Columban Mission March / April 2011

The Magazine of the Missionary Society of St. Columban March/April 2011

Missionary Vocation Called to Witness and Service

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The One Family of God

As a young man pondering a vocation, I was attracted to the Columbans because they were missionaries to the nations. I thought that the God-question is the most important question that people have to answer in their lives. I thought that there were many opportunities for people in

my native Australia to hear the Gospel message from their local churches. However, many people in other countries did not have that same opportunity. To me, it seemed that sharing the Gospel with others was the greatest need for the greatest number. It was a worthwhile challenge to which I could readily commit my life. And I’m very glad I did.

I was assigned to Pakistan for over twenty years, working with the minority Christian community, being part of the fledgling efforts at dialogue that were getting underway at that time, and getting to know a whole new world of language, culture and religion. The richness of that experience continues to be a resource for my present work in Australia. I am currently working in Christian-Muslim Relations and Mission Studies in Australia, building friendships with Muslims, encouraging Christians to reach out to Muslims, and breaking down the barriers of ignorance, stereotypes and suspicion. I consider this work just as missionary as the many years I spent in Lahore, Pakistan. While I do not cross geographical barriers of distance or ocean, I am still crossing boundaries in the multi-cultural and multi-faith

reality of contemporary Australia, reaching out to promote friendship, understanding and cooperation.

Since ordination, I have changed. The Society has changed. Ways of being missionary have changed. Yet, the mission of Jesus hasn’t changed; the desire to serve and to witness is present today among men and women of all ages. I am encouraged by the basic decency of the many people of good will of all faiths and all who are actively promoting better relationships among people, across the barriers of cultural, ethnic and religious differences. I am inspired by people who make a difference, promoting justice, working for reconciliation, serving others, helping those in need, being good neighbors. I believe that the Church’s witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ is a very important part of bringing people together as the one family of God.

Fr. Patrick McInerney lives and works in Australia.

In So Many WordS

By Fr. Patrick McInerney

I believe that the Church’s witness to the Good News of Jesus Christ is a very important part of bringing people together as the one family of God.


My childhood dream was always to be a religious Sister. The seed of this

dream must have been sown by the Columban missionaries, Sisters and priests, who were my educators and friends from my early years.

I tried to follow my childhood dream and joined a religious community in Davao City, the Philippines, but ultimately it was not for me. After two years I made the difficult decision to leave. I spent the long hours of the bus journey back home crying. I was fighting with God who I felt had abandoned me. Amazingly when the tears subsided, there was peace within me. There was this inner knowing that Jesus was very present and hurting with me as I left the community I had come to love. In my life’s journey, I always go back to that faith experience of God’s abiding presence and assuring love in my moment of desolation and confusion.

There were more years of searching for God’s will for me,

of how to respond to the persistent call within, of how to live a meaningful way of life. The Spirit who kept the fire burning in my whole being eventually led me to the Philippine Catholic Lay Missionaries (PCLM). Years with PCLM affirmed and strengthened my lay missionary vocation. By baptism we are called to follow and participate in the mission of Jesus. It was also my baptism of fire. I literally crossed rivers, seas and mountains, had the same simple meals for days and had nothing extra. My cup was overflowing. I received more than I had given. I had found my pearl of great price. I had found a meaningful way of life, and the fire within kept on burning.

In 1990, I joined the Columban lay mission program and together with Pilar Tilos and Emma Pabera formed the first lay missionary team from the Philippines. Why did I choose the Columbans? Partly, it was because of a special affinity with them. Not only had they been significant in my life formation, the Columbans I knew inspired me deeply by their commitment and way of mission, especially their option for the poor, their passion for justice and the care of the earth. There’s a deep resonance with my own passion and commitment in life.

Pilar, Emma and I arrived in Lahore, Pakistan, on a Mission Sunday. It was one of those synchronistic moments confirming my “yes.” When we experienced difficulties and doubted our

decisions, the three of us found it helpful to remember why we came. Being on mission is a gift from God, our magnificat in praxis. All three of us had long connections with Columban missionaries as friends and mentors. Now as Columban lay missionaries we joined them as partners, sharing Columban life and mission and witnessing to a new way of being Church. It is over twenty years now since I first set foot in the “land of the pure.” My first years in mission had been purifying years. I came with excitement and confidence. “I am a woman of experience. I’ve brought with me my faith, my lived experiences of working to earn a living and my voluntary Christian community involvement. Moreover, I know the Columbans!” Learning the language alone was like being back in first grade, struggling and getting excited when I was able to read the word Lahore in Urdu script. My first big difficulty was the many restrictions that apply to women, myself included, in Pakistani culture. What I considered as a simple piece of cloth to cover my head was a cultural symbol indicating whether or not I am a good woman. The late Archbishop Armando Trindade of Lahore, on our first courtesy call to him asked us, “What are you three women doing here in Pakistan? How can you travel on your own in a very male-dominated society? How do you hope to empower Pakistani women?” We didn’t have

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Fire in My HeartThe Faith and Commitment of a Disciple

bygloriacanama

“The fire which is in the sun, the fire which is in the earth,that fire is in my own heart.”

–Upanishad

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Karachi airport and the “given” challenges just by being here as a woman, a lay missionary and part of the minority Christian community in an Islamic country which has been fighting against terrorism, violence, intolerance and the many forms of poverty and injustice.

When I almost gave up this Columban lay missionary journey of mine, I realized that the cost to continue is nothing compared to the gifts with which I have been lavishly blessed. I highly value this partnership, this sharing of Columban life and mission. It is indeed a pearl of great price to be part of peoples’ lives— with Pakistanis, with Filipino migrants in Lahore and the whole community of life.

It’s a privilege to be involved in ministries that I love, to be part of creative, relevant responses to changing missionary challenges. There is this inner knowing that there is always enough grace not only to continue but to thrive and glow in my missionary journey.

Columban lay missionary Gloria S. Canama lives and works in Pakistan.

TheColumbanJPICteaminPakistan—Gloria,Fr.TanvirO’Hanlon,AqifShezadandMostaqAlam


the answers and honestly told the Archbishop, with the assurance that we’d share with him our mission experiences. We did and in the process gained his trust and support.

