Who we are, what we should be

We have now reached more than half way in the Provincial Assembly of the English speaking Provinces of Africa and Mozambique.
These past days we have tackled the three themes of the Chapter, namely the Ratio Missionis, Formation and Governance. There were some heated discussions on the Ratio, and rightly so since the Ratio speaks about who we are, what we should be and what it means to be Comboni Missionaries today. It is the Ratio Missionis which should clarify what 'mission' means, what the specific fields of actions of the Institute are and the methods it wants to adopt. It is, indeed, the Mission which should give the direction of what kind of Comboni Missionaries we want to form in our Institute and what form of government is best suited to reach that particular identity.
We are aware that the identity of the Comboni Missionaries is a very sensitive issue, as Regional differences and different interpretations of what mission is all about might create some tensions within the Institute. However, we also believe that the fundamental attitude required from all of us is the availability to listen to each other with a free heart, being equally aware of the common tendency to box persons and people in a specific Region into pre-conceived ideas which are usually baseless.

On Sunday the 10th of May some of us went to celebrate the Eucharist in St. Kizito, others in Lilanda, two parishes run by our confreres. We found a vibrant Christian community that showed their appreciation for our presence and we felt much at home with them. It was a moving experience as we deeply felt in communion with the people of Zambia and, with them, with all the people of our Provinces who were celebrating the Eucharist on that day.
In the afternoon the same day we paid a visit to the Provincial house of the Comboni Sisters. We stayed together and prayed together united by the same ideals which animated Daniel Comboni. This visit reminded us that our charism is shared and fully expressed by many actors: the MCCJ, the Comboni Sisters, the Secular Comboni Missionaries and the Lay Comboni Missionaries.

Fr. Luciano Perina and Fr. Mariano Tibaldo