Dear Friends of the Fransalians,
Cordial greetings from Chad-Cameroon Mission. It is once again Christmas time. This joyful feast of the birthday of Jesus is a privileged moment for me to greet each one of you and to share some news from our missions. The birth of a child is always a happy event. The birth of Jesus is all the more joyful and meaningful for us because he is the Son of God who became man in order to be one with us. He is the Emmanuel : GOD WITH US.
God coming down to the world and reaching out to the whole of humanity is the inspiration behind every missionary activity. God has crossed the frontiers. As missionaries, we too feel called by God to cross the frontiers to make Christ present in every part of the world. The birth of Jesus continues to enlighten and enliven the hearts and minds of millions who are deprived of their human dignity and freedom.
As Friends of Fransalians, you too are journeying with us, going beyond the frontiers. Your constant support for our work in the remote missions of Chad and Cameroon is a clear sign of your missionary commitment to make Christ and his message known to the world. With a grateful heart, I wish each one of you a Very Happy Christmas and a Bright New Year. May the joy and peace of Christmas fill your hearts and homes as you step into the New Year.
Yours cordially,
Fr. Joshy Nellimalamattam, MSFS
Mission Superior
NEWS FROM YAOUNDE, CENTRAL CAMEROON
Yaoundé, the capital city of Cameroon with a population of around 2 million.is also the main centre of Fransalian Missions in Chad-Cameroon. La Feuillette, the Fransalian Formation house is just outside Yaounde city but falls under the Diocese of Obala. Ekoumdoum, Ebang and Ekekam are the three important Fransalian Missions in and around Yaounde.
EBANG: The Holy Family Parish of Ebang is the youngest mission that the Fransalians have opened. The new mission is in the suburb of Yaoundé.. Fr. Manoj Arackal was installed as the Parish Priest of this mission on 8th May 2012. The new mission has a catholic population of over 4000 spread over 4 sub-centres. It is a mission full of challenges. There is hardly any infrastructure. People gather in a tiny chapel. There is no presbytery for the priest to reside in the mission. A church has to be built. A multipurpose hall is an urgent need. Faith formation has to be intensified. Developmental projects are to be initiated.
EKEKAM : Ekekam Mission has always been a difficult mission mainly because of its inaccessibility. Situated in the dense forest and without good roads, people walk long distances. The Mission has initiated a number of developmental projects. Eight wells are dug to provide clean drinking water for the people. A multipurpose hall has been built. The construction of a presbytery is in progress. We need more finance to complete the project.
EKOUMDOUM : Ekoumdoum Mission continues to make great progress. However the construction of the church and presbytery has come to a halt due to shortage of funds. The priests have already moved into the unfinished presbytery. Daily Eucharist is celebrated in the new church which is yet to be completed. The land for the educational projects has been acquired.
LA FEUILLETTE: Our Formation house in Ngoya is a community of 3 priests,2 deacons and 9 candidates. Deacon Parfait Ayissi and Deacon Christophe Abessougi are due to be ordained priests in June 2013. Chad-Cameroon Mission rejoices over the increasing number of local priests and candidates. There are 3 candidates from Chad and Cameroon doing their novitiate in Tanzania.
NEWS FROM NORTH CAMEROON
BEREM : Berem Mission is situated 65 kms away from Ngaoundere in North Cameroon. The Mission has a small community of catholics wit 3 sub-stations. The Mission is managing two primary schools. The people of Berem are poor farmers struggling to make their livelihood. It is a drought-prone area and water is scarce. Fr. Bipin, the Parish Priest has initiated a number of projects aimed at better farming and greater productivity.
MBE-KARNA : Mbe-Karna Mission is situated at 70 kms from Ngaoundere. The Mission has received a new pastor in the person of Fr. Emile Amougou, the first Fransalian priest from Cameroon. People of Mbe-Karna welcomed their new pastor with much joy. Monsignor Joseph Djida, the Bishop of Ngaoundere made his pastoral visit to Mbe-Karna on 18th August 2012 and installed Fr. Emile as Parish Priest. It was a beautiful event which brought together many people from the neighboring villages irrespective of their religious affiliations. The ongoing project of providing drinking water to the far flung villages is a priority for this mission. The construction of a presbytery and a boys’ home at Mbe is another important project envisaged for the immediate future.
BINI-DANG: The pastoral care of more than 5000 catholic students in Ngaoundere is organized by the chaplaincy at Bini-Dang. At present 3 Fransalian priests are serving the chaplaincy. Apart from the daily Mass and other spiritual exercises in the parish church, the students are given opportunities to seek guidance and counseling. A number of associations and movements are started in the parish to help the students to deepen their faith and to become committed Christians and responsible citizens.
NEWS FROM SOUTH WEST CAMEROON
KOKOBUMA: Kokobuma is the first Fransalian mission in the English-speaking region in the South-West of Cameroon. It is a most challenging and difficult mission in a remote area. Fr. Mathew Kavithazha, a veteran missionary is assigned to this mission. Several bishops in the Anglophone region of Cameroon have expressed their wish to have the Fransalians to work in their dioceses.
NEWS FROM CHAD
Bishop of Doba Expelled: A difficult time for the Church in Chad
Our Mission in Chad is going through difficult times. The Government of Chad has expelled Monsignor Michel Russo, the Bishop of Doba from the country. Bishop Russo, an Italian has been a missionary in Chad for the past 33 years. He has been quite outspoken against the Government of Chad and the American oil company Esso which has a huge project of oil exploration and production in and around Doba.
Bishop Russo has been championing the cause of the poor, demanding a just share of the oil revenues for them. Oil is extracted from the land that was acquired from the poor farmers. The local population continues to live in abject poverty even as millions of barrels of oil are extracted from their lands and sent overseas. Bishop Russo has been an eloquent critic of the policies of the Chadian Government and of the Esso Company for their apparent insensitivity to the basic needs of the local population in Doba whose land has been taken away to make huge profits for the multinational company. The critics say that the Government is using up the oil revenue chiefly to import arms and weapons to quell the rebellion in many parts of the country instead of investing on development.
The Fransalian in Chad owe much to Monsignor Russo. It was at his invitation, encouragement and support that the Fransalians started their mission in Bero and Doba. We wish and pray that Bishop Russo will soon be allowed to return to Chad as diplomatic efforts are underway. It is however gratifying that our two missions in Bero and Doba continue to make a great positive impact on the social and educational life of the people.
Greetings from Pater Thomas Cherukat in Rome
My dear Friends of Fransalians,
It is with great joy and a sense of gratitude that I greet each one of you on the occasion of Christmas and New Year. The joyful feast of Christmas is a reminder to all of us that God is on the side of the poor. Jesus was born poor. He grew up in a poor family. He went about preaching the good news, doing good to all and especially to the poorest of the poor. He healed the sick. He mingled with sinners and outcasts. He questioned the powerful and defