“This is the day that the Lord has made”
“This is the day that the Lord has made, a day of celebration and joy” On Sunday 08/05/2022, our Sister Priscille Nisubire made her final profession in her parish of origin, Kiganda in the Archdiocese of Bujumbura in Burundi. It was a day of joy for the whole Church of Kiganda and for us who were there. In the entrance procession, at the sight of the crowd that surrounded us from left to right, we could shout to ourselves: “Ah, how beautiful on the mountain are the footsteps of the messengers of the Good News who announce salvation and peace.” As for the parishioners, they said they were very happy because it is rare for the sisters to make their vows in the parish. The mass was presided over by Monsignor Gervais Banshimiyubusa, Archbishop of Bujumbura. It was Good Shepherd Sunday. His homily was very short and meaningful. He spoke…
“Sister Claire-Michelle, you have been a Link! »
Interview of Sr. Claire-Michelle by Sr. Nicole Robion It was Easter Sunday. Claire-Michelle recounts what she experienced that afternoon. In November 2019, a friend of the “Live and Love” movement, from Palaiseau, told me: “A Syrian family has arrived in Verrières, housed by the town hall. Can you contact them? » I thought to myself that she really had a high idea of what I could do! Did she naively think that I was able to take care of them? The accommodation of the host family was a 15-minute walk from Maison St Charles where I live. I went to see them on December 14, 2019. They were sleeping on mattresses. I found the husband, wife and a little girl of school age and a young child walking on all fours. We spoke in English. He was a journalist in Syria. I invited them to visit us in St Charles.…
Arab course, on-site and on-line
Learn Arabic the Tunisian way at the Maison d’Etudes des Soeurs Blanches in Montfleury! Also online, with the method of Sr Madeleine Prim. The Level 1 manual has been reissued. The dialogues have been written as a comic to facilitate learning. The content of the manual remains the same.There are now 4 Tunisian Arabic textbooks with the Prim method:- Level 1- Level 2- Level 3A-Level 3B. These four manuals cover all the courses given. For information write to m.etudes_cours@yahoo.fr
Perpetual vows of Pascaline Katungu
On April 30, 2022 in Goma, DRC – Sharing of Pascaline Katungu “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will be our messenger?’ And I answered: ‘Here I am: send me!’” Is 6, 8-9 Yes, the voice of the Lord resounded in my heart, he called me from my mother’s womb. Today I say a definite yes to his call. Since childhood, I have felt within me the desire to follow Christ more closely in religious life. He alone prepared the ground. He shaped me through my biological family, teachers, priests and catechists, neighbours and all the people God put on my path. Then he formed me through the sisters of my religious family. Since 2005, the year when I first started to visit the MSOLA, until today. I give thanks to God! It pleased God to call me to be…
Miracles of Mother Marie Salomé, an invitation…
On March 3, we celebrated the 175th birthday of our Venerable Mother Marie Salomé. I felt an inner call to share with others the example of the life of holiness of our Mother Salomé. With our newest community in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, the St Julien community, we have decided to invite our neighbours from the basic Christian community, St Julien CCB, and the nearest community of the Missionaries of Africa of the parish of Saint John XXIII. Being new to the neighbourhood, we couldn’t imagine what it would be like. We shared the tasks: invitations, liturgy, and reception. Already in the preparations, we were unanimous. The day far exceeded our expectations. The community of our brothers, the White Fathers was complete. Around 60 of our neighbours came. Our joy was immense. Mother Marie Salomé gave us two unexpected gifts. After the rosary with her thoughts, we had on the program…
March 25, 2022, First profession of four sisters
After the Novitiate, by their first religious profession, the young professed become members of our religious family. They received the cross, which explains two meanings: • The great love of Christ for them and for all of us. The acceptance of the cross expresses their free choice to follow and walk each day in the footsteps of Christ. • Their belonging to the religious family of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa, which they have freely chosen. During the offertory procession, the four young sisters presented to the Lord four symbols: Bread and wine: so that their lives may be an offering, pleasing to God at all times. The “canary” (an earthen vessel filled with water): symbolizes the life received and given freely from the Lord as their lives to the service of their brothers and sisters. The map of Africa: symbolizes the place of our mission in…
Final vows of Sister Scholastique Makita Mutanda
“Unless the LORD builds the house, they labour in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain.” [Ps 127:1] Sharing from Sister Scholastique These words spring from my heart today, in thanksgiving for the work of God in my life. Without his mercy and his infinite love, I could never have reached such a commitment with my own strength. The Lord will remain faithful to me and I know that without his grace, I could do nothing on my own. This is why I am grateful to the Lord for the gift of my religious and missionary vocation within the Church in the Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa. Truly, Jesus is faithful to anyone who trusts him. When I think of my vocational journey, I see that the Lord has been a faithful companion in my vocation.…
The formation of the sisters in the spotlight
“… It is necessary to continue our training. The times of spiritual and professional deepening will only bear fruit if they are linked to a continuous personal effort, which knows how to exploit the means, even modest ones, within our reach. (Constitutions No. 86)” From the beginning, our congregation has been very attentive to the study path of the young people who wanted to join us. Alongside doctrinal studies, there has always been a mandate to form us in professions that could enrich our apostolate with specific methodologies and tools for our mission. First and foremost there has always been the study of local languages and dialects. At the beginning it was Arabic and the dialects of North Africa and some sisters had acquired such a mastery that they became teachers and professors. As for the professions, at the beginning they were all provided with practical courses to face the…
Awakening the family Spirit
Collaboration is a process that enables people or individuals to work together to achieve a defined and common objective. Our Ukusijoni Common Project at the service of the refugees from South Sudan is a great and challenging mission. To accomplish this, we are privileged to be part of the team that consists of three Missionaries of Africa and the three of us MSOLA. We were sent together to achieve a common goal in participating in the Mission of Christ among our brothers and sisters now known as refugees. To be able to live this mission in a life-giving way, we got the opportunity to come together as the two institutes to spend some time together in Nairobi and to get some fundamentals that would help us in our ministry. Indeed, we treasured this time of formation. It gave us an occasion to see as a team the vision and the…
‘Come and see’ at the MSOLA house in Malawi
This article is an extract from MVA/MSOLA Network Letter n° 25 “Come and see” is a stage when a young woman who is interested in religious life comes to stay in our community. Just as Jesus did with his disciples when they asked Him “Master where do you stay,” He told them to “come and see” (John 1: 39). Here is a testimony shared by young Sphiwe Gervazio who stayed at our house in Lilongwe with three other girls, from 17th to 20th December 2021. Dear sisters! Receive our greetings from the warm heart of Africa! We are very grateful to God for the warm welcome we received from the sisters, the joy and peace we have experienced, the kindness and openness they showed us during our stay in their community. We came to the sisters and witnessed how they live their religious life. This increased the desire to join…