While on mission in my own home country, I was working closely with community leaders, men and women alike. In Pakistan, I found myself in the midst of women sharing their deep aspirations to be treated with dignity and justice. My years in the Columban parish of Sheikhupura were very meaningful and fulfilling, a lived experience of Jesus’ words “I have come that you may have life, life to the full.” I left the parish over ten years ago now, yet I continue to be enriched with the continued friendship with some families there and the countless life-giving mission moments. It is a lasting gift of mission, a living well where I continue to draw water of joy, nurturance, strength and hope. On the other hand, I continue to share the pain of my women friends still carrying the twin burdens of being women and of being poor.

Joining the Columbans is a gift and a privilege but not without

cost. Partnership in mission, especially 20 years ago, was more an ideal or a dream. It took a lot to change attitudes, to be seriously valued as laity on mission and to be integrated in Columban life as partners in mission. Earlier on, lay missionaries were often asked, “What do you do on mission?” There was no easy answer as many of us, if not all, joined with no blueprints except the faith and commitment of a disciple to actively participate in the mission of Jesus.

Sometimes the light within seemed to be flickering, dimming as I struggled to find seeds of hope and meaning in chaotic, worsening situations, locally and globally. A quote from Clarissa Pinkola Estes resonates with my own experience, “Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it.” I can partly identify with St. Paul who went through many trying moments in his missionary journey. I experienced sickness; the deaths of Pilar and Columban Fathers Pat McCaffrey and Tanvir Tommy O’Hanlon; armed robbery in the Columban house, deportation from

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When I was baptized, my godfather chose the name John in honor of

John the Baptist. I was born into a traditional Catholic family and was brought up in Hebei Province which is four hours by train south west of Beijing. Our village was one-third Catholic. When I was young there was no television in our home, so I asked my father to tell me Bible stories and that is where my faith journey began. As a primary school student, each Saturday I would play with my

friends in our village but also made time for one hour’s adoration before the Blessed Sacrament in the parish church. It was the custom in our village to have exposition of the Blessed Sacrament on Saturday afternoon, and the local parishioners would spend some time in prayer in the church. I feel that my personal relationship with God has its origin in those hours before the Blessed Sacrament.

After I completed high school, my father advised me to get into business and make a living.

Therefore, at age 20, I took a train to Dong Ning, a town in Heilongjiang Province that is two days travel by train north of Beijing, not far from the Russian border. There I met a Catholic family who inspired me by the way they lived their faith. The couple were leaders and evangelizers in the local community where there was no resident priest. The family offered bed and board to about twenty rural children who wanted to attend primary school in the town. Their example prompted me to rethink the direction of my life.

It was there that I first met Fr. Gerry Neylon when he came to check on the possibility of the Columbans supporting the community in some way. Fr. Gerry, who works in China, arrived accompanied by Maria Zhang Yaru, the daughter of the couple I came to know. In 1994 she received a Columban scholarship that was supervised by Fr. Mickey Martin of Malate Parish, Manila, the Philippines, to study in the Philippines. At the time she was unable to use the scholarship but was able to go later through an invitation from a Chinese priest in the Philippines, and she stayed there for eight years. She completed a master’s degree in education and did volunteer work in Malate Parish where she met Fr. Martin. While in Manila she made friends with the other young Chinese women who were there


God is with us, so how could we

possibly be lonely?

Life Giving ConnectionsDiscerning What Is Most Important

byJohnwangZongshe

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being a missionary, I’m discovering inner peace and harmony and who I am as a person. For me, to be a missionary is to search for God and the eternal, a quest that never ceased to engage me even during my pursuit of material success.

Fourth, some might say the life of a missionary is very lonely. However, Columban missionaries belong to a community that is like a family. We also have our family and relatives, friends, hobbies and interests. God is with us, so how could we possibly be lonely? In today’s world youth don’t have the chance to be alone and quiet. There is little chance to quiet the chaos of our lives in order to discern what is most important in life for us.

John Wang Zongshe has just begun his journey with the Columbans. He lives and studies in China.

to being a missionary priest that I hear from people at home.

First, some might think that by becoming a missionary priest one cannot live out his deepest desire, which may be to become a teacher, a doctor, a lawyer, or something else. However, I don’t think this is true as in my case my dream was to be a doctor. As a missionary I can take care of people and so still fulfill the basic desire of my dream.

Second, some say that by becoming a missionary one gives up his or her freedom. However, I feel that real freedom is to seek truth. In fact, by being a missionary I experience even greater freedom to do precisely that, because a missionary is a seeker and a communicator of truth discovered through the exercise of reason inspired by faith.

Third, when I was working I strove for money, power and material goods but discovered that such things are limited and hollow. It is easy to lose oneself searching for those types of things. Now that I’m on the path towards


on the Columban scholarship program. There she also met Fr. Warren Kinne who was the Central Lay Missionary Coordinator for the Columbans at that time and would later be working in China himself when Maria returned home. On returning to China, thanks to her multiple Columban contacts, she soon met Fr. Gerry and took him to Dong Ning.

I shared with Maria my interest in working in evangelization, and she urged me to go to the Philippines to study as preparation for being a catechist. I took her advice and studied religious education and philosophy in Manila, where I also worked as a volunteer in Malate Parish and met Fr. Martin. I returned to China to work with Maria in evangelization and soon after Fr. Kevin O’Neill, who had received my contact details from Fr. Martin, came to see

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Fr.DanTroy,JosephLiJiangang,JohnWangZongshe,Fr.KevinO’Neill

me. The rest is history. I am now in a one year English study program in Wuhan during which I take a look at the Columban program and the Columban Fathers, and they take a look at me. If both of us like what we see, I will go from here to begin the Columban formation program in the Philippines.

At this point I would like to address four common objections

Columban missionaries belong to a community that is like a family.


My village of 800 residents is 100% Catholic. It is in Shaanxi Province,

16 hours by train south west of Beijing. My Christian name was chosen for me by our parish priest when he baptized me. As a young boy I always went to church with my grandmother even though I did not really like to. I preferred to be playing with my friends. On one occasion, during my primary school years, I went to see an open air movie at Mass time.

The Franciscan Missionaries of Mary Sisters worked in our village and ran a medical clinic. In junior high school, one Sister got us together in summer holidays for religious education, and at the age of eleven I began to know more about God. I was born after the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) so much religious practice had ceased. I used to sit at the back of the church when I went alone, but when I joined the youth group we would sit at the front. As a youth I went of my own free will to church.

At that time, I was timid and afraid to read in public. I became an altar server and at twelve I was leading the congregation in half an hour of prayers before Mass. I liked that and on returning from school I’d drop my bag and head for the church.


A Church with Room for AllThe Importance of Reaching OutbyJosephliJiangang


dealing with people who are not Christians. We need to reach out to them too, and also to those in other parts of the world who struggle to find meaning for their lives and have had little chance to hear the Christian message.

Joseph Li Jiangang is a Columban seminarian candidate living in China.

When I was sixteen my father’s cousin, who is a priest, wanted me to go to the minor seminary so I went, but not because I wanted to. My father had the idea that since he had two sons, offering one up to God was a good thing. I was only there for two months when the government shut the seminary as it was run by the underground part of the Church. I returned home, and my father told me to just wait and see what might happen. In the meantime, I enrolled at the local junior high school.

After middle school I got a job, as my family was poor. I worked for one year and then returned to the minor seminary that had reopened. I felt that the community atmosphere of the seminary helped draw me closer to God. During this time I lived with a Catholic family from Monday to Friday and on weekends returned to the seminary. Since the family I stayed with knew the school principal, I was able to attend the local high school (which was not in the residential zone of my family), paying lower fees.


At age 23, in 2005, I began to think about being a missionary. I used to help out in the Church during summer with catechetical programs with children. That is when I realized that many people in other villages were not Catholic, and I remembered that Jesus had said that the Gospel is for everyone. I noticed that youth who said they had no faith also talked about being lonely and having feelings of emptiness in their lives. At this time I was 24 and was already in the seminary.

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I realized that many people in other

villages were not Catholic, and I

remembered that Jesus had said

that the Gospel is for everyone.

I left the local seminary but began to rediscover my vocation and a diocesan priest who had studied in Ireland for four years on a Columban scholarship connected me with Fr. Kevin O’Neill. I found a job after leaving the seminary and was living in Xi’an where I became involved with the local Church and youth group.

When I try to answer the question “Why be a missionary?” I do my best to answer this question out of my experience in China. Three points occur to me. First,

I grew up Catholic and want to share my faith both in China and overseas. Second, it is good that the Church offers opportunities to help youth come together and share their search for meaning in life. My experience in China prompts me to think that possibly youth in other parts of the world are also searching for meaning in their lives. Third, there should be space in the life of the Church for all, not just Christians; there should be a welcome for all. Here in China I have learned the importance of


October 13, 2010, was the day on which 33 miners, after having spent more

than two months together in a dark cavern, emerged from a mine more than a half mile below the surface of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile. As images of their rescue flashed across the world, many people felt a great joy in witnessing an event that confirmed their faith in resurrection. When the mine had collapsed in August, there was a period of seventeen days when the world lost hope that anyone would come out alive.

The miners themselves, trapped in darkness, faced desperation and the terrible fear that they were entombed alive. However, one of them, who was to become their leader, encouraged the group of very different personalities to remain united and to keep hope alive through supporting one another. A difficult task indeed, but how unimaginable the joy of

their reward must have been after seventeen long days when they received their first contact from above the ground!

When their response to that initial contact, written on a scrap of paper, “We are 33 and we are alive” was held up on television for all the world to see, there was a sense that a miracle was happening right before our eyes. Eyes welled up with tears as hope was restored and joy renewed.

Afterward the engineers speculated that the rescue operation could take several months even as the Chilean government promised that it would do everything possible to bring the miners to safety as speedily as possible. With the realization that Chile didn’t have the advanced technology needed to achieve that goal came the decision to request the help of various countries, including Canada, the United States and Switzerland. Thanks to the support

and cooperation of these and other countries as well as the determination of Chilean engineers to keep the focus of their efforts solely on the rescue of the miners, the projected time plan of four months was reduced to a little more than two months.

During those two months that the miners were trapped, communication between them and the people on the surface took place through narrow channels, through which cylinders containing food and beverages, as well as the hopes and concerns of loved ones, were passed to the trapped miners. These cylinders enabled the miners to believe that some day one such cylinder could be made big enough to transport them into the light of day, which was to happen eventually.

After the rescue, one of the miners acknowledged that he had gone down into the mine to work as a man of little or no faith, yet during those long, dark and dreary days of waiting he had learned the meaning of hope, which in turn led to his faith in God being restored. He recognized that this change of heart was due in no small part to the inspiration and encouragement of one of his companions who actively struggled to keep the men united because he believed that this was the best way to keep their hope alive.

In this era when we are greatly tempted to place economic progress before people, the rescue operation of the miners reminds us of the value of human life. No expense was spared, no stone left unturned, no avenue left unexplored by the President of Chile and the Minister of Mining from the moment that the miners’ message was received until the last man emerged from that dark


A Witness to HopebygonzaloborquezDiaz

From Despair to Hope, from Death to Life


through which God conveyed His concerns and hopes for the world. Today Columban missionaries are called to convey God’s concern to those who feel abandoned, to renew the hope of those who live in the darkness of despair, to encourage all those who are baptized to work together to bring about a better and brighter future for all of humanity. No matter how dreary the situation or how dark the horizon we are called to remain channels of God’s faithful love for the world, witnesses to hope in a resurrection.

gonzaloborquezDiazisacolumbanseminarianfromchilewhostudiedEnglishinchicago,Illinois,during2010andisnowcontinuinghisstudiesintheologyinSantiago.


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cavern into the light of day. On that jubilant day the President’s words, “Life has defied death, hope has defied anguish” seemed to capture the resurrection moment that not only the miners and their families experienced but also that which the people of Chile —and indeed of the watching world—felt.

As a Chilean living and studying in Chicago, Illinois, at that time, I followed the events of the rescue operation very closely over two months and marveled at the many ways that God was at work underground, over ground and across the world. I was in awe at the stamina and faith of the miners, felt admiration for the dexterity and diligence of those engaged in the rescue operation, and rejoiced —thanks to modern means of communication—that I could witness with the rest of the world

the joy that affirms faith in the Resurrection.

Also, as a Columban seminarian I found myself reflecting on the meaning of the rescue operation for my vocation as a missionary. Those cylinders that were used to transport food for the body as well as food for the soul, the hopes and concerns of loved ones, to the miners, and which eventually carried the miners to the surface, are called paloma in Spanish. This word paloma translates as dove in English or columba in Latin. The name Columban comes from a combination of the Latin word columba and the Gaelic word ban, which together translate as “white dove.” History tells us that in the sixth century, St. Columban, the patron saint of the Missionary Society of St. Columban, considered himself a channel

I marveled at the many ways that God was at work underground, over ground and across the world.


Lately, I have been praying and reflecting a lot about my recent pilgrimage, and I am really beginning to feel the wonderful benefits of having taken part. It was truly a graced time. As a result of participating in the pilgrimage, I feel more confirmed than ever in my missionary vocation as a Columban priest.

Once again, many thanks to the the Missionary Society of St. Columban for giving me an opportunity to participate in such a grace filled event—an event that I believe will help lay the foundations of an era in our society that is truly a multicultural society with St. Columban as patron. Something has happened, something was born out of that pilgrimage. A new direction has been taken, a new perspective given on the nature of our missionary society.

When I received an email from the Columban Superior General Fr.

Tommy Murphy inviting Columban priests like myself, who were ordained during the 1990s and 2000s, to participate in a pilgrimage following the missionary journey of St. Columban in Europe, I thought to myself, “I do not want to go.” I wondered how I could possibly participate in this, especially since I had only recently taken over responsibility for a new parish here in Santiago, Chile. I am just settling into this new parish and now I would have to get up and be gone for a period of time.

Nevertheless, as time went on, I came to accept that if the Columban Superior General as well as the Columban Regional Director in Chile, Fr. Derry Healy, thought that I should go on this pilgrimage, then I should make the effort and go. Fr. Healy is also the founder and the organizer of the Columban pilgrimage. So at the beginning of July 2010, I left my parish in good Columban hands and headed off from Chile to Europe to join the pilgrimage.

The 2010 pilgrimage was the ninth Columban pilgrimage to take place since Fr. Healy began organizing these pilgrimages in the Jubilee Year 2000. Almost 40 younger Columban missionary priests participated in the pilgrimage which began at Dalgan Park, Ireland, on Sunday, July 13, and finished on Sunday, August 4. Leading the pilgrimage were Fathers Tommy Murphy and

Eamon Sheridan, both from the General Council, along with Fr. Healy, who had planned and organized it.

The idea of this Columban pilgrimage was to give the priest missionaries from twelve different countries an opportunity to connect with that great “Pilgrim for Christ,” St. Columban. Around the year 591, St. Columban, at age 47, set out from Bangor (his monastery in his native Ireland) to spend the remaining 24 years of his life journeying, evangelizing and founding monastic communities in what are now France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Italy. St. Columban died in Italy on November 23, 615.

Just as St. Columban listened to the voice of Christ which called, guided and sustained him throughout his missionary life, we were also invited to hear that same voice during the pilgrimage and upon our return to our missionary assignments. We were also invited to share together our faith in Christ and our missionary and priestly vocations experienced in so many diverse mission fields.

The first few days of the pilgrimage were spent visiting various Irish monastic sites getting in touch with the world that formed St. Columban—this Celtic monastic world with all of its amazing spiritual richness, depth, beauty and artistic achievement. Out of this dynamic monastic world, Christ called St. Columban to a missionary vocation to the peoples of Europe who, due to


A New PerspectiveLessons from a Grace Filled Pilgrimage

byFr.DanHarding

St. Columban

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the decline of the Roman Empire, were living in an age of small rival kingdoms, invasions and general upheaval along with a collapse of the Christian presence in many areas.

From Ireland, we journeyed to the town of Luxeuil in Burgundy, France, near the German and Swiss borders. In this area, St. Columban founded three monasteries over approximately twenty years. We spent several days on long walks through the lush summer countryside of Burgundy to visit these monastic ruins where we celebrated the Eucharist with the local diocesan priests and their parish communities. In Luxeuil, we stayed in the Maison de Saint Columban, (Home of St. Columban) which is a part of the original monastery complex founded by St. Columban.

From Luxeuil, we journeyed by bus across Switzerland to Bregenz, on Lake Constance, in Austria. Here we walked up a steep mountain, high above the city to a small oratory where St. Columban and St. Gall had rededicated a Christian church that had been turned into a pagan temple to the Germanic gods. St. Gall was one of St. Columban’s original twelve monk companions who had left Ireland with him many years earlier. While staying in Bregenz, we visited the nearby Swiss city of St. Gallen, in the German speaking part of Switzerland. The city is named after St. Gall who founded a monastery here which later developed into the city. Meanwhile St. Columban continued on his journey over the Alps to Italy.

Leaving Bregenz, we journeyed through Switzerland to the Lucomagno Pass over the Alps. This is the pass that St. Columban walked over on his way to Italy. We spent the whole day walking over the Alps through this pass and

down into the town of Olivone, in the Italian speaking part of Switzerland. The pilgrim route over the Alps is part of one of the ancient pilgrim routes through Europe to Rome, where pilgrims journeyed to visit the tombs of Sts. Peter and Paul and to visit the successor of St. Peter, the pope. Walking down from the high mountain pass into the town of Olivone, the very first church that one arrives at is the ancient church of St. Columban. Here with the local community, we celebrated the Eucharist where St. Columban himself would also have celebrated the Eucharist.

After several days in Olivone, we journeyed into Italy, across the Po Valley and up into the Apennine Mountains to the town of Bobbio, where St. Columban founded his last monastery and where he died around the age of 72. It was a wonderful moment for all pilgrims to finally arrive at the tomb of St. Columban in the crypt

of Bobbio Abbey. The following day, we walked up to a cave in the mountains outside Bobbio where St. Columban used to go to pray. From Bobbio, we journeyed on to Rome where the pilgrimage ended with the celebration of the Eucharist in the Chapel of St. Columban beneath St. Peter’s Basilica.

