Sr. Maria Carmen Ocón Moreno, Sr. Rehema Toiwoki Kimesera, Sr Angela Kapitingana and Sr Maria Julia Alonso Martinez
From Sr. Rehema Toiwoki Kimesera and Sr. Maria Carmen Ocón Moreno
We are delighted to share with you that the official opening of the Ouarzazate community took place on Sunday 14 July.
The ceremony took place in the only church that exists, St. Therese which is attached to the sister’s house. The Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero and, curiously, it was the only time since we have been here that there were no people other than the sisters, in this case our Congregational Leader, Sr Angela Kapitingana and Sr Maria Julia Alonso Martinez representing the NOUA leadership team and ourselves.
It was probably a sign of how we are called to live our missionary presence in this place, with discretion and simplicity, but with great depth, because the celebration was indeed a moment of faith for each one of us. The Word of God guided us through the vocation of the prophet Amos (7:12-15), and the reminder of our call by the Lord “before the foundation of the world”, so that in this place we might be “holy and without blemish in his sight in love” (Ephesians 1:3-14), being sent with the power of his Spirit to carry out here the mission he has entrusted to us through the Congregation and giving us the necessary recommendations (Mark 6:7-13).
Cardinal Cristóbal stressed that our mission here is to offer the population a presence and a witness of Christ. We are here to insert our charism into the diocese of Rabat and, more specifically, in Ouarzazate. He took an extract from Eloi Leclerc’s book “Sagesse d’un pauvre” (Wisdom of the poor), pages 138-139, concerning the mission of evangelisation:
“So let’s start doing something. But where should we start? The most urgent thing,” Françoise replied, “is to desire to have the spirit of the Lord. He alone can make us good, fundamentally good, with a goodness that is one with our deepest being. The Lord has sent us to evangelise people. But have you ever thought about what it means to evangelise people? To evangelise a man, you see, is to say to him: You too are loved by God in the Lord Jesus. And not just saying it, but really thinking it. And not just thinking it, but behaving towards that man in such a way that he feels and discovers that there is something saved in him, something greater and nobler than he thought, and that he awakens to a new self-awareness. That’s what announcing the Good News means. You can only do this by offering him your friendship. A real, disinterested friendship, without condescension, made up of trust and deep esteem”.
Another important moment of the ceremony was the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Diocese of Rabat and our Congregation, as well as Sister Angela’s last words, from which we take a few extracts:
“We may be few in number, but history has shown us time and again that even a small group, united by a common purpose and driven by faith, can produce a profound witness. In the early days of our congregation, a handful of eight women dared to be missionaries. Today, we are inspired by their courage and dedication to undertake this new journey to Ouarzazate.
The opening of this community is a testimony to our unshakeable faith and our commitment to living out synodality on a daily basis. Our mission extends to every heart we touch and every life we encounter. We are called to be present, to listen and to act. We are called to be the hands and feet of Christ in a world that yearns for compassion.
Let us carry out this mission with joy and determination, knowing that our strength lies in our unity and our faith. “We are mission” and our presence here today is a witness to the transforming love of the Risen Lord who calls us to journey together as we expand our tent”.
Since our arrival on 12th June we have been testing in multiple ways the Love of the risen Lord who certainly preceded us. We have been very touched by the warm welcoming of the local people, only after few days we were welcomed by our neighbours to celebrate the feast of the Sacrifice “Eid al-Adha”. We were generously served with Moroccan tea, traditional cakes, nuts and a delicious homemade bread accompanied by brochettes of roasted lamb. A time to share among women, to get to know their worries with regards to lack of formal employment, the increase on the cost of living, the high rate of divorce and in between the joy of being together, getting to know each other and offering a sincere hospitality and help in whatever we may need.
The invitations continued during the following days, to the family of the man who used to do casual work for the parish by watering the garden when there was no one, to the house of the president of the women sewing group initiated by Therese, the lay French lady who together with Daniel her husband kept the mission going on for the last four years. Another day, a friend of the FMM Sisters who were here came to bring a huge couscous. All these were precious moments to know people and the context, but also to experienced how much the Christian presence here has been appreciated and respected by them. Whenever we introduce ourselves as sisters living in the “kanisa” (the church), people expressed their joy and many share the good moments lived with the sisters in the past.
Rather soon we started to have “darija” lessons (local Arabic dialect) with Mrs. Khadija, who not only teaches us the language but also initiates us to the local culture which is mainly “amazigh”. As soon as we get into cooking conversations, she advises us how to prepare local dishes and where to buy the necessary things.
Despite the heat of the summer time which reduces greatly the presence of tourists in the area, we have been having also a good number of foreign visitors in the church, some coming just to see the place while others came for the Sunday Services. Most of them did not expect to find a church in this remote place and even less to find religious women living in. Something which strike us is that in two occasion different people came first just to greet and yet before departing they came back again to pray or simply to greet. They were not catholic, but from other Christian churches, but they said that they have cherished very much the encounters we had.
Another meaningful visit was that of Hassan, an elderly man who shared with us that he studied in this mission, in 1946 when there was a small school, kept by the sisters and by a priest, Fr. Augustine who helped him by writing a recommendation letter to do further accounting studies what allowed him to earn his living until his retirement. He went to live to Marrakesh, but he never forgot his origins and he often comes to Ouarzazate. He said that whenever he passes near the church he is moved to tears, as he cannot forget how it was in this place where his life changed.
We have been really blessed to witness at the beginning of our presence here the fruits of the mission lived by those who have preceded us. A small seed planted so long ago and which has certainly produced many fruits. A sign of the Kingdom of God among us which we hope to be able to continue recognising and to expand through the incarnation of our MSOLA charism.
