A Look at the Women of Africa
After spending many years in West Africa, and living in several communities in France, Marie-Vincente Brouca is now at the St Charles Retirement Home in Verrières-le-Buisson. With ever sparkling eyes, she tells us about her missionary life in Mali and Burkina Faso. As soon as I arrived in Bamako, I marvelled at the beauty of the Malian women! In the years that followed, I had the chance to work with them, in a Social Center teaching French and embroidery. In fact, they taught me much more than I knew myself. Among them were Muslim women, much freer than in North Africa and some Christian women. Then I was sent to an African Congregation to train young women in religious life. There, although they only had a few rudiments of French, I saw that they knew how to live and express themselves, not to mention their faith which amazed me. Then…
A visit to the Pambila centre
After Mass one Sunday in Lent, Sisters Agnes, Celina, Emmily and Ancila, left for Pambila, a reception centre 15 km. from Ouagadougou, for young women in difficulty, pregnant, mothers, or fleeing from home. The centre is run by a Protestant pastor and our young postulants have sometimes gone there for their apostolate. For weeks we had prepared the meeting with these young women. We had collected bottles and magazines and found pictures to stick on the bottles. Sr. Leticia had lent us brushes. The girls were very happy and received us with joy. We had prepared some food from our Lenten fast to share with them: rice and fruits and we added some peanuts that we had received. We started our meeting by learning new songs, and together we sang and danced. Then, divided into groups, we colored mandalas. They took time to do it, they were very concentrated and…
Volunteer experience of Marie and Eugenie
In the Dar-es Salaam community, Tanzania “We are Marie and Eugenie, two young French women, and we have been living in Dar es Salaam, in the MSOLA community, since the beginning of March. Everything started in January, when we decided to take part in a volunteering mission in Tanzania. After completing our studies, with a specialization in social entrepreneurship, we wanted to help women who want to launch their own enterprise in order to have a positive impact on their communities in Africa. We turned to the French association “Follow ‘Her”, which offered us the opportunity to support four underprivileged women in Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar to help them to ensure the sustainability of their projects. When we started to look for housing for four months, we found randomly on the internet the contact of Sister Cecylia, who lives in Dar es Salaam MSOLA community, who connected us to…
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…
Solwodi-Germany shares with Solwodi-Kenya during the Coronavirus
SOLWODI had to adapt to the coronavirus. Many appointments and events had to be canceled or postponed. We have limited our work or reorganized it into telecommuting. But, we remain reachable for women in distress. In these difficult times, this is more important than ever. In the previous weeks, we have received more appeal calls from women victims of violence in their homes. In Germany, despite the closing of brothels on March 16, prostitution continues and affected women are asking us for help, because their situation has worsened. The Covid-19 has made it clear that a long-term political solution must be found and that it is absolutely necessary to introduce a ban on the purchase of sex acts at European level. In this regard, we have addressed an open letter to Dr. Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission. For Africa and for SOLWODI Kenya, the coronavirus…
Apostolate in the peripheries
Our sister Cecylia Bachalska, from the community of Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania) tells us about her apostolate in the outskirts of the city and of life …
Solidarity in Delwende during Covid-19
MSOLA community of Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) Sr Vickness Nangongo Muleya, MSOLA. In Delwende (Ouagadougou) Sr Vickness Nangogo Muleya, director of the Delwende Center in Sakoula, asked to stay at the center during the pandemic, in order to accompany the rejected women accused of witchcraft and to ensure their protection against Covid-19. The Delwende center welcomes mostly women, but there is also a few men who have been chased from their villages accused of witchcraft. Sr Vickness shares her experience: « I saw their faces light up and at the same time they were surprised that I came to stay with them at this difficult time. They were surprised to see me there the whole day and night but their faces were shining. In my heart it was like a dream and I was in awe of what was happening. The first night I prayed in the hangar because my room was…
Beginning of a transformation at Kinteko
Sr Leocadie Kana, Msola community of Butare (Rwanda) Kinteko, a subparish of the cathedral, is not far from our Butare community. Despite being close to the town, its population is very peripheral, with plenty of unemployed young people and many young single mothers. They are known to be very difficult and very poor materially, humanly and spiritually. Material poverty adds a heavy burden to the difficulties of family life which sometimes becomes hell. The first victims, the children, desert the family home while very young to live adventures in the city, turn to drugs , become criminals and an easy prey of human traffickers. The population of Kinteko is somehow left to itself. No religious was working in that area. Touched by this reality, our community reflected about it, and we decided to do something with the women and young people. Sr Leocadie meets the women and young people in Kinteko..…
Missionary Month: the beauty of Malian women according to Sr. Marie Vincente Brouca
Missionary Month: the beauty of Malian women according to Sr. Marie Vincente Brouca As part of the Extraordinary Missionary Month we invite you to discover missionary witnesses. Sister Marie Vincente Brouca is French and worked as a missionary in Mali. She tells us about the beauty of Malian women and missionaries-initiators.
Missionary Month: Sr. Marie André du Sacré Coeur
Pope Francis proclaimed an Extraordinary Missionary Month in October 2019 and placed it under the theme Baptized and sent: the Church of Christ in mission in the world”. He invites all the baptized to live this time in four dimensions: the encounter with Jesus, missionary witness, formation in mission and missionary solidarity. Throughout this month we invite you to discover some missionary testimonies of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa. Today, we present to you the portrait of Sr. Marie André du Sacré Coeur (1899-1988) who lived her missionary life as a woman apostle for the defense of women’s rights. Sister Marie André du Sacré Cœur had a doctorate in law when she entered our Congregation in 1922. Thinking that her studies in law would not be useful in Africa, how wrong she was! Just after her perpetual vows, she was sent to help the Missionaries of Africa understand…