Since returning to Chile, I have been asking myself many questions regarding the pilgrimage such as: What did the pilgrimage mean to me and what if anything happened to me during the pilgrimage? What were the highlights of the pilgrimage for me? And, as a Columban missionary, what does St. Columban mean to me now after the pilgrimage?

Thinking and praying over these questions, I have come up with the following answers. My participation in the Columban pilgrimage meant leaving the certainty and security of my daily routine and comfort zone and being placed into a situation


Another graced moment for me during the pilgrimage was the Sunday morning Mass in the Basilica of St. Peter which is a part of the Luxeuil Monastery complex founded by St. Columban but is no longer an active monastery. All 40 of the Columban priests concelebrated this Mass with the local Bishop. This magnificent basilica—like many other French churches—had been turned into a temple to the goddess of reason during the French Revolution. As the powerful morning sunlight streamed in through the stained glass windows and lit up the entire chancel (or sanctuary) of the basilica with a multicolored display while the Bishop presided, I felt a strong sense of presence and continuity across the centuries between the evangelizing work of St. Columban—and now the local bishop and ourselves in the twenty-first century—as contemporary pilgrims for Christ.

Looking back over the pilgrimage, apart from coming to understand and appreciate St. Columban more and also getting to know my fellow Columban brothers better, the one thing that keeps coming back to me is the old English word used for baptism, to “christen.” To christen means to bring one into Christ, into His Kingdom, under His authority, to be redeemed, to be born again, as part of the new creation. The Columban pilgrimage 2010 taught me that being a missionary means christening, encountering and dialoguing with the local people and inviting them into the Kingdom of God. It is Christ who brings us and all of creation into our Father’s Kingdom by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Fr. Dan Harding lives and works in Chile.


of uncertainty about our next move. It meant facing the insecurity of constantly being on the move from one place to another, with all that this entails—discomfort, cramped living quarters, no place to do one’s laundry, uncomfortable beds, lack of hot water for bathing, rising early, heat, thirst, perspiration, no internet connection, feeling lonely and missing the familiar and many long, hard treks up and down mountains to the sites where St. Columban lived and visited.

In reality, I found the pilgrimage truly fabulous. On pilgrimage one learns to let go of what is not really important or necessary and to discover what is really important in life. I felt that there was a different energy, pulsating throughout the pilgrimage not found in everyday life. During the pilgrimage, I felt I was being stretched, being given new perspectives on life, on reality and on my vocation by God. It was a call to move beyond my complaisance and self-indulgence to turn to God, to entrust myself into His loving care as Father.

The pilgrimage introduced us to what the world was like at the end of the 6th and early 7th centuries in Europe when St. Columban made his missionary journey. It was a world where the Roman Empire had declined and different ethnic and linguistic groups were invading the

remnants of the Roman Empire. This is the world where bear, deer, foxes, wild boars and wolves inhabited thick forests which covered most of Europe. We visited many of the places where St. Columban had special encounters with various bears, a crow and a squirrel.

St. Columban’s first monastic establishment in continental Europe was at the old ruined Roman fort at Annegray, in the Vosges mountains near Luxeuil around the year 590. It is believed that there had been a temple to the Roman goddess, Diana, here as well. After a long trek through the French countryside, we came to the monastic ruins at Annegray. Here we were asked to spend several hours of the afternoon before we celebrated the Eucharist doing a penitential exercise called “doing the rounds” which involved taking off our shoes and walking in bare feet around the site reciting in silence the rosary and other prayers. At the same time, we were asked to reflect on our need for God’s love and mercy in our lives. Undoubtedly for me, this was one of the highlights of the entire pilgrimage. It was a magic moment where I felt connected through my bare feet to the Earth and God’s creation and to St. Columban and his monastic presence in that place. It was a powerful experience of repentance and conversion.

CM

TheHermitageofSanColombanislocatedinItaly.itwasbuiltin1319andnamedaftertheIrishsaint,St.Columban,whofoundedthenearbymonasteryofBobbio.


Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fi sh for people!” And

they left their nets at once and followed him (Mark 1:17, 18).

In the summer of 1913, Fr. Edward Galvin, a man with a passion for mission and a vision for evangelizing in China who started the Missionary Society of St. Columban, began writing ten to twelve letters a day—some as long as fourteen pages—to individual priests, seminary rectors and anyone else who would read them, in an effort to recruit more priests. Fr. Galvin could see the harvest before him and, in spite of all his own labors, spent endless hours inviting others to come and share in this great effort to move forward the work of God’s Kingdom.

Almost one hundred years later, the Columban Fathers fi nd themselves with a similar challenge. Today, however, the mission fi eld isnot simply China, or any one country. Rather, as Pope John Paul II said,

“Today, all the world is one great mission land.” Economic and spiritual poverty in a world where injustice and suffering persist and often go ignored help to foment misunderstanding among religious, ethnic and political groups. War, natural disasters, failed economies and political oppression have forced millions to leave their homes and families to seek security and a better life in other lands. There are so many people in so many places whose hearts are longing to hear the Good News and it is still, frequently, the missionaries who will bring it.

The U.S. Region of the Society reorganized our vocations outreach this past year, creating a vocations committee and are joining hands across the country to extend this invitation to all we meet: “Come with me into the fi elds. The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”

The Missionary Society of St. Columban, or the Columban Fathers as we’re known in the U.S., is a society of priests dedicated to serving the mission of Christ. Crossing boundaries of nation, language, culture and religion, we seek to preach the Good News to the poor and to challenge the unjust structures of society that

exclude the hungry from the table and often force their most vulnerable members into dangerous migrations abroad. Columbans have helped local churches dialogue with other religions and created bridges between groups in confl ict, seeking to bring understanding, mutual respect and peaceful resolutions. Columbans are known for their strong commitment to the people they serve, even when to continue to do so may put them at grave risk. Columban priests and Sisters have lost their lives in their willingness to follow faithfully in the footsteps of Jesus.

Our vocations plan for the U.S. Region embraces what we call a “culture of vocations” in which we try to integrate the invitation to mission into all of our ministries and outreach. We encourage every member of the Columban family, whether priest member, employee, benefactor, Affi liate or Companion in Mission, to share this spirit of invitation and boldly speak of this challenging option of following Jesus today as a Columban missionary priest.

