Yearly Pilgrimage of the Comboni Family to Fatima

Every year, on the last Saturday of July, the shrine of Fatima becomes the meeting place of the Comboni Family of Portugal. This year we celebrated the 10^th anniversary of the canonization of St. Daniel Comboni and the theme which gave life to the pilgrimage was, “Like Comboni, live and spread your faith.”

A few days earlier, some dozens of young people connected to our GIM (Youth in Mission), following a nine year old tradition, had started their pilgrimage to Fatima on foot from different parts of the country, aiming at reaching their destination on the eve of the gathering. During the 100 km walk – for some more, for others less – the young people gave time to prayer, sharing, silence, being together and friendship. “Walking along the road with mission in our hearts – tells us Fr. Carlo Nunes – we built bridges, shared hopes, aspirations and desires, we had unique experiences of God’s presence and of sharing with one another. In these young people relies the hope of our faith, which must be lived and shared from generation to generation, following the example of Comboni.”

One of the promoters of this walking experience was Fr. João da Costa, a native of Vila Pouca de Aguilar. He has been working in Doba, Chad, for the last five years, was on vacation in his native Portugal and joined the young people. “It was a happy coincidence – said Fr. Carlos Nunes – since it was the Eucharistic celebration of Fr. João da Costa’s 10^th anniversary of ordination with which we closed the young people’s pilgrimage to Fatima. It was all very beautiful and simple. With his usual smile, Fr. João spoke to the young people from the heart about his mission in Doba.”

On Saturday, July 27, more than 2,000 people filled the Pastoral Center Paul VI, the venue of the yearly pilgrimage of the Comboni family. Starting in the morning, Comboni Sr. Maria do Rosário Vaz Marinho shared with the people her experience of 25 years of religious missionary life, mostly spent in Africa. The missionary spoke at greater length of her last 12 years of life in Uganda, particularly of her work in the project of health formation and pastoral at Matany hospital.

On Saturday afternoon, a mission rosary was held in the chapel of the apparitions, followed by a procession to the basilica of the Holy Trinity, where a solemn Eucharist was celebrated, presided over by Fr. José da Silva Vieira, recently returned from South Sudan.

“It was a beautiful day - commented Fr. Carlos Nunes – and everyone felt the significance of this missionary pilgrimage. It was beautiful, in the end, to see the multitude of the participants as they made their way to the many busses that would take them home. They were all smiling. Their hearts were leaving filled with joy and enthusiasm to continue to live and spread the faith, like Comboni.”

Pilgrimage of the Comboni Family
“Like Comboni, live and spread your faith”