The Edmund Rice spirit circling the globe

A dozen pictures with the stories behind them, coming from eleven countries around the globe, giving a quick but telling sketch of the variety and values that characterise the contemporary Edmund Rice network across all six continents.

… to discover the God who awaits you

Two Christian Brothers from India move to the Philippines, in the footsteps of the many who have travelled far from home to be of service. Here they track the emotional journey of leaving home and arriving in a faraway land.

 

The pluses of life lived at a more placid pace

The far-flung corners of the Christian Brothers’ Zambian District, as seen through the eyes of the new Province Renewal Team. The visitors are struck by the welcome, the work, and the wonderful beauty of the countryside.

Australian schools strengthen links with East Africans

A group from Edmund Rice schools in Western Australia visit the Christian Brothers serving the people of East Africa, and come away deeply impressed and convinced about the value of the support their school communities give.

The challenges brought by the changes in Yambio, Sudan

Development over the past ten years has brought both new opportunities and new dangers. Recognising these is, for the Christian Brothers, the key to making their insignificant presence among the Sudanese significant.

And how does this come into the teaching of Jesus?

What does it take to survive setbacks and bounce back? How might the answers inform the way we teach the young? And how are they present in the way Jesus taught? We offer an appetizer for an article by US Christian Brother Patrick Sean Moffett.

Jericho House puts down roots in Wainfleet, Ontario

An ecumenical retreat centre with a special focus on young people – nurturing their spiritual awareness, their sense of leadership, and their commitment to social and ecological justice – this is the vision of Jericho House.

Authentic Christ-like spirituality emerging

The young people who run Edmund Rice Camps are transformed by their interaction with vulnerable children. And the joy and spiritual growth evident in the young leaders offers inspiration to those who witness the process.

Christian Brothers’ African Mission Development Team formed

Africa’s Christian Brothers have the vision and the youthful energy and drive for mission. The current challenge is to develop a consistent and respectful way of engaging both the voiceless and the donors in real-izing that mission.

… and a faith informed and awed by science

Religious Education in the Edmund Rice tradition has long moved beyond the ‘faith vs science’ debate into an era of exciting awareness. The RE leaders of Southern Africa’s ER Network meet and explore what is unfolding.

Oceania’s ERN representatives gather in Brisbane

“How does networking enhance our mission to bring about liberation and justice for all life? Imagine our potential as a liberating force in this world if this question was at the heart of our networking.” (Danny Moore)

The ISC’s 2010 Final Profession Programme in Lusaka

The International Spirituality Centre in Lusaka is finding an increasing demand for its well-established programme for Brothers and Sisters approaching the time for final commitment within their congregations.

A story of ordinary people making a difference

If Edmund Rice had lived in our time and place, how would he have become involved? This is the question that brings together and animates groups of people such as the Edmund Rice Family in Bangalore, India

… after the photos taken by our hearts have faded

An Australian Christian Brother risks breaking out of ‘business as usual’ to go on an Immersion experience, and has his heart’s eyes opened by powerful experiences that he prays will continue to disturb him.

The fruits of a celibate path lovingly lived

Anyone whose youth has been touched by the care of an older brother/sister figure will relate to the story of Joe from USA, typical of so many warm Christian Brothers and other extraordinary educators across the globe.

Recommended enrichment

Eight Christian Brothers from around the globe share recommendations of books (and dvds) nourishing to the spirituality of the contemporary Edmund Rice Network. Similar brief reviews are always welcome.

6^th Edmund Rice Camp hosted by Chicago youth

The camp counselors, from Brother Rice High School, “provided a fun summer camp for the kids, but the kids in turn made a lasting impact on the counselors by evoking a transformative compassion in them.”

 

New life through re-skilling in Chimbote

They came fearing that they would be subjected to boring theoretical classes and difficult exams. What they found was a ‘hands on’ approach, respect, friendship – and rebirth. Available in English and in Spanish

Enabling the dignity of the disabled

The needs of disabled children in Nairobi’s huge Kibera slum are beyond all telling. But the Edmund Rice Network is there, with its Mary Rice Day Care Centre, making a difference to those it can reach.

Christian Brother teaching at Guizhou University

It may come as a surprise to many to hear that the Christian Brothers currently have a presence in China, a country into which they first ventured ninety years ago. Brother Pat Lynch writes from Guiyang in Guizhou Province.

Accolade for Christian Brother in Florida USA

 

Brother Richard DeMaria, of the Christian Brothers community in Miami, has been honoured by peers for his leadership in Catholic education. Many will identify with the values behind his achievements.

 

Parent-power at work in Montevideo, Uruguay

A group of mothers, in the spirit of their children’s Edmund Rice school, get involved in serving a marginalised community in their city - particularly its children - in a creative range of practical ways. (Spanish and English versions offered.)

A preview during planning

Three new programmes, of interest to the Edmund Rice Network, are brewing in time for 2011.

One is planned to run in Ireland, one in Zambia, and one in India. At least two of these growth programmes will be international.

Flexible Learning Centres set to extend beyond Queensland

Here’s another gift from the Edmund Rice spirit at work in the creativity of his Network. It’s a practical response to young people who don’t fit into the ordinary school system, and it’s proving really effective in including them.

Around the world with Edmund Rice

Another circling of the globe, touching down in a dozen countries linked by the spirit of Edmund Rice. We invite members of the ER Network to send similar brief news via local Websters.

 

The Christian Brothers CLT have written a letter to their Brothers, dated for the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Though it is being distributed by e-mail, we publish it here to share it more broadly, and for reference. - please click to read

Final Bulletin

A final bulletin & photo from the Christian Brothers’ Leadership gathering in Rome

Iona College students become immersed in Kenya

Linking two places of Edmund Rice ministry, a group from Iona College, New Rochelle, travelled to Nairobi last month to interact with people there and experience something of their life and culture.

South African school leaders go on pilgrimage

Shortly before the world converged on South Africa for the current soccer World Cup, twelve education-leaders from Edmund Rice schools around South Africa set off in an outward-bound direction.

Harmony weekend camp in Western Australia

120 people of different cultures and faiths gathered in a forest, braving the cold as they shared a heart-warming experience of multi-cultural and multi-faith harmony.

Farewell to Tses

 

The ERN has withdrawn from its base in Namibia after thirteen years. Hopefully, seeds planted will grow and continue to enrich the small rural community in the village of Tses.