The Columbans are a Society of Apostolic Life, meaning we are secular or diocesan priests who have banded together for a specifi c apostolate, which in this case is


To Share in the EffortInviting Others to the Work of the Kingdom

by Fr. william morton



global, cross-cultural mission. Columbans may live alone or in community, be involved in parish ministry or religious dialogue, accompany migrants and workers, but their work is always in the context of crossing cultures and of being of service to the poorest of the poor. Not only is our mission cross-cultural but also our Society itself is comprised of members from Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific Rim. We are not a large community, but we have our niche in continuing the effort to move forward the work of God’s Kingdom today.

In order to share our invitation with young people, we are committed to creating a viable presence on the internet and to make use of social and other electronic media. By the time you read this article, Lord willing, we will have our vocation-specific website up and running and our Facebook page in place.

In December 2010, we hosted our first ever “vocations live chat” via the internet. We will continue to develop such chats, eventually in Spanish and Korean along with English, and with a variety of Columbans doing the hosting. In some way, reaching out to young people in the United States is, in

and of itself, a kind of mission. We have to be open to learning new languages, such as the language of texting, and cultural expressions and be able to relate to different ways of viewing the world, society and the Church.

We will be hosting a vocations “Come and See” weekend during Holy Week, April 21-25, 2011, at Columban Border Ministries in El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. For more information, visit: www.columbanvocations.org.

One dedicated vocations minister I know repeats that, “They’re out there. You just have to look for them and invite them in.” It is up to each group to decide, however, if we are going to “fish” for them or not. And, if so, are we willing to pay the price in terms of sacrifice, adaptation, openness to young people and the interruption of some areas of our lives? If we are willing to make the effort, invariably, we are going to blessed with the energy, enthusiasm, new ideas and many gifts this new generation will bring to mission. Fresh voices will help us articulate anew the vision of mission that has guided the Columbans to where we are today.

A friend of mine, who is an avid reader of Columban Mission

magazine said, “You guys are a small group but so many stories tell of your members living with and serving the poorest of the poor, often under the most dire of circumstances. I can’t understand why you wouldn’t want to invite more young men to do that.”

Extending the invitation will help us renew our sense of gratitude for the privilege we have had of following Jesus in service of God’s Kingdom for nearly a century.

If you are one of those young men who are “out there” and discerning your life’s purpose and seeking a direction that gives meaning, not just to your life, but to the poorest of God’s people, please don’t hesitate to contact us at: www.columbanvocations.org.

Please pray for the Columbans and all those seeking to follow in the way of Jesus that God will send still more laborers into the harvest.

Fr. William Morton is the U.S. Regional Vocations Coordinator in El Paso, Texas.

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The whisper becomes an invitation when someone speaks the words of Jesus:

“Will you come and follow me if I call your name?” In the United States, the Missionary Society of St. Columban has formed a team of five Columban priests and one Columban lay employee to extend a fresh invitation to a new generation. Though we recognize that we are all called to mission through our baptism, the focus of this Vocations Ministry Team is to invite young men to consider priestly vocations as permanent members of the Missionary Society of St. Columban.

Our vocations team is a good reflection of the Society itself and seems to be a good fit for the cultural diversity that exists in the United States. By including lay and ordained, men and women, multicultural, and intergenerational members on the team, we can draw on a variety of voices and experiences through which the Spirit can work to help us more effectively invite young men to cross-cultural mission with the Columbans.

These are the dedicated members of our Vocations Ministry Team:

Fr. John MarleyFr. Marley, the senior member

of our team, hails from Ireland and recently celebrated his 60th jubilee as a missionary priest. After decades of missionary service in

Chile, Ireland, the Philippines and the U.S., Fr. John currently resides in our retirement home in in Bristol, Rhode Island, where in addition to his work on the vocations team, he is active in campus ministry with the Newman Center at nearby Roger Williams University. Fr. John frequently assists with our parish in Juarez, Mexico, making use of his fluent Spanish and experience in Hispanic pastoral ministry, allowing some of the other Columbans there to enjoy an occasional break.

“I was attracted to the pastoral priesthood at an early age, being impressed by the priests as I saw them officiate in the parish church, and visit with the people in the street and in their homes. In my later grade school years I became aware of the missions through a woman in the parish who taught us about the people in Africa and China.

“I was drawn to be a priest on the missions, because there seemed to be a greater need there. I was torn between Africa and China, but finally decided for China because it was farther away from home and seemed to demand the greater sacrifice. There were many missionary groups that sent priests


Vocations Ministry TeamIssuing the Invitation

Every vocation begins with a whisper. God speaks to us through eyes of compassion, hands of solidarity and hearts of justice. When we see the suffering of others and feel compelled to make a difference, it is God’s way of nudging us forward in our missionary vocation to cross the boundaries that keep us divided.

Fr. John Marley insists that

if our renewed vocations

efforts are to bear fruit,

then we must encourage the

culture of vocations, not

just in the Church but in

Catholic family life.

CM MA11 018_021 final r1.indd 18 2/11/11 10:26 AM

Fr. John Q. Wanaurny’s

extraordinary language

skills have been a blessing

to fellow Columbans and

those he’s served on mission.

As the junior ordained

member of the team,

Fr. Yong Hoon Joseph Choi

brings youthful energy,

fluency in three languages

and a deep passion for

vocations ministry.


to Africa, but the Columbans were the only ones I knew who went to China. So I wrote to the Columbans, and they accepted me.”

Fr. John insists that if our renewed vocations efforts are to bear fruit, then we must encourage the culture of vocations, not just in the Church but in Catholic family life. Fr. John said he is hopeful “because I believe that God is in charge and will see to it that all will turn out right in the end.”

Fr. Yong Hoon Joseph Choi Fr. Choi is from the town of

Jinhae in southern Korea and joined the Columbans in 1987. He was ordained in 2001. During his seminary formation, he served his mandatory military service in the South Korean army at the demilitarized zone that divides North and South Korea. He learned

Spanish as a seminarian on his first missionary assignment and after ordination returned to work for seven more years in Chile. For the past two years, Fr. Yong Hoon has been assigned to vocations as well as youth and pastoral ministry with the Korean Catholic community in Los Angeles.

