Fransiskus Arun, the new candidates are taking part in the annual programme of spiritual and academic formation in preparation for their philosophical and theological studies of the next year at the great Seminary of the Verbites in Ledalero, Maumere, which has more than a thousand students.
Read here the article published in La Croix about the activity to help the mentally ill promoted by our Indonesian religious Fr. Andi Suparman: ‘Indonesian priest sets mentally ill free. Camillian Father Cyrelus Suparman Andi offers more humane therapy in his shackle-free homes’.
THE PROVINCE OF POLAND
The religious of the Camillian Province of Poland celebrated on 17 November of this year in Tarnowskie Góry the ordination as a deacon of their religious Adam Markowski.
THE PROVINCE OF NORTH ITALY
The freezing cold has arrived in North Italy. The Camillians of Turin continue their ten-year service of providing help and protection to the very poor who live in situations of extreme hardship, working in a network with other Church and civil associations and with the public institutions of the city. READ HERE
The Camillian community of Bologna, which is involved in the Service of Spiritual Assistance at the Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute (known for its European excellence in orthopaedics) and the animation of the parish of St. Michael in Bosco (a splendid Olivetan Benedictine monastic centre of very ancient origins), has also drawn near to the ‘social’ world with its new internet web site: https://www.sanmicheleinbosco.org/
The cycles of weekends of Camillian fraternity organised by the Camillian section for pastoral care for young people of the Province of North Italy have commenced. Service, fraternal life, prayer, formation, witness and sharing marked the various moments of the two days spent together with five young men engaged in vocational research from various parts of Italy! Let us accompany them with our prayers!
OFTAL Young people – Even before service, the challenge is to share frailty
‘Who loves you…looks for you!’ This new initiative for the Saturdays of Advent is organised by the section for pastoral care for young people of the diocese of Turin, Camillian pastoral care for young people, and the Evangelii Gaudium Fraternity. In addition, it is an experience offered in the heart of our city so as to live a moment of adoration of the Eucharist, of catechesis, of prayer of spiritual dialogue and of confession, for young people and with young people, in preparation for Christmas 2018. FOUR SATURDAYS IN THE CENTRE. From 21.30 to 22.30 in the Church of St. Charles, Piazza San Carlo, Turin. http://www.diocesi.torino.it/giovani/chi-ti-ama-ti-cerca/
THE PRO.SA FOUNDATION (Promotion Health)
Dr. Peppe Sala, the Mayor of Milan, was present at the photography exhibition on a project of our Camillian Foundation PRO.SA. (here he is in the photograph with Mrs. Sonia Vitali, the head of the Foundation).
THE PROVINCE OF SICILY AND NAPLES
Celebrations for the end of the Provincial Vocational Year (2017-2018)
19 November 2018: a day of thought, fraternity and dialogue for about thirty Camillian religious novices and postulants of the Province of Sicily and Naples at the ‘Giovanni XXIII’ Institute of Acireale-Mangano (CT).
Two Camillian temporary professed were also present – Walter Vinci and Nicola Mastrocola – of the Province of Rome.
The Provincial Assembly began with an introductory paper for the day’s deliberations given by the Salesian Don Giuseppe Buccellato, a lecturer in moral theology at the ‘S. Paolo’ Theological Centre of Catania. This paper addressed the topic of ‘blessed weakness’ as a necessary pre-condition for starting afresh, both in the personal life of a religious and in the communal life of a religious Province. This, for the speaker, is the conditio sine qua non for those who walk with authenticity on the itinerary of ‘human holiness’. This paper by Don Buccellato led the religious to engage in positive resonances and the wish to go even deeper into the subject.
A solemn celebration of the Eucharist, with the ordination as a deacon of the Camillian religious Dario Malizia (18 November 2018).
Read also the article ‘witness’: From a lawyer to a priest, Palermo the story of a ‘missionary’ vocation
Download here the programme of the Camillian mission to the ‘St. John the Baptist’ Parish of Lucera (Foggia) (9-15 December 2018).
NGO: ‘HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT’ (Rome)
Support a little boy or girl at a distance. For you only 8 centimes a day but for him or her that sum means food, drinking water, medical care and instruction. See his or her smile while he or she grows: it will the most beautiful experience of your life! For information call 0039.06.89928154
or write to sostegnoadistanza@salutesviluppo.org
The role of ‘Health and Development’ in the field of food security continues in Burkina Faso. On 1 April 2017 a three-year project began that is co-financed with the Italian Agency for Cooperation and Development (AICS).
The area of action is Bagré, in the Province of Boulgou, a region in the Centre-East of Burkina Faso. This area has a strong productive potential but one that is unfortunately hindered by the absence of local technical skills and by a lack of infrastructure and agricultural services.
