Monday, July 18, 2011
Jambo!! Karibu to the official blog of the St Monica Holy Cross Africa Ministry’s (HCAM) 2011 mission trip. (Karibu means Welcome!) This year we accommodated several different travel itineraries, and we’ve just about settled into our home for the week in Nairobi, Kenya.
Several of us took the opportunity to spend a week climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania before the others arrived in East Africa. Known as the “Roof of Africa,” Kili’s Uhuru peak towers 19,341 feet above sea level and is the highest point on the African continent. All four St Monica travelers—Peter Heller, Kevyn Kurata, Kristina Marzec, and myself—were successful in completing the arduous trek to the summit! Tumafika!!
Upon returning to Kenya, we headed to the Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) to join members of Holy Cross Parish (Dandora, Kenya) in greeting our fellow pilgrims, and we all headed to bed after midnight last night to begin our mission in Kenya.
Today was spent on the parish grounds where the main features include a church worship space, St James School, and the Brother Andre Dispensary. The pastor, Fr Andrew Massawe who will be visiting St Monica in August, celebrated Mass for us, and we had the honor of being joined by the St James School Choir and liturgical dancers. The students burst into song, accompanying themselves with a mix of percussion instruments and sidestepping; St Monica followed suit with emulated swaying and hand-clapping. Notably, the students’ homemade songbooks consisted of handwritten lyrics in composition books.
In his homily, Fr Andrew welcomed us as “pilgrims,” distinguishing us from “travelers.” As Jesus said in today’s Gospel that “there is something greater here,” Fr Andrew remarked that there is something greater than St James, or St Monica, or Monsignor, or Arthur, or Fr Andrew himself. It is Jesus Christ who gathers us together—who calls us to journey to Dandora during this week.
Throughout the remainder of the day, St Monica’s first-time pilgrims to Dandora explored the parish grounds. Highlights of the school visit included a young student engaged in teaching flashcards with her classmates, many students learning to sew on Singer sewing machines (antique pedal and all!), and parishioners using the computer library to prepare for their vocational certifications. Furthermore, when we asked students what they wanted to be when they grew up, we were delighted to hear that they had immediate responses including engineer, newscaster, pilot, and more.
In addition to the first-time pilgrims, six of us are returning for our second or third visit to our sister parish. We are involved with more directed projects. Dr. Lynn Kurata, OD, led a team consisting of Susan Leary, myself, a nurse from the Brother Andre Clinic, and two Holy Cross seminarians. We’ll be working in the clinic all week, so you can look forward to a more thorough exposition of our work later this week.
In the meantime, I am inviting each of our pilgrims to share some personal words to include with each day’s blog reflections as they feel so moved. Today we end with some words from two pilgrims:
“The children were so beautiful and loving. They were so happy to see us. They taught me to appreciate life and be happy with what God gives us. The airport greeting with flowers and the people of the parish was so uplifting after our long flight.” –Maureen Gault
“Holy Ground…this is holy ground. I guess that I was prepared for the dump and all the poverty; but what I didn’t expect was the serenity and peace that I would find on the other side of the gate to Holy Cross parish. For the Lord is present and where He is - is holy. The cross that rises above the church building – seen from afar – tells of the security and strength within. The nuns in their crisply pressed habits (and cardigan sweaters – since this is their winter) – Father Andrew with his amazing smile – and all the workers are so filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit. And – simply – the power of the Holy Spirit is something truly beyond words. This is going to be an amazing trip.” –Bobbie Paul
Until tomorrow, Bwana Ana Bariki! God bless you!
- Arthur Fitzmaurice
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