As the junior ordained member of the team, Fr. Yong Hoon brings youthful energy, fluency in three languages and a deep passion for vocations ministry. He is committed to the future of the Columbans. In addition, Fr. Yong Hoon likes to remind us he is the only member with a full head of black hair. His ministry includes leading groups to impoverished areas of the U.S. and international locations to show them a reality unlike their own. We asked Fr. Yong Hoon what drew him to the Columbans and what helps him keep going today in the vocations ministry:

“When I joined the Columbans there was no big attraction to the Society; I was only interested in being a missionary priest. It was only after I was in the formation program for awhile that I saw and learned what the Society did in this world. As Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.’ The Columbans spread out to the whole of the world and lived with the poor people and worked with them.

“There is always hope even in darkness. God has given our Society the vision that is to love each other and serve others. And so looking for vocations gives me hope…I believe that we are going to have new vocations, as many as we had in the past here in the U.S. Region.”

Fr. Yong Hoon’s motto for his ordination, which guides him to

this day is “Consecrate them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17).

Fr. John Q. WanaurnyFr. Wanaurny was born and

raised in Chicago, Illinois, where he excelled at sports and won a medal at the Illinois State Speed-Skating championship. Fr. John’s extraordinary language skills have been a blessing to fellow Columbans and those he’s served on mission. After studying linguistics at Georgetown, Fr. John started the first Columban language school for missionaries in the Philippines. Later he volunteered to be part of the pioneer group that began our mission in Brazil. After ten years in Brazil, he was reassigned to the U.S./Mexico border where he added Spanish and a love for the Mexican people and culture to his missionary spirit.

“When I was in 8th grade at Queen of Angels School, some


“Seeing young men from Fiji, Korea, Chile, Peru and the Philippines casting their lot with us as ordained members of our Society also gives me hope for our shared future…”

– Fr. William Morton

Fr. Chuck Lintz is actively

involved in social justice

and advocacy work as

well as vocations work.


Fr. Charles LintzFr. Charles Lintz is from

Rochester, New York, and after ordination in 1970 spent thirty years on mission in Korea. When

the Columbans helped the local Church to found the Korean Foreign Mission Society, Fr. Chuck was asked to be the spiritual director for the seminarians. Fr. Chuck now lives and works in a Columban community in south Omaha, still providing spiritual direction and doing pastoral ministry in the nearby parishes. In addition to serving on the Regional Council and overseeing the Associate Priests Program, Fr. Chuck is actively involved in social justice and advocacy work as well as vocations work.

“It took me awhile to respond to God’s call. When I finally did respond, I knew I wanted to be a missionary. We Americans have been given much—the greatest gift, I felt, was our faith. I wanted to share that. I chose the Columbans for three reasons: They were a small, strictly missionary, society; their seminary was in Boston, where my godparents lived and, best of all, they gave you every summer free till ordination!

“My hope comes from several sources—first among them the Gospel which teaches us that God’s reign and victory will come at some point. Things may look bleak, but God will be victorious. Another is the faithful living of so many good people. You don’t read a lot about the quiet virtue of most people, but when you get close to them you learn how hard they struggle to live a good life. Finally, there is the example of the Columbans I have lived with and learned about, plus all the saints—canonized and not. These people’s struggle for a more just, caring, and inclusive society where all can be happy and fulfilled inspires me and gives me hope.”

Fr. William MortonFr. William Morton is from

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attributes his vocation to the Sisters of St. Joseph, the example of priests in his parish and, above all, his parents. Fr. Bill served in Taiwan and Dallas, Texas, before coming to the U.S./Mexico border where he helps manage the Columban Mission Center in El Paso, Texas. Fr. Bill serves as Regional Vice Director and heads up the Vocations Ministry Team.

“The first thing that got my attention was a vocation ad the Columbans placed in the Navy Times newspaper in 1973 which read: ‘I bribe you with uncertainty and challenge you with defeat.’ Feeling called to share the Good

members of religious orders came to talk to us. One of them was a Columban Father. I was attracted to what he said about mission. I thought about it, prayed about it, and felt more and more attracted to the work in mission countries, especially in China. I followed my heart in this. Although I was never called to go to China, I served for many years in the Philippines and in Brazil. I have never regretted becoming a Columban.”

Back in Chicago once again, Fr. John works in mission education,travels the United States to do mission appeals, involves himself in prison ministry locally and is a vocations minister.


Amy Woolam Echeverria

has great insights into

the culture, thinking and

communication styles of

young people.

When the Region announced it was forming a vocations committee, Amy immediately volunteered and has proven to be an indispensible member of the team. In addition to her passion for mission and justice and her commitment to inviting young people to participate in mission with the Columbans, Amy has great insights into the culture, thinking and communication styles of young people. Above all, Amy has a deep love for mission as lived by Columbans and a firm belief that the Spirit is sending young men to continue the mission of Jesus into this new millennium.

When asked what mission means, Amy said, “Mission is about relationship, and we are called by our baptism to put ourselves in relationship with those who are most vulnerable and marginalized. It is through that boundary crossing encounter that we are transformed by the power of God’s love and realize the Kingdom both here, now, and yet to come.”

One of the reasons the Society formed the Vocations Ministry Team is that we realize mission today is a community effort requiring the support and cooperation of everyone. In that same spirit, we sincerely invite all of our Columban friends and supporters to pray for and with us that the Lord of the harvest might send more workers into the vineyard. And if you know a young man who is seeking direction in his life and would make a good priest, please don’t hesitate to send him our way! CM


News because of my own growing faith and relationship with Christ, the boldness of the statement piqued my curiosity and so I wrote to the office in Omaha, Nebraska. I received a brochure with a picture of a leper’s hands receiving bread and a quote from St. Paul ‘Come across and help us.’ My heart was moved. I received a visit from Fr. Jim Shiffer who was home from Fiji doing vocations ministry. His simple, friendly approach, honest answers to my questions and obvious desire to return to the people of Fiji further motivated me to consider the Columbans. The final casting of the net was done by Fr. Mike Harrison who persuaded me on a phone call to come up and join the college formation program in St. Paul, Minnesota. He reassured me: ‘You’re going to college anyway. Come and try it for a year. You’ve nothing to lose.’ Only my life!