BUCCHIANICO
From the weekly CREDERE: ‘The Great Heart of St. Camillus’
The sanctuary of the birthplace of the founder of the Ministers of the Sick over recent months has been celebrating a special jubilee. CONTINUE HERE.
THE PROVINCE OF ROME
On Sunday 9 December 2018 at 11,00 the perpetual profession will be celebrated of Nicola Mastrocola and Walter Vinci at the Parish of St. Camillus de Lellis in Rome. The celebration will be led by Fr. Antonio Marzano, the Provincial Superior of the Camillian Province of Rome.
THE CHURCH OF ST. MARY MAGDALENE – SAINT CAMILLUS
On Sunday 18 November 2018, the Rete 4 series ‘Journeys of the Heart’ dedicated a programme to our founder St Camillus and his remains venerated in our Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Rome. Those who missed this programme can see it here. Watch it and share it! Enjoy this broadcast!
RENEWAL OF RELIGIOUS VOWS on the solemnity of the immaculate conception of Mary – 8 December 2018
Fr. Leocir Pessini, the Superior General of the Camillian religious, together with the members of the General Consulta and the religious of the Community of St. Mary Magdalene in Rome, extend an invitation to take part in the liturgy for the renewal of religious vows on Saturday 8 December 2018 at 16.00 at our Church of St Mary Magdalene (Rome).
THE SERVANT OF GOD – NICOLINO D’ONOFRIO
The ‘Pentecostal’ synod on young people is travelling in the Church and the world. Parishes, dioceses, bishops’ conferences, lay movements, religious Orders, missions and all the ‘regional’ realities of the People of God are reflecting on the documents produced by the recent assemblies in Rome, and especially the final document. We now have before us the task of absorbing and applying the message of the Synod, listening (how often did we hear this word in the synod!) more than in the past to the voice of young people and recognising the space, the trust and also the authority which they have the right to in very many Church contexts. From Pope Woytjla to the last Synod – forty years! – young people have advanced a great deal in the Church, which now recognises that they are an original and valuable part of it and wants to work with them in the vineyard of the Lord.
In the Roman basilica of the ‘Holy Cross in Jerusalem’ a meeting took place to commemorate the Venerable Nicola D’Onofrio and the Servant of God Corbella Petrillo. The Auxiliary Bishop of Rome, Msgr. Paolo Ricciardi, invited those present to bear concrete witness in daily life because ‘each one of us is called to holiness’.
DECEASED RELIGIOUS
‘See, now they vanish, the faces and places, with the self which, as it could, loved them. To become renewed, transfigured, in another pattern’ (T.S. Eliot).
The Daughters of St. Camillus announce the death of:
- Inès Martinez, of Spanish nationality, at the age of 87, after 61 years of consecrated life. Her death took place on 6 November 2018 in the religious community of Salamanca.
- Teodora Santoro, of Italian nationality, at the age of 86, after 64 years of religious life. Her death took place on 8 November 2018 at the community of Salamanca.
The Camillian religious of the Province of Spain have announced the death of the religious Brother Enrique Sanz Ortego (at the age of 61). His death took place on 26 November 218 at our Sant Pere de Ribes Hospital (Barcelona).
The Camillian Confreres of German Province, announce the death of FATHER ALFRED MEYER (93 years old), which took place on 28 November, 2018, in Asbach-Westerwald.Remember fr. ALFRED in our prayers to the Lord!
‘Now they live in Christ whom they met in the Church, followed in our vocation, and served in the sick and the suffering. Trusting that the Lord, the Holy Virgin our Queen, St. Camillus, the Blessed Luigi Tezza, the Blessed Giuseppina Vannini, and our deceased religious brothers and sisters, will welcome them in their midst, we commend them in our prayers, remembering them with affection, esteem and gratitude’.
PRAYER FOR THE VICTIMS OF ALL TYPES OF DISASTERS
For all the victims of all types of disasters, for people who have lost their lives, for their loved ones, for the survivors, and for all those who work to provide help, we pray:
God in heaven, who has created and who preserves every existence,
You know all of our sadness and our suffering. May all the victims of all types of disasters be welcomed in your peace! Receive, we pray, in your mercy, our very many brothers and sisters buried by the forces unleashed by nature. Lead them to your home!
Comfort the pain of so many families, dry the tears of so many brothers and sisters, offer protection to the loneliness of so many orphans. Instill courage into everyone so that pain is transformed into a journey of growth and hope.
Generate in the hearts of Christians and all men and women of good will the wish to act so that the wounded and those who suffer because of these calamities experience the comfort of fraternal solidarity.
You who live and reign for ever and ever.
Amen.
Our Father-Hail Mary-Glory