Cardinal Newman College extends the Edmund Rice spirit

 

More ideas from Newman College, Buenos Aires, this time for drawing parents into practical action for justice – following last month’s focus on outreach by pupils. Available in English and Spanish.

from the Edmund Rice Network in South Africa

Visiting South Africa for the World Cup? Want to know what might interest Edmund-minded people? tips about where to find good liturgies? what to pack?

Four Christian Brothers vow permanent dedication

In late April and late May, four men on two different continents took the step of making a lifelong commitment to God as Christian Brothers.

The glass barrier between outside and inside

A little tale of human hearts transcending barriers. The setting is Ecuador, one of the characters is an outsider from Kimberley in Africa, and the story explores the dance between ‘outside’ and ‘inside’.

“Each of us knew he would never be the same again”

This story comes from the experience of twelve Christian Brothers in India, nine of them in their initial years, engaged in a renewal programme ‘Towards a New Consciousness’. The setting was Mount Abu, Rajasthan.

The ‘Narrow Way’ in Zimbabwe

Living lives dependent on each other and on the Creator

Francis Hall, of the Christian Brothers central leadership team, visits the ERN in Zimbabwe, and encounters inspiring energy and passion in the face of national adversity and struggle.

Here’s how Argentina’s Cardinal Newman College does it

The broad curriculum at Newman College, Buenos Aires, exposes pupils to the kind of challenge Edmund Rice faced. Some of the projects described may give other schools ideas. (Available in English and Spanish.)

 

New opportunities seen and named

A pointer to five articles, originating from Australia, Europe, the USA, Africa, and an international gathering of women. Each strikes a different note of hope in the midst of today’s mess.

Advertisements for a 2-week Creation & Reconciliation programme in South Africa, a 2-month Final Profession Preparation Programme in Zambia, a flexible distance-learning Biblical Studies programme, and a free on-line Human Rights course. See CURRENT EVENTS.
Community Prayer Designs entitled Edmund & Mary, Edmund & St Teresa of Avila, and Feast of Edmund Rice 5 - see EDMUND RICE > RESOURCES > PARALITURGIES.

Around the world of Edmund Rice today

12 stops in 10 countries circling the globe, linked by the spirit of Edmund Rice. We invite members of the ER Network to send similar brief photo-based news via local Websters.

A new shoot from the old root

People inspired by Edmund Rice are giving their time to educate marginalized Mumbai youth. In the process they are renewing a founding purpose of a school associated with the Christian Brothers for 40+ years.

A letter from Philip Pinto, leader of the Christian Brothers worldwide

As we celebrate Edmund Rice Day, consider taking up the challenge in this letter -  please to click to download the letter

Also see Wayne Tinsey's letter on www.erea.edu.au (Edmund Rice Education Australia website).

 

A summary of an article by Timothy Radcliffe

In the face of the recurring flushes of Church scandals, is there good reason to renounce Catholicism, or is there a convincing reason to remain Catholics?

Christian Brother Pat Tynan dies in Ireland at age 88

 

He joined the Brothers at 18, and lived his commitment with untiring enthusiasm and resourcefulness, serving in three countries: Ireland, India (46 years), and The Gambia.

 

Networking to enhance our mission as a liberating force

Oceania’s newly-formed ERN Wisdom Groups engage towards putting Edmund Rice Networking at the service of “liberation and justice for all creation”.

Two-thirds are now Zambian-born

Some forty Christian Brothers in Zambia get together to reflect on the challenges and possibilities of living creatively as brothers in Africa today.

 

A QUESTION: What particular angle or emphasis or approach are you taking in your celebration of 5 May this year? Write briefly to the editor - mtbmichael@hotmail.com - to have your ideas included in a global compilation.

AN ANSWER: For anyone looking for material to use in preparing celebrations for Edmund Rice Day, this website offers a wealth of useful resources. Click Edmund Rice above, and explore.

Nai Disha, where the haves embrace the have-nots

A Christian Brothers school in Asansol has found a way to open its doors to the town’s most neglected children – through the leadership of a vibrant woman from the Edmund Rice network.

The story of Miguel and Alberto

A young Peruvian Christian Brother reflects on his encounter with Miguel - a small peasant boy who is starting first grade for the third time - and draws some surprise lessons for life.

In English and Spanish.

 

Hilary Bizuremyi and the Edmund Rice Network encounter one another

“But what difference does it make?” is the question setting up a well-known story’s punchline: “It makes a difference to the ones you meet”. Here’s an illustration of that.

 

Christian Brothers prepare young adults to serve

Impressions of some of the young people who gathered for a workshop in Bo, Sierra Leone, in preparation for becoming Edmund Rice Camp leaders in West Africa.

The followers of two Edmunds respond in Kabwe, Zambia

“…bringing the youth together, being a presence among them, and offering them hope” – how the followers of Edmund Rice and Edmund Bojanowski serve disadvantaged youth in a small African town.

‘Eleventh hour’ alarm within the Catholic Church

 

Egyptian Jesuit Henri Boulad writes “the Spirit today calls us to reflect, to invent and innovate … Will we remain prisoners of the past forever? Will we know how to invent the future?”

 

• How far since Munnar - reflections from Peter Dowling - see Christian Brothers/Leadership Team/Spirituality.

• The Christian Brothers Leadership Team set off for Africa - see Christian Brothers/Leadership Team/Calendar.

• A better way - Richard Walsh's reflections on a radical poor-centred approach to mission - see current Rice Express (to the right). Other reflections on a variety of topics may be found under Recent Rice Express (to the left).

• Promptings for prayer, especially preparing prayer for a community or group - see This Week in Prayer (to the right).

Worlds apart or kindred spirits?

 

The differences are glaring, the similarities less obvious yet striking. 30 years after Romero’s death, Edmund’s network draws inspiration from ‘the Church of the poor’.

 

Bongera, a frontier mission of the Christian Brothers in India

 

A tribal community living without electricity or TV, isolated from the wider world. And a small community of Christian Brothers, acting as a window of exposure, light, and hope.

College past & present students go on a holiday Mission

 

“Never before did I feel so full of joy, solidarity, companionship, and spirituality. You go searching and with a desire to give, and you return having received much more than you gave.”

click for English or Spanish

 

A whistle-stop photo-tour to 10 parts of the ER Network

Rardy turns 103, a Provincialate freezes over, a house slithers with snakes, the old CB house in Cape Town… scenes from the rich tapestry of ERN life around the globe.

