Comboni Day Celebration at Merrivale in South Africa

The celebration was a good occasion to commemorate the Dies Natalis of our Founder. The feast of this year was marked by two main events: the official opening of our Postulancy and the conferring of ministries to some scholastics.

A great reason for joy was the official opening of the Postulancy since our Province of South Africa is usually characterized as having few local vocations. This year we were able to welcome a group of three postulants: Reneilwe Kuphari, Eugene Simukoko and Oyama Nkosi, who were officially initiated into this formation stage. The initiation rite was symbolically expressed through a lovely and original gesture of the candidates knocking on the door of the chapel asking to be allowed to enter. The main celebrant, Fr. John Baptist Opargiw, Provincial Superior, officially opened the door for them and warmly received them amidst joyous exclamations from the assembly.

The second moment of the celebration was marked by the conferring of the ministries of Lector and Acolyte to five Scholastics who reside in the Scholasticate of Pietermaritzburg.

In his homily, Fr. John Baptist reminded us about the importance of following the example of the Good Shepherd, whose main characteristics are compassion and knowledge of the sheep. He also invited us to cultivate our personal spirituality and self-identity in order to be well rooted in Christ, and to be proud to look every day “into the mirror” of our existence reinforcing our personal call and missionary identity as well.

After the Holy Mass, the extended Community of the Scholasticate/Postulancy invited all present to share a beautiful moment of Agape. The presence of some friends from neighbouring religious congregations and parishioners of our of St. Joan of Arc Parish made the day’s event truly Catholic and missionary, just as our Founder St. Daniel Comboni would have loved it.
St. Daniel Comboni, pray for us!

Fr. Aldo Sierra, mccj