Five Days
We were told that we would be spending about five days in Agoo (the Philippines). We were all excited except that we had to walk for five days from Malolos, Bulacan, to Agoo, La Union, without money for food or renting a room.
By Columban Fr. Kurt Zion Pala
February 1, 2017
A Cricket Match to Build Friendships
Cricket is played everywhere in Pakistan. On streets, in parks and wherever there is an area big enough for the game. People of all classes and faiths play it.
By Columban Fr. Daniel O'Connor
February 1, 2017
Loving Our Neighbor
I can still vividly remember the day when we first opened Ladies' Day in Christ Church, Farm Road. Most of us are volunteers, and there is only one Muslim lady who came in. We were hopeful that more women would come and hear about the new initiative we have in the neighborhood.
By Jonah Jane Enterina
February 1, 2017
North Korean Refugees
Fr. Thomas Nam, second from leftIn May 2016, I went to Bangkok, Thailand, with other priests and a brother in order to visit the Korean Embassy and the Korean Catholic Community there. We were looking at how we might help North Korean refugees with the help of the embassy and Catholic community.
By Columban Fr. Thomas Seungwon Nam
February 1, 2017
Luis de Almeida
The Columban missionaries staffed the three parishes on Amakusa Island in Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan, from 1950 through 1997. The three parishes were in three different communities, each with its own history and personality.
By Columban Fr. Barry Jude Cairns
February 1, 2017
The Children's Center of Yanaoca
The Columban missionaries began their work in Peru in 1951 and continue working throughout the country today. While Peru is a beautiful country, rich in culture and history and was once the center of the Incan empire, over 44 percent of the population currently lives below the poverty line.
By Kim Balkovec
February 1, 2017
A Gift from the Beggar
The other day I walked out of the church after Mass. There is a group of beggars there at the gate of St. Peter’s Church. Sometimes they are hunted away by the authorities, but they tend to drift back. They have been around for years and know me quite well.
By Columban Fr. Warren Kinne
February 1, 2017
Immigrant
In the not-too-distant past it was almost impossible to get governments and institutions to discuss immigration and immigrant issues. It wasn’t as if immigration wasn’t happening.
Fr. Bobby Gilmore
February 1, 2017
Holy Week at Emmaus
While at my age being the main celebrant at the Holy Week ceremonies can be very demanding on a worn out body, it is more than compensated by experiencing first hand the fervor and the enthusiasm of our people with special needs.
By Columban Fr. Noel O'Neill
February 1, 2017
A Woman in Distress
When I instructed catechumens in Japan, I spent the first year dealing with ordinary catechetical matters. After Baptism we studied St. Luke's Gospel and Acts. I chose Luke because he was a foreigner writing for foreigners, and also in Acts we have the history of the early church.
By Columban Fr. Noel Doyle
February 1, 2017
Human Rights
We all marvel at the deep and simple wisdom children hold in their hearts and on their lips.
By Amy Woolam Echeverria
February 1, 2017Parched Spirits
Like the air we breathe, water is essential for our life and well-being. The average person here in the U.S. uses 80-100 gallons in a variety of ways throughout each day.
By Fr. Tim Mulroy
February 1, 2017
Hope Experience
It's been nearly six years since I arrived in Birmingham, England, as a Columban lay missionary. When I first came to this country, I honestly thought that I was going to give more and that people would learn more from me. The reality is that I receive and learn more from them.
By Rosalia Basada
February 1, 2017
In the Name of the Trinity, I am a Missionary
I am not a writer, but I’m writing this reflection for myself and for others hopefully to be enlightened more about the Trinity’s love and God’s desire for each one of us to become a messenger of His love and the Holy Spirit, who is the Giver of Life.
By Luda Egbalic
December 1, 2016
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.