 

Edmund Novitiates – a global round-up

There are currently 54 Novices – 33 first-years and 21 second-years – in eight Edmund Rice novitiates around the world, exploring the path of vowed life as brothers

The CB African Province radically rethinks its approach to mission

The Christian Brothers in Africa explore how to move their mission from an ‘Aid’ to a ‘Development’ approach. The key is a paradigm of ‘a church of the poor’

CBs appoint Layman as their Projects Director

 

The Christian Brothers’ projects, designed to respond to the needs of traumatized and disadvantaged children in Sierra Leone, are about to be extended into Liberia.

•  Part 2 of Francis Hall's account of THE CLT IN MANILA - see Christian Brothers/Leadership Team/Live Issues

•  THE BALLAD OF EDMUND RICE AND THE EARLY MONKS by Patrick Aidan McManus cfc, accompanied by reproductions of three paintings by Hugh Sharpe cfc - see Edmund Rice/Resources /Additional Material.

 

A collaborative school initiative in Brownsville, Texas

 

Outlined here is an innovative initiative worthy of support - and worth copying in situations where teenagers struggle to break through to liberating opportunities that were previously inaccessible to their communities.

Brother Gerard Despathy dies while on sabbatical

 

A letter from Presentation Congregation Leader Martin Kenneally communicating the sudden death of Brother Gerard Despathy on Saturday 27 February.

 

Members of the global Edmund Rice Network are invited to send in similar reviews of books they wish to recommend, especially in the areas of spirituality and justice.

Zambian girls’ school ripped open by wind

Spare a thought for a girls school supported by the Christian Brothers of Zambia, as it searches for the means to replace its roof, torn off on St Valentine’s Day.

 

The spirit of Edmund among the people of Nairobi, Kenya

The Karibu guides have become a group active in the slum of Kibera; and the city’s Edmund Rice Network gathers to re-charge its motivation and commitment to action.

Flame leaps from Australia to South Africa to Sierra Leone

Edmund Rice Camps started in Melbourne around 1980, reached South Africa in the 1990s, and have now spread to Sierra Leone via the Novitiate in Cape Town.

Reflections of an ER Camp Leader

Zimbabwean Tongai Phillip Mukarati finds his own story reflected in that of the people gathered for an Edmund Rice Camp for teenagers in Western Cape, South Africa.

 

Archbishop Curley Notre Dame opens its heart

A high school of the Archdiocese of Miami, administered by the Christian Brothers since 1985, is deeply involved in the community response to quake-struck Haiti.

 

Carbon Fasting

 

A suggested weekly programme of decisions, based on the Lenten readings; plus a reference to a daily calendar of Lenten suggestions.

 

The Principal and the Frog

A talk given by Dermot Connors, now in his 25^th year as an educator at one of the schools in the Edmund Rice Network of Southern Africa, Veritas College in Springs.

Moving from action to advocacy

The world’s response was wonderful. The organization on the ground was woeful. What needs to be done before the next disaster strikes, and before attention moves away from Haiti?

Cornel Mwiru makes his permanent commitment

The Final Profession on Saturday 6 February in Tanzania was an occasion that renewed the faith and inspiration of East Africa’s Edmund Rice community.

 

Meeting alternative educational needs

 

The Presentation Brothers and their colleagues respond to adolescents who slip through the cracks of formal education in St Lucia.

Biblical vision for responding to Mother Earth

At their December Assembly, the Christian Brothers of West Africa, together with others from the ERN, sharpened their awareness of stewardship.

INVICTUS

 

A review of a movie portraying values that will find a resonance with schools, communities, and groups living the unfolding Edmund Rice spirituality.

 

En-suite accommodation at the ISC in Lusaka

Those participating in the ISC’s major international programmes can now look forward to a more comfortable stay.

- Australian Christian Brother honoured

Making the Australia Day Honours List is one of the highest affirmations Australia offers for outstanding service.

...our international children’s-rights advocacy arm

Needed: on-the-ground experience in countries due for UN reviews this year. Available: another practical way to support Haiti.

 

• Prayer for those in Haiti - power point
• CLT appoints Communications Assistant - see Christian Brothers (top) Leadership Team Live Issues
• The Self-Awareness of the Universe - see latest Rice Express (right)
• Denis Claivaz, Presentation Brother - see latest Profile (right)
• Leads for preparing group prayer this week - see This Week in Prayer (right)
• Recommended websites & blogs for reflection & prayer - see This Week in Prayer (right)

… but two die in the head-on collision

Michael Mumba, a Zambian Christian Brother ministering in South Africa, mercifully escaped serious injury in a motor accident that claimed two lives.

Seeing with the eyes of ‘the Church of the Poor’

The District’s largest-ever assembly of Christian Brothers spent the last days of 2009 looking back with gratitude and forward with new perspective.

 

A life lived at the CBs’ cutting-edge

 

An account of the life of a great Christian Brother – a pioneer and leader in Catholic education, and a man of extraordinary charisma, generosity, and vitality.

 

How our coffee prices are subsidised

 

An ERN Volunteer discovers the hidden cost of inexpensively produced commodities – and gets an insight into how cycles of poverty are maintained.

 

HAITI

 

One of the world’s poorest countries, where life was already a daily struggle for millions, hit last Tuesday by a devastating earthquake that has killed thousands, injured tens of thousands, and left countless people homeless and stripped of their resources, the Caribbean nation of Haiti is high in the consciousness of the whole world community at this time. Volunteers are heading for Port-au-Prince, emergency supplies are being assembled and sent, funds are being collected, and people everywhere are seeking ways to help. But there is something else that every one of us can do to express our care: through prayer we can send to the suffering people of Haiti the strength and healing-power that the Creator has built into our profound connectedness.

… a different face of Zambia

 

Recently we featured a story from the Christian Brothers’ prison ministry in Paraguay. In another continent, but also in the southern hemisphere, CB John McCourt is involved in providing education opportunities for prisoners.

 

… and learning from life’s ways

 

Paula Downey points out “a mismatch between the way we work and the way life works” and draws lessons from living systems for the Church and for religious congregations today.

- A Samaritan’s dilemma

 

An encounter with a child in handcuffs behind a police counter in Sierra Leone sets a Christian Brother pondering about how to respond effectively.

 

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… and welcome 5 new brothers

The Assembly of the Christian Brothers Latin America Region, held in Lima, Perú, closed with the first profession of five new members.

