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The Comboni Brothers of the Iberian Peninsula met in Maia
Rome, Monday, February 11, 2013
The Comboni Missionary Brothers from Spain and Portugal met in Maia, Portugal, on February 6-8: this is a tradition which reunites, every two years, these missionaries of the Iberian provinces. Besides the two provincial superiors, Fr. Ramón Aguíluz Eguíluz of Spain and Fr. Alberto de Oliveira Silva of Portugal, Bro. Daniele Giusti, Assistant general responsible for the brothers in the Institute, also attended. In the picture: Bro João Paulo da Rocha Martins, member of the provincial council of Portugal, leads the final phase coordinating the shared synthesis of the meeting.
“Among the eighteen participants to the meeting of the Iberian Comboni Brothers – said Bro. Giusti – the figure of Bro. António Martins da Costa stood out, the dean of the Brothers of his province and the first Portuguese Comboni Missionary, whose presence was a source of joy for all the participants.”
The meeting started with the presentation of the message of the bishops who took part in the Synod on New Evangelization – which took place at the Vatican on October 7-28, 2012 – given by Mr. Pedro Moreira, the coordinator of the Comboni Lay Missionaries of Portugal.
In the course of the second day, the Brothers made a pilgrimage to the shrine of San Bento da Porta Aberta, where they celebrated their brotherhood with a holy Mass presided over by the provincial superior of Portugal, Fr. Alberto Silva.
On the third and last day of the meeting, Bro. Giusti presented the current situation of the Brother in the Institute and the evolution of this figure in the history of the Comboni Missionaries. According to a long standing tradition dating back to the 80s, the date for the next meeting of the Brothers of the Iberian provinces will be in two years, in May 2014.
A visit to the Ferreira winery – well known for the production of Port wine – concluded the meeting with “levity and hilarity,” said Bro. Giusti.
In the picture, from left: Bro. José Nieto Parra (Spain), Bro. António Martins da Costa (Portugal),
Bro. Roberto Misas Ríos (Spain) and (standing) Bro. Alfredo da Costa Afonso (Portugal).