“For me a great source of hope is the missionary work done by Columbans right here in the United States and in our various missions abroad. Columbans are by nature self-effacing and reluctant to toot our own horns. Still the faithful, humble, often courageous service in the most difficult places to the poorest of the poor, inspires me. Seeing young men from Fiji, Korea, Chile, Peru and the Philippines casting their lot with us as ordained members of our Society also gives me hope for our shared future and motivates me in my vocations ministry in the United States. Finally, the loving and generous support of our benefactors reminds me that they are confident the Columbans still have much to do in moving forward the work of God’s Kingdom.”

Amy Woolam EcheverriaAmy is from Philadelphia,

Pennsylvania, and after finishing college in Arizona was looking for an international mission experience. She went to Chile as a volunteer with the Society of the Holy Child Jesus and while there worked with women, children and migrants who lived in vulnerable socio-economic situations. Amy began working with the Columbans in Chile as the region’s Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation coordinator until she returned to the U.S. where she now leads our Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach in Washington, D.C. The Center’s focus is inviting young people as interns and volunteers, to learn about Catholic Social Teaching by advocating in the nation’s capital for the poor, migrants and the environment.

For more information, please visit www.columban.org.



Columban Center for Advocacy and Outreach

Would you like to make a difference in the world? Serve with Columban Missionaries!

Contact us to learn more about how you can get involved:www.columban.org/get-involved

CCAO on Facebook(301) 565-4547

[email protected]

Advocacy Interns❏❏ Monitor current social justice issues

❏❏ Analyze legislation and foreign policy through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching

❏❏ Educate lawmakers and constituents to make a difference

❏❏ Serve in Washington, D.C. or Omaha, Nebraska

Columban Volunteers USA (CVUSA)

❏ Grow in your faith

❏❏ Live in community

❏❏ Discover the connections between faith and justice

❏❏ Serve in Washington, D.C. or Omaha, Nebraska

Association for International Teaching, Educational and Curriculum Exchange (AITECE)

❏❏ Teach English as a second language to university students

❏❏ Learn about Chinese culture

❏❏ Be a witness through service

❏❏ Serve in China

Mission Exposure Trips

❏❏ Encounter Christ in others

❏❏ Immerse yourself in a culture unlike your own

❏❏ Respond to the call to be missionary

❏❏ Visit Columban communities in Peru, China or the U.S.-Mexico Border


By Fr. Arturo Aguilar

From the Director

I am reminded of one of our Columban Mission Education prayer cards which reads in part, “The color of each thread is vibrant in its own right but together the threads take on the radiant glow of wholeness. Each color has what it needs to be strong and healthy and completely itself. Because they live side by side woven together in harmony, they enrich the beauty of each other.”

Our individual vocations are unique threads but all part of God’s rich tapestry. When we look for the blessed and the sacred in our own lives, and then go out and share that with others, we can help them to discern how their thread joins the entire tapestry. By inviting all to respond to their baptismal call to mission, we are lighting a spark of new life in the Church and indeed in the world.

God calls each of us by name, but He also calls us through the Eucharist to live in communion with others. The gifts given to us by God are only fully realized when they are placed at the service of others, especially the vulnerable, marginalized and excluded. It is in the encounter with our brothers and sisters that God’s Kingdom is most fully revealed and when our vocations take on their fullest meaning.

The missionary vocation not only calls us to witness but also to serve.

I give thanks to have been called into the fellowship of Christ, bound by love, brotherhood and service in the Church. It is my hope that we as a Society continue to grow, change and invite others to live out their baptismal call to mission.

You will find more Columban vocations stories on our website at www.columban.org. You can also find our full collection of Mission Education prayer cards including prayers for vocations on our website.

The Church is in mission, and its people have the task of bringing the Good News of God’s forgiving, renewing love to all

people. As Kingdom people, we are called to serve Christ and reflect His love to all. It is a life in the Spirit, a life of openness to the world and to all people, a life of continual searching and learning, a life of faith and sometimes doubt.

Our individual vocation is a sure sign that God has each of our names seared into His heart and has great plans for our lives as instruments of His grace and mercy in the world. Although Columbans are united in our call as missionaries, God has spoken to us in different ways in how we live that

call either as priests, religious or lay. It is that combination of unity and individuality that when brought together creates the Columban mission story.

It is that combination of

unity and individuality

that when brought

together creates the

Columban mission story.

Called to Witness and Service

CM MA11 023 final r1.indd 23 2/11/11 10:36 AM

Columban Fathers

Po box 10st. Columbans, ne 68056

NON PROFIT ORGPOSTAGE PAID

COLUMBANFATHERS

We invite you to join this new generation by becoming a Columban Father or Columban Sister.

If you are interested in the missionary priesthood,

write or call…

Fr. Bill MortonNational Vocation Director

Columban FathersSt. Columbans, NE 68056

877/299-1920Email: [email protected]

If you are interested in becoming a Columban Sister,

write or call…

Sr. Grace De LeonNational Vocation Director

Columban Sisters2500 S. Freemont Avenue #E

Alhambra, CA 91803626/458-1869

Japan + Korea + Peru + Hong Kong + Philippines + Pakistan + Chile + Fiji + Taiwan + North America

An Invitation Calls for a ResponseWe are but clay, formed and fashioned by the hand of God.

That is to say, we are weak and vulnerable but with God’s grace we are capable of great generosity and idealism.

Is God calling you to spread the good news? To a life of ministry among those who are less fortunate and more vulnerable than you are?

For more information, please contact the Mission Education Office

Columban FathersSt. Columbans, NE 68056

Phone: (877) 299-1920 Website: columban.org/missioned

• Be challenged to examine what it means to live in poverty• Explore Catholic Social Teaching related to worldwide poverty and the dignity of all God’s people• Learn about the “Two Feet of Christian Service”• Explore suggestions for action to help alleviate poverty.

Standing with People Living in Poverty

A New Adult Formation Program


Documents

Columban Mission March / April 2011