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- “obedience to God not men”

Sr Sandra Schneiders is inviting radical reflection on religious life in response to the controversial investigation of women religious congregations in the USA.

 

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3 Indian CBs take Final Vows

 

After several years of trying the life of the Christian Brothers, three Indians made their Final Profession on 28 December 2009. Close to 100 brothers were present.

 

 

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Final Professions in Zambia & Sierra Leone

One of the five Christian Brothers who recently committed themselves to vowed membership for life, 200 years after Edmund and his first brothers did the same, shares his reflection from the inside of this experience.

 

 

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... of two young Christian Brothers

The words used to renew their vowed commitment this month, offer insight into the spirituality of brothers ministering to those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS in South Africa.

 

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of Edmund Rice’s Postulator

Donal Blake is Congregation Historian for the Christian Brothers and Postulator for the official Church process towards the public recognition of Edmund Rice as a Saint. In his Advent circular letter, Donal reports on his year. We offer a digest.

 

 

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Edmund Rice Action Camps (ERAC) is a voluntary youth organisation under the auspices of the Presentation Brothers. In July each year, ERAC organises summer camps for children from around Cork City and County in Ireland, offering them the opportunity to take part in a week-long summer camp of fun activities.

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In its faithful service to needy youth, the Christian Brothers first school in the USA, celebrating its centenary this year, remarkably parallels Edmund Rice’s first school which started another century earlier.

 

 

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The Christian Brothers in Asuncion minister to youth in prison. There are many obstacles to “success”, but here is the heartening story of Pedro, a Chilean youth imprisoned far from his family and country.

 

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Human Rights Day 10 Dec. 2009

The theme for this year’s Human Rights Day is “End Discrimination”. To this day, the fight against discrimination remains a daily struggle for millions around the globe, and therefore a matter of deep concern for the whole human family.

 

 

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JUBILEES

 

Firstly, belated acknowledgement of the Golden Jubilees last week (6 January) of two Christian Brothers in Oceania, Thomas Nicholas Campbell and Peter Mark Hancock. Everyone reading this is invited to hold these men in prayer as they each celebrate fifty years of faithfulness.

 

 

‘ORDINARY TIME’

 

Something that caught my attention when I was growing up was the Church’s use of colour. Not only the vestments but large panels of curtaining behind the altar of our parish Church used to change colour according to the Church’s seasons and feastdays - dramatic purple during Advent and Lent, warm gold for Christmas and Easter, shining white for special feasts, vivid red for martyrs and apostles, and rich green the rest of the time. Green is used basically for the blocks of time between the Advent-and-Christmas period and the Lent-and-Easter period, which are simply called ‘Ordinary Time’ in the Church’s calendar. If ‘ordinary’ meant nothing-worth-noticing, I suppose the liturgical colour would be grey. The fact that it is green, the colour associated with life and growth, asserts that ‘ordinary time’ is indeed significant. It is in ordinary things that we are invited to find the presence of God. It is through ordinary opportunities and challenges, setbacks and losses, that we do our growing. It is in the humdrum of our routines and responsibilities that we can incarnate, or enflesh, our faith and the values that spring from it. The special times are there to energise us for these ordinary times. God is God of the now, not just of the ‘some day, one day’. That is an important part of the message of the Sabbath and of sabbaticals; of the message of retreats and holidays; it is the message of our mountaintop experiences; and it is the message of every Sunday.

 

 

Friday 15 January

FIRST NEW MOON OF 2010

 

The monthly cycle of the moon, so important to cultures prizing the connection between human life and the universe of which we are part, happens virtually unnoticed by many of us. Yet even those who relegate the moon to clichés and corny lyrics sometimes have moments of being mesmerized by its serene presence. The start of the moon’s new cycle might invite us to take a moment to pay attention each evening for the next month. Doing so has the power to connect and to context us, to put us in touch with the less-overt rhythms of our own lives, and to remind us of simple but profound truths that are part of our human heritage.

 

 

Friday

MUSLIMS’ MIDDAY JUMMAH PRAYER

Even those who know very little about Islam know that Muslims congregate in mosques to pray at noon on Fridays. Actually this is just the most visible of Islamic prayer practices. Not unlike traditional Christian monks, Muslims pray at least five times each day: between dawn and sunrise, at noon, in mid-afternoon, after sundown, and before sleeping. But Friday’s Jummah prayer is communal, and involves taking time off work or closing one’s business for a while. It is a practice that can remind all of us of the need to make time for God, and of the discipline it takes to set aside a definite time in the day for prayer and then honour that as an appointment.

 

 

Saturday

THE JEWISH SABBATH

The Jewish practice of marking the Sabbath involves not only taking time to worship and to reflect on God’s Word, but also suspending our everyday work in order to deliberately rest. Whether God was ‘tired after creating the world’ is not the point; the point is that work can wear our humanity threadbare, and we need time to restore its wholeness. Sunday, which Christianity substituted in order to highlight Christ’s resurrection, used to be structured to provide this kind of space and time for reflection and recreation, but that has become eroded for many. Sometimes there are good reasons, and sometimes – ironically - the reason can even be ‘good works’. Sometimes the reason is greed, but sometimes it’s just lack of wisdom. The enduring value that our Jewish sisters and brothers teach the rest of us by their Sabbath tradition is: our need for Sabbath space within the rhythm of our week. Perhaps we all know this; but the Jewish practice challenges us to go beyond knowing and to act upon it. Not just vaguely, but in a structured way that works for us. The Jewish Sabbath actually starts the previous evening with a special meal to welcome the Sabbath and to enable the change-of-gear; and it is intended to be seriously sustained throughout the day. Yes, Jesus did warn against making a fetish of it, at the cost of higher values (cf Matthew 12:12). But the same Jesus also warned against playing fast and loose with God’s Law, for he held that every part of it had its purpose (cf Matthew 5:18), and in the case of the Sabbath that purpose is our wholeness (cf Mark 2:27). So Saturday is a reminder of our need and of God’s concern for this need.

 

 

QUOTES FOR THE WEEK

 

“If I have ever made any valuable discoveries, it has been owing more to patient attention than to any other talent.” (Isaac Newton)

 

The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps - we must step up the stairs. (Vance Havne)

 

True religion is the life we lead, not the creed we profess. (Louis Nizer)

 

It is not about jumping through all the hoops of religion; you could do all that and still be far from God. It is all about doing what God puts into your heart to do.

