The Continuing Columban Story
For the last few years, I have been assigned to Bristol, Rhode Island. What used to be the Spiritual year house has gradually morphed into a house for retired Columbans.
Hello from Myanmar!
After spending a year in Yangon to learn the Burmese language, Columban lay missionaries Catharina, Columba and Lenette moved to Banmaw (Myanmar) to start their ministry. They provided the following reflection:
Dividing Humanity into Various Catagories
Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. "Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, 'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity - greedy, dishonest, adulterous - or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.' But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, 'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.' I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted."
Missionary Zeal and Down-to-Earth Reality
Columban Fr. Frank Hoare shares an excerpt from his diary:
January 18 2009
Indo-Fijian Fire-walking at Nadera Temple
Today I went to take photos of the fire-walking at the Hindu temple at Nadera, a few miles from Suva. In the early 20th century, the British colonial government brought indentured laborers from to Fiji from South India. The laborers brought their ancient practice of fire-walking with them. I arrived to find a large crowd already seated on the benches parallel to the 30 foot long fire pit. In this pit there were smoldering ashes, six inches deep, of logs which had been burning for the previous twelve hours. A dozen men and women of different ages had undergone purification rituals for nine days and, on returning from bathing in the sea, would be led across the hot ashes by the Hindu priest.
The Philippine War on Drugs
The war on drugs initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte on July 1, 2016, has made headlines around the world. The 5th commandment, “Thou shall not kill” while widely promoted, is ignored. Most of the extra judicial killings take place among the poor. Even women are killed.
Being a Priest Is a Grace, Not a Privilege
Two new Columban priests were ordained in Chile – Rafael Ramírez and Gonzalo Borquez
Women In Power and Out of Power
By Fr. Shay Cullen
The rise of women into to high public office has given a new dimension to the global political scene. In the United States for the first time in history, a woman, Hilary Clinton, has been nominated to run for the Office of the President.
A Brush with the Law
The drive from Ba, where I am stationed as assistant priest, to Suva takes well over four hours. Load-carrying trucks are one of the obstacles on the way, as I found out today. A few miles outside of Lautoka city I passed a slow truck on an incline only to be flagged down immediately afterwards by two Indo-Fijian policemen. One of them brought his speed gun over to me as I got out of the car. “You were over the speed limit,” he said. “But I wasn’t doing more than 80 km per hour,” I replied. “The 60 km speed limit sign is just back there,” the policeman pointed. As I saw it I realized that it had been obscured from my view as I passed the truck. I tried to explain this to the policeman.
Retracing My Great-Uncle's Footsteps in China
I have never known life without him. My great-uncle, Bishop Henry Ambrose Pinger, O.F.M., returned to the United States the year I was born, having served as a missionary in China for 30 years. His humble, gentle spirit enveloped my entire Pinger clan – true to his Chinese name Guang Bei (which I’m told is translated as “Vast Comforter”). I have letters from him expressing his desire to baptize me; and a couple years later, his letter encourages my parents to seek medical tests for me with a willingness to cover the expenses. While a saintly, prayerful man, he knew how to laugh, play cards, and enjoy a whiskey sour whenever he returned to his roots in Nebraska to be with his family. All along he instructed us about the grand people of China, encouraging us to keep them in prayer – not because they were seen as lost, but rather seeking a spiritual communion with a culturally-rich people who had faith in Christ.
Peace Be With You
By Fr. Kurt Zion
Jesus said to His disciples, “Peace I leave you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”
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.