JRS Adjumani

We had several masses in all the chapel communities to begin the New Year and to celebrate the Feast of the Motherhood of Mary with the help of Fr. Herry Terry from Karnataka Province currently in his tertianship program. After Masses, these poor but generous communities celebrated the feast with a sumptuous lunch for all. It was great. Thank you, Harry, for your accompaniment of our refugee brothers and sisters during the festive season.

At the beginning of the month, I was blessed to conduct the retreat for the Scalabrini Fathers and seminarians at Namugongo Shrine of the Ugandan Martyrs. The Scalabrini Fathers are working with us in the Adjumani settlements and staying with me at Multipurpose Pastoral Centre. What a beautiful shrine! I really felt God’s powerful presence as I was walking around the well-laid campus, as I was praying at the shrine and more than that, as I observed the prayerful nature of the pilgrims who visit. Around the campus, there so many signposts with only one powerful message, “The Blood of our Ugandan Martyrs is the seed of our Faith”. I heard from the Comboni Sisters who are managing the retreat house that during the festival (on the 3^rd of June) there are thousands of pilgrims who walk from various parts of Uganda and even from other Eastern African countries to pay homage to their beloved martyrs. The whole retreat followed the Ignatian Exercises based on the Gospel of St. Mark. It was very challenging. I am very grateful to JRS for the compensatory leave granted to me for a week which I utilized for the retreat midst of working days as I worked during the Christmas Holidays in Adjumani.

JRS is blessed to have Sean McMahon, Irish second year Jesuit novice from the novitiate of Innsbruck for his apostolic immersion. From day one, he was fully involved in the works of JRS especially in the pastoral ministry. His arrival has made me enter the third novitiate – morning prayers, silence, Mass, evening walk, silence, evening examine etc…. (What a blessing! I have become a novice master or noise master????)

These days all our communities are very busy preparing for the Youth Bible Quiz. What a wonderful preparation! We are having two rounds on the zonal levels for easy access for the youth. It is based on the first three chapters from the Gospel of St. Mark. The youth leaders selected their members, train them daily, and even have mock quiz programs. Sean is the quizmaster and doing a thorough job.

At the end of the month, I am planning for a three-day seminar and workshop for the six senior catechists and young catechists who are the second in command from the six chapel communities on organizing liturgies either with a priest or with a catechist in their own communities. They are eagerly waiting for the workshop which is more practical in nature.  

I am more and more convinced that when we provide opportunities, persons grow in leadership. Empowering is opening the opportunities with resources to build creative leadership. This my strong experience during the month of January working closely with our refugee youth.