(paraphrase of the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:21)

 

 

SOME OTHER WEBSITES & BLOGS TO LEAD YOU INTO PRAYER & REFLECTION

 

http://www.goodnews.ie

– notably Donagh O’Shea’s column JACOB’S WELL; also see LECTIO DIVINA.

http://www.lightoftorah.net

- offering a springboard for joining in the study of the week’s Torah portion.

http://catholicbible.org.za

- see SUNDAY GOSPEL COMMENTARY by Michael Chalmers cfc.

http://curragh.livejournal.com

- a blog by Michael Kavanagh cfc, offering prayer services for groups.

 

Note that some blogs may be accompanied by advertisements beyond the blogger’s control.

 

 

Michael Burke cfc

editor

 

You are invited to tell us early about any special occasions of interest to the global Edmund Rice network – like the 50^th jubilee of a school within the network, the centenary of a partner with which the ERN is associated (e.g. another congregation or a diocese), and any extraordinary milestones and achievements that the whole network might wish to join in acknowledging.

 

 

 

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On the recent Feast of the Presentation, thirteen young Christian Brothers from around Africa formally committed themselves to their first year of vowed life.

 

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Established by the Christian Brothers in Oceania, a new Edmund Rice Centre in New Zealand will provide a hub of support and administration for the on-going outreach of Edmund Rice Network groups, schools and ministries in New Zealand and Rarotonga.

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The upsurge of interest in cosmological understandings and implications, resulting from recent Chapters and global awakenings, is well served by the website created by Fergus Reilly cfc. The website with the address www.fergusreilly.org is a portal, a space of eclectic connections. Fergus created the website during his time on a 10 week sabbatical in An Tairseach, Co Wicklow, Ireland.

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The oldest Christian Brother in Africa, Mark Hallissey died peacefully in his sleep on the night of All Souls, aged 89, after spending some years in the anteroom of heaven.

 

 

The first Edmund Rice Camp on the East Coast of the United States was conducted on the campus of Iona Prep June 28 - July 2, 2009. The Edmund Rice Camps, which began in Australia and have been spreading around the world, is a movement in which young people, in the spirit of Edmund Rice, conduct free summer camps for the disadvantaged.)

It is difficult to find words to adequately express the experience which was the Presentation Family Conference held at Silver Springs Hotel, Cork on 3rd October 2009. Baroness Nuala O' Loan, who was the keynote speaker, inspired and moved the hearts of all - young and not so young - who had the privilege of attending the conference.

On Saturday 3rd October, Bishop Seamus Freeman of Kilkenny unveiled and blessed a new outdoor statue of Edmund Rice at his birthplace in Westcourt, Callan. Bishop Freeman told a story set in Poland during the Communist regime - of how faith-filled citizens raised a crucifix outside a church but the anti-church authorities pulled it down.

Next weekend the citizens raised a new cross and again the authorities pulled it down. The citizens continued to raise a cross every weekend and the authorities continued to pull it down until eventually the authorities tired of destroying it and let it be. The Bishop used this story to illustrate how we need to be persevering in our faith and not to be afraid to express it publicly.

"We see the primary ʻsigns of the timesʼ as the struggle with ʻliving with differenceʼ in the human family, recognition of our kinship with the planet and our responsibility to it, an awareness of the global economic warfare between the ʻhavesʼ and ʻhave-notsʼ and a hunger for a meaningful spirituality.

As people inspired by the values of Edmund Rice we need to be constantly developing a spirituality to address these and other issues that are surfacing in the human community."

 

Ten million children in the world under the age of five still die every year mainly from preventable diseases. Every day more than 1000 children under the age of 15 years become newly infected and another 800 die from HIV-related illness and AIDS – half before their second birthday.

Over 115 million children of primary school age are excluded from education, and well over half of these are girls. It is estimated that there are 218 million children aged 5 – 17 who are engaged in child labor. There facts are a present day reality yet the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child is endorsed by 193 countries.

 

 

 

From the beginning in 2007 of the mission in Kabankalan, on the island of Negros in the Philippines, John Moodie cfc knew he wanted to do something to assist the poor, particularly through education.  It took a full year to find the way forward.  Although there is a well developed education system in the Philippines, many children drop out off schooling at an early age.  Anecdotal evidence suggests this is due to poverty, the need for young people, especially the boys, to help in the rural economy, a strong sense of shame, and insufficient employment opportunities.  A tendency to bureaucracy in the society causes more hurdles for the poor to cross.

The first community of Edmund Rice Brothers to arrive in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, occurred in September 2008, when the Presentation Brothers opened a community and school in Tafawa Balewa, Bauchi State, Northern Nigeria. The invitation to enter this region came from Bishop John Moore SMA and after much soul searching, prayer and reflection, the Brothers moved to Nigeria and the Presentation Brothers Secondary School (PBSS) opened its doors to 90 first year pupils.

Br Placid noticed that at certain times of the year McGahern's attendance was not good and this coincided with potato picking time and turf cutting time. One cold evening when McGahern and his father were working in the field Br Placid arrived on his bicycle and spent a long time talking to Mc Gahern's father. When he left, his father informed McGahern that from tomorrow morning there would be no more picking spuds but that he would instead go back to school.

The Christian Brothers and Presentation Brothers Congregation Leadership Teams met in Mt. St. Joseph, Cork, Ireland from August 31 to September 3, 2009. Francis Agoah fpm, Deputy Congregation Leader, said that "It was a wonderful time of brotherhood. We had some very helpful and stimulating discussions and sharing on Religious Life and religious leadership today and into the future".

Would you like to learn more about how you can take effective action for justice at a global level?

Do you want to know more about the work of Edmund Rice International (ERI) and how you can be part of it?

Then why not sign up for the ERI online course which aims to raise awareness about more effective global action for justice, at http://erisj.org.au/course/

Between 2001 and 2002, Charles Taylor's rebel militia launched the most atrocious attack on Gbarnga, Liberia, forcing the residents to flee. At this point, the Christian Brothers were forced to flee. Extensive damage done by rebels and this, compounded with several years of neglect, brought the community house almost to ruins. Each time the Brothers moved away, the rebels resorted to massive looting and vandalizing of properties. Three attempts were by the Brothers to return to Gbarnga at a time when there was a semblance of relative peace returning to the country.

