Silver jubilee of Sr. Marie Kanyoni
A very beautiful atmosphere of joy and solidarity marked this celebration. Everyone took the success of this party to heart as if it were their own family. Sr. Marie at the centre From Sr. Marie Kanyoni Bangaya Ndusha, Bamako, Mali The day chosen to celebrate my Jubilee was 04/14/24 because this year, 03/27 (the date of my first vows) fell on the Monday of Holy Week. The second Sunday of Easter being Mercy Sunday, there were many activities planned at the parish; so only Sunday 14 remained. Once the date was set, the community (Sr. Vicky and I) saw how to organize the celebration before submitting the proposal to the council office of our Christian community. A week before the feast, Sr. Vicky and I were worried. But, three days before the planned date, I was pleasantly surprised to see the entire Christian community in motion for the…
God’s dream became mine
Sr. Flora Ridder shares the Final Commitment of Sr. Magdalena Orczykowska on Sunday 21st April 2024 in the parish of St. Anthony the Abbot, Mẹcina, Poland On Friday afternoon the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa set off from Lublin to Mẹcina, the home village of Sr. Magdalena. There she prepared to make her perpetual vows on Sunday. The two entity leaders of Euro-America Sisters Marceline Nemeyitora and Maite Sanz de Pablo, Sr. Mamaalifar from Rome and Sr. Flora from Germany joined the sisters of Lublin for the celebration. In the village we were heartily welcomed by the parents and the sister of Sr. Magdalena. The uncle had put his house, next to the parents’ house, at the disposition of the sisters who, sharing rooms, all found accommodation. The meals were shared in the parents’ house. They were times of sharing, getting to know one another…
The Final Committment of Magda Orczykowska
Here is the video of the Final Vows of our sister Magda Orczykowska Here is a link to watch it on YOUTUBE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2BsIVxgDqQ
A pre-postulant shares her apostolate in Butare
Our community in Butare is near the Cathedral One of the missions of Butare community is formation of the pre-postulants. Pre-postulant Uwizeyemariya Yvonne shares her experience on gardening, singing and teaching at kindergarten. I am Uwizeyemariya Yvonne, I am from Rwanda Northern province, Burera district, Byumba diocese, Bungwe parish. I started my apostolate in Butare community in August. I am happy in the community and the apostolate; it includes working in the garden and taking care of the pigs. I also go for singing practice to the Ingoro y’urukundo sisters. I am happy about this experience. I also work at a kindergarten school Indabo za Maria; this is a school of Brazilian sisters and they welcome and take care of poor children. I go to the apostolate every Wednesday and Thursday in the morning. We are two in the class and when I am there, I help by…
Gathering the fruits of our pilgrimage of Juniorate
Pilgrimage in the footsteps of Cardinal Lavigerie: Sr. Magdalena Orczykowska, Sr. Julia Alonso Martinez (animator), Sr. Iwona Cholewińska, Sr. Kandongo Kibole Yollande, Sr. Marietha Asimwe Joakim Rupia At the end of the Juniorate our sisters share their experience: At the end of this important and very profound journey, which is the beginning of another one, with Mary and with all of you who have been with me physically and spiritually, who have encouraged me and supported me on this journey of transformation, I turn to God as I say: My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my saviour. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness. The Mighty one has done great things for me, holy is his name. His mercy is from age to age.” I am grateful to the Congregation which gave me this opportunity to grow, to…
Inter-Congregational Ongoing Formation Program (ICOF)
From Sr. Hélène Mbuyamba, Arusha Community, Tanzania A brief history In 2014, five congregations came together to set up an inter-congregational ongoing formation program (ICOF). This initiative came from the collaboration of the General Councils of the following 5 congregations: Spiritan Fathers, Missionaries of Africa, the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa, the Comboni Missionaries and the Society of African Missions (SMA). The Comboni Missionaries subsequently withdrew and the OLA (Our Lady of Apostles) joined the group. Today, these five congregations are considered the founding members. The vision and mission the founding members had for the ICOF program are: Vision: Integrated priests and religious in Africa who joyfully bear witness to the Gospel in their personal, spiritual and pastoral lives. Mission: To provide Catholic priests and religious in Africa with the opportunity, space and time for personal renewal to better serve the Gospel in the concrete…
Audience with Pope Francis
January 3, 2024…a long-awaited date because we had been invited in a privileged way to Pope Francis’ general audience. At 7 a.m., we were enthusiastically marching towards the Vatican…. Wow!! A huge crowd of people were lining up…. They were way ahead of us!!! Courageous, we were the last in line, but before long we were no longer the last, and the queue was moving along at a good pace. Our yellow card put us in a special place called “baisemains”. We were in row 4… a great row to see Pope Francis up close! In these words, Pope Francis reminded us that in the Christian life, spiritual warfare is for all people who want to commit themselves to following Jesus, who himself had to live and manage his own life. Here is what he told us: Last week, we introduced the theme of vices and virtues. It’s…
Transition session 2023
The transition session took place in Rome from September 6 to 29, 2023. Three sisters participated (two were unable to obtain their visa). They share some experiences. From Sr. Kordula Weber, community of Karlsruhe, Germany I would like to emphasize the place given in the program activities, to relaxation and friendship. The superior of the community organized an outing for us to the beach. He accompanied us “in the footsteps of Cardinal Lavigerie” to the Church of St Agnès hors les Murs, where he received the hat and his charge as cardinal. Visit of the Generalate of our Congregation. Sisters Leticia Garduño of the General Council, Gloria Sedes, and Magdalena Orczykowska of the juniorate. An outing to Castel Gandolfo allowed us to admire the palace inside and the immense park. The visit to Assisi in the footsteps of St Francis was for us an opportunity to strengthen the…
Pilgrimage of Juniorate
Dear Sisters, We are happy to share with you some important events that marked our Juniorate Pilgrimage. We set off on the 11th of September accompanied by our sisters Julia Alonso Martinez and Jeanne d’Arc Ouattara. From the beginning we were asked to be open and flexible as the problems with visa reshuffled our plans. Marietha Asimwe arrived on 10 September and Yollande Kandongo was able to join us only on 5 October. However, the new technologies came to our help and allowed us to start the program together. On September 14, the four juniorists Iwona Cholewińska, Magdalena Orczykowska, Marietha Asimwe and Yollande Kandongo we began our juniorate pilgrimage. During the opening Eucharist celebrated by Father Stan Lubungo, Superior General of the Missionaries of Africa, and in the presence of the sisters of the large community of the Generalate, the Superior General, Sister Angela Kapitingana, officially welcomed the juniorists for…
Official entry into the novitiate
From October 13 to 16, the pre-novices (from left) Mbaihamdéné Valérie, Cyarisima Divine, Kwatemba Kuyonzo Wilkista Agripina, Jovanie Nitunga, and Nodjitelsemba Solange went to Mater Christi for their retreat in preparation for the official start of the novitiate, which is a very important stage in religious training. They were accompanied by Sister Furaha Kamanyula who led their retreat. They arrived all happy and the community was happy to welcome them. October 18 was the day of the official return to the novitiate and the entry into heaven of Mother Marie Salomé; I was touched by the organization of the community which made a beautiful feast. Each of us gave the best of ourselves in the preparations. Our brothers the Missionaries of Africa came with their novices to pray with us. The Eucharistic celebration was celebrated by Fr. Emmanuel, M.Afr. In his homily, he told us that he did not…