 

On Thursday 20th August, Pat Madigan cfc took up the position as the incoming CEO of Mt Sion Waterford Ireland, having been appointed by the Board and endorsed by the two Congregations. Pat, who is well known across the Congregations through his co-directing the international Trasna program for six years, brings wide experience both in education and formation to this role. His personal and professional skills are well suited to this challenging position and he is entering into this role with much enthusiasm.

In 1993 Christian Brothers opened a mission in Yambio, South Sudan, ministering to the Azande people and other tribes who have endured over forty years of civil war. Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics since independence from the UK in 1956. Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged civil wars during most of the remainder of the 20th century. These conflicts were rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of non-Muslim, non-Arab southern Sudanese. The first civil war ended in 1972, but broke out again in 1983.

En el año 1964, el Obispo Wright, de Pittsburgh, Pensilvania (EE.UU.) llegó a Chimbote para visitar a los sacerdotes de su diócesis que estaban prestando servicio en Chimbote como asociados a la Sociedad de Santiago Apóstol.  El Padre Diego Shanahan, párroco de "Virgen de la Puerta", le pidió al obispo financiar la construcción de un colegio secundario en su parroquia.  Le ensenó al Monseñor el terreno, entonces baldío, donde el Colegio Mundo Mejor ahora se encuentra, y el Monseñor prometió hacer realidad su sueño. El año siguiente se inició la construcción de la secundaria.  El P. Julio Roos, con un ojo crítico, supervisó la obra, asegurando el uso de los mejores materiales para soportar los muchos temblores que afligen esta zona.

El Colegio Mundo Mejor fue inaugurado el 12 de marzo de 1966 - justo a tiempo para iniciar el año escolar.  El P. Gerardo Lutz era el primer Director.

En el año 1998, el Obispo de Chimbote, Carlos Burke, invitó a la Congregación de Hermanos Cristianos de la Provincia Este de los EE.UU. a asumir la administración del colegio y el Provincial, Valerian Scanlon, lo aceptó con gusto, queriendo responder al llamado del II Concilio Vaticano de aportar misioneros a Sudamérica.  Tres Hermanos fueron enviados a la Escuela de Idiomas de Maryknoll en Cochabamba, Bolivia, y, a principios de 1969, Gerardo Johnson, Domingo Sanpietro y Jaime Barry llegaron a Chimbote para administrar y enseñar en el colegio.
Pronto Mundo Mejor alcanzó ser reconocido como uno de los mejores colegios de Chimbote y alumnos de todas partes de esta ciudad industrial de 200 000 anhelaron estudiar allí.  Los Hermanos ingeniaron un sistema de pensiones escalonadas, basadas en la necesidad económica de las familias.  Asimismo, llenaron los salones con 55 alumnos por sección para bajar los costos y permitir las pensiones reducidas.

Actualmente, ese número de alumnos por aula y el sistema de pensiones escalonadas se mantienen, con algunos ajustes menores.  En el 2004, el Director, Hno. Seán DiFiglia, decidió iniciar una sesión de la tarde dedicada a los niños de los colegios primarios del barrio local (una zona socio-económica de bajos ingresos). Se le ha designado el "Proyecto Edmundo Rice".  Una asistente social visita a cada familia para acertar qué monto de pensión puede solventar.  Los alumnos ingresantes - todos de sexto (el último) grado de primaria - asisten a clases de nivelación los sábados de junio a octubre, luego participan de un programa de seis semanas durante el verano para prepararlos para el régimen académico riguroso que seguirán en Mundo Mejor.  El proyecto ha sido un gran éxito - los casos de abandono de estudios son pocos y el ingreso a universidades excede largamente la norma nacional.

En Mundo Mejor (una institución de nivel secundario de cinco años de estudio) todos los alumnos de 4to y 5to grados participan en un programa de pastoral externa durante un semestre en orfanatos, asilos para ancianos, un hospital materno-infantil y apoyo escolar, donde ponen en práctica la teoría que aprenden en las clases de Educación Religiosa.

Durante todo el día el colegio palpita con actividades: dos sesiones de clases regulares, un sólido programa de deportes interescolares, orquestra, banda de quenas y cajones, periódico, coro y danzas folclóricas.

Por más de cuarenta años los Hermanos administraron fielmente el colegio en nombre de la diócesis de Chimbote, pero, en el año 2008, pasó a manos de la Congregación con la esperanza que proveerá un ambiente seguro para la capacitación profesional de las vocaciones peruanas y un símbolo vivo del compromiso de la Congregación a la educación formal en el Perú.

Actualmente hay cinco Hermanos Cristianos trabajando en Mundo Mejor: Vicente Peragine (Líder Local) profesor y Coordinador del Departamento de Inglés; Sean DiFiglia está en su sexto año como Director General; Hugo Cáceres dirige los retiros y enseña en un programa diocesano de Educación Religiosa y Alberto Llanos, profesor de Educ. Rel. e Historia.  Ricardo Glatz trabaja a tiempo completo con el cargo de Coordinador Académico en el Centro Técnico Mundo Mejor - el otro ministerio principal de los Hermanos Cristianos en Chimbote.

In 1964, Bishop Wright, of Pittsbugh, Pennsylvania (USA) came to Chimbote, Peru, to visit his priests who were associated with the St. James the Apostle Society. Father James Shanahan, pastor of "Virgen of the Portal" parish, asked the bishop if he could see to financing the building of a school in the parish. He showed Bishop Wright the open land where Mundo Mejor school now stands, and the Bishop promised to make his dream come true.
(Read Spanish version)

 

On Sunday the Toir Group attended Sunday Mass at St Finbar's Parish Church in Dunbar Street, known as "The South Parish" in Cork.

Nestled on the west coast of the Northern Territory, Australia, Wadeye is a remote Indigenous community with a population of 2,500. It is a six hour drive from Darwin (420 km) or one hour in a light plane. For about six months of the year the road is impassable due to flooding. Wadeye is on the ancestral home land of the Murrinh-patha tribe. There are about seven other main tribes, each with their own languages, in the surrounding area.

The third week of Tóir saw us on the move. On Monday we had a Final Roundup in Emmaus: Review of the programme so far, packing and, after an emotional farewell prayer-service, a grand Dinner and Social.

Tuesday morning saw us on the road to Glendalough. It was a ‘soft day' throughout and the group entered into the pilgrim-mood which was heightened by wisdom-inputs from Fr Michael Rogers. Neither the persistent soft rain nor the pesky midges could dampen our spirits. That evening we arrived in Waterford and after ironing out some teething problems there we had a lovely (delayed) meal and a very welcome sleep.

On Wednesday we took our pilgrimage to Callan. There Mr Séamus O'Brien gave us a spirited input on the Young Edmund. After this we visited the Rice Residence and watched the PowerPoint presentation on the Edmund Icon. Finally we gathered in the kitchen of the Rice Residence for the final prayer of the day.

Thursday was set aside to give the participants the opportunity to immerse themselves in the spirit and city of Waterford. We spent the morning in Mt Sion, with introductions to the ministries of those in the Edmund Rice Heritage Centre, a contemplative visit to the museum there and a detailed walk through Edmund's city. That evening Fr Liam Power joined us to celebrate a very moving Eucharist in the Edmund Rice Chapel in Mt Sion.

The fine weather of Thursday had gone by the time we got to load up the bus for our trip to Cork on Friday. Bags and backs were soaked before boarding the bus for the short trip to Brú na Cruinne in Carrick-on-Suir. There we were welcomed by Eddie and Seán and introduced to the house and the ambiance of the place. Mercifully the rain held off for about fifteen minutes so people were able to get out and breathe the bracing country air ... but by the time we left the rain was down again so we had to bypass a short walk to view the plaque which was erected in Carrickbeg to commemorate Edmund's daughter, Mary who is buried in that part of the town. The original plan was to lunch in Youghal, which we did but the driving wind and rain prevented the much-anticipated walk on the beach there so we arrived into Cork earlier than planned and settled in before being served a sumptuous dinner in the Ambassador Hotel there.

Thence to a whole day in Ballygriffin to saturate ourselves in the roots and surrounds of Nano. As with the day in Waterford the clouds parted and we were blessed with a lovely fresh, sunny day in Nano's home. Sisters Alba and Francis really made us feel at home and we were able to take the Cosmic Walk, spend time in the Icon Room and Heritage Room as well as having personal time to reflect on their morning's presentation. On the way home we gave vent to a mild immersion in ‘retail therapy' at the Blarney Woollen Mills and another fine dinner at the Ambassador Hotel.

Tomorrow we will walk Nano's city ... but that is a story for the next and final contribution from Tóir 2009.

 

 

Week two of Toir focussed on the lives and times of Nano and Edmund. The prayer that began the week encouraged us to explore the gifts that each of us personally found in our founders.

 

The International Toir Renewal Program July/August 2009 has just completed its first two weeks at Emmaus Retreat Centre, Swords, Co. Dublin.

Forty one participants representing eleven countries are participating; India, Pakistan, Philippines, Brazil, Peru, Australia, Newfoundland, Ghana, Zambia, America, England, Ireland.

 

The third week of the program commenced with a long six hour, bumpy and dusty bus trip, passing through areas suffering from lack of rain with many failed maize crops. We were left wondering how people eke out an existence in such desolate areas - so dry and seemingly devoid of water.

 

 

The International Toir Renewal Program July/August 2009 which commenced at the  Emmaus Retreat Centre, Swords, Co. Dublin has now come to completion.

Forty one participants representing eleven countries are participating; India, Pakistan, Philippines, Brazil, Peru, Australia, Newfoundland, Ghana, Zambia, America, England, Ireland.

 

Toir - report 1

Toir - report 2

Toir - report 3

Toir - report 4

Opening week

 

The program aims at providing a personally enriching experience, enabling all to develop understandings of different cultures and of our common humanity. It is being held at the Mary Ward Centre in Nairobi, Kenya for two weeks and then for a further week at the Canossian Centre in Arusha, Tanzania.

 

 

On the first day, after introductory sessions, participants journeyed to the Basilica in the city, met their local guides and visited a number of interesting sites around Nairobi city.

 

 

 

On the second day, all travelled by bus to the various ministry sites of the Brothers around Nairobi - at Embulbul, Kibera and Ruben. It was an opportuity to see a well developed secondary school and then to see the slum schools, a centre for the disabled, a medical clinic and primary schools. The bus journey was, in itself, an enculturation experience.

 

 

Some of the group with Dickson, head teacher of Maono school in Kibera slums

 

 

 

 

 

Beatrice Churu led us through an interesting interactive seesion "On entering a new culture". She encouraged us to have genuine encounters with people rather than go through fact gathering processes. She emphasised that a healthy regard for our own cultures disposes us for a fundamental positive regard for other cultures. And she warned us to expect that intercultural living will be stressful.

On Saturday afternoon, Brothers, visitors and guides from around Nairobi joined us for the official opening ritual and Mass.

 

 

The participants were robed by their guides in a traditional Masai blanket as a way of symbolising that they were now wrapped in Africa. A local choir and dancers added greatly to the lively atmosphere of the occasion and Fr Modeste gave a most engaging pentecostal style sermon.

 

 

 

Displaying the Masai blankets

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Sunday morning, Brothers from a variety of ministries around East Africa gave an interesting view of their particular ministry using power points and responding to questions.

 

Again we were joined by local Brothers and visitors from Australia.

 

 

 

 

Canadian participants made a presentation of funds raised at St Thomas More Collegiate, Vancouver, to the Yambio mission in South Sudan.

 

 

 

On Monday the Indian paricipants led us through a symbolic and meaningful reflection, encouraging us to find God in each other and in all of creation.

 

 

 

 

Mr Aloys Otieno Ajore spoke to us about African and specifically Kenyan culture. He mentioned that 55% of Kenyans hold to traditional religions yet there are 850 different Christian churches in Kenya. In Nairobi more that half the population live in slums but the ‘Jesus industry' is booming in the slums. The devil is blamed for dirty water, sewerage problems, corruption in the country. In traditional religions the leaders were regarded as heroes.Today the expectation remains that a leader will be a hero, a legend, a big man.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were spent at our immersion sites - Mary Rice Centre, Maono School, Baraka ya Ibrahim School and Ruben Centre

 

 

For a country which for centuries has been monocultural and one which has seen milllions of its citizens migrating abroad to seek a new life in a foreign land, Ireland now finds itself as the recipient of people coming from a wide variety of nations and ethnic groups. Tensions have developed around the country as recession heightens fears about employment opportunities and as varying cultural practices challenge the status quo.

 

The second week of Karibu has focused on five days of immersion at Edmund Rice Centre, Maono School, Baraka ya Ibrahim School and Ruben Centre. Participants have been active in class work within each centres and, as well as that, guides of the participants have provided opportunities for visiting their own homes, the homes of students, and cultural activities in the surrounding areas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three sessions of Input took place during the week. The Australian and Canadian participants provided opening reflections to these days, with strong national and cultural emphases.

On Monday, Fr Alois Otieno Ojore led us through two sessions on ‘Contemporary Culture in Kenya and Africa'. He spoke about the move away from a culture of community living to one of choosing leaders and politicians based on tribalism. The expectation today is that the leader will be the hero, the legend, the ‘big man'. One cannot be loyal if you challenge the leader. A culture of silence can prevail -  ‘The meetings starts after the meeting is over'.  The signs of hope include human rights gaining momentum, questioning the role of the military, social welfare states gaining impetus and a democratic culture being established in some countries.

On Friday Fr Modeste interacted with us around ‘Traditional culture/wisdom'. He stressed that Africans believe in the creative presence of God in the world, present everywhere, listening and answering. The Christian God can be seen as locked up six days of the week and hence creating a vacuum in the African soul. African people do not understand Christian dualism which separates out holy places and holy people from the everyday. Africans believe that life is the sacred gift of the Creator to all creatures, hence procreation is sacred, many wives and many children are a blessing, childlessness can be seen as poverty. What promotes life is moral, what denies life is immoral. Africans believe in the power of the spoken word, rather than the written word.

And on Saturday Beatrice Adele Churu returned to lead us through an interesting session on ‘Women in Africa Today'. She started off by stating that ‘to educate a woman is to educate a nation'. She believed that the breakdown of confidence in the African peoples and communities has weakened the position of women. Women in the kitchen were the centre of community education whereas western education with children moving away from home, has promoted individualism and broken down a sense of community. The increased use of sexual violence as a war tool or as an expression of conquest is the highest form of moral collapse. Adele sees signs of hope when we tell our stories and listen to one another, when we do not yield to the culture of loneliness but rediscover the power of togetherness, and when we reaffirm and underscore complementarity.

 

Late afternoons have been set aside for refection time, journaling and sharing in Listening Groups.

 

 

Apart from that, the more energetic participants and guides have enjoyed volleyball games after immersions, and opportunities have been availed of to visit places such as the Masai market in town, the Giraffe Centre, and a number went to the Nukuru National Park on Sunday.

 

 

 

 

On Tuesday afternoon we farewelled our ten guides who had been our companions during our immersion experiences. These guides were local young men and women who knew the areas well and ensured that we not only found our way around, but also introduced us to various cultural experiences.

 

The Team and participants travel the six hour journey to Arusha, Tanzania, on Thursday for a further week of the program.

 

 

The annual International Immersion Program, led by a Team of Brothers and one Loreto Sister, welcomed participants from Ireland, England, India, Oceania and Canada on July 1st to Nairobi, Kenya, for a three week program.

 

A weekly report will be posted on this website.

 

Week One at Karibu

Week Two at Karibu

Week Three at Karibu

A Gathering of representatives of the global Edmund Rice Network [ERN], together with members of the Congregation Leadership Teams, was held at Mt Sion, Waterford, Ireland June 24th - 30th

Theme: ‘Living the Vision'

See below for the recommendations of the ERN Conference

Day 1: Gathering and opening ritual

Day 2: Sharing of both personal and Province experiences of the Network

Day 3: Reflections on wisdom and learnings

Day 4: Reflecting on Renewal experiences

Day 5: What strengths are emerging from all of us?

Days 6 & 7: Work in progress

Recommendations

The Edmund Rice Network is the global umbrella for all the followers of Edmund Rice. An Irish businessman, born in 1762, Edmund Rice, moved by Gospel compassion for the deprivation and suffering of his fellow countrymen, particularly for youth, gave up his fortune at the age of 40 to respond to the desperate needs of young people. Two Religious Congregations of men in the Catholic Church, namely the Presentation Brothers and the Christian Brothers honor Blessed Edmund Rice as their founder and many other groups and individuals around the world also see themselves as followers of the spirit of Edmund.

 

 

A unique development has occurred in Burkina Faso, a French speaking country north of Ghana in West Africa, and bordering the Sahara. This is a country where neither of the two Congregations has ever had any establishments, yet the Edmund Rice charism is spreading within the country.  What follows is a report from Fr Expedit Gnoumou.

The heritage week at Iona college community was packed with activities ranging from historical and educational talks, charity collection for the support of the work of the Christian Brothers in developing countries, and the dedication of the sculpture of Edmund Rice, Founder of the Christian Brothers. Opened by the Brothers in 1940, Iona College is a medium sized college with 4,300 students. There are five residential halls on the College’s picturesque campus in New Rochelle.

A group of Iona College students from New York, on an immersion experience in EastAfrica, joined with local Brothers in a tree planting activity at Beausang Secondary School, Embulbul, Kenya. Within the East Africa District [Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania] the Brothers’ communities have been asked to contribute a carbon tax -

 

Street children of Cochabamba

In a world of aggression and violence, hundreds of street children of Cochabamba, Bolivia, live in very precarious conditions. Rejected by society, they suffer discrimination from the police and civil authorities as well as all the dangers associated with life on the streets. Sadly, several of the girls are carrying babies, and supporting them leads almost inevitably to addiction if they manage to survive and stay alive.

Tutembee Pamoja - we walk together

"We are hoping the rain stays away but it will take more than African mud to dampen the Eddie Rice spirit!" so said Marysia Lappin, one of a group of young adults from Australia - two Tasmanians, one Queenslander, and a whole bunch of Victorians who are now situated in the outskirts of Nairobi in the town of Embulbul

Nine Final Professions in Africa

Across Africa nine Christian Brothers and Presentation Brothers are currently making their Final Professions as Brothers. They have spent the last eight or more years exploring and reflecting on what it is to be a Brother in today's world and their Final Profession is their full acceptance of God's call to them and their desire to commit their lives in service as Brothers.

Ruben Centre: An 'Oasis' in Mukuru Slums

"Wow..... This place looks beautiful and different!!" This has been an obvious and common phrase that many visitors have used as they drive or walk through the Ruben Centre's gate.

Yes, the place looks not only beautiful but also different, especially for those who may have walked or even driven through the slums for the first time.

Young Adult Immersions in Africa

In recent times groups of young adults from Oceania and Ireland have been availing of opportunities to spend time as volunteers in Africa, associating with Brothers who are ministering in various countries.

One group, led by Kellie Carnabie and Martin Kelly from Western Australia, has been in East Africa since mid November and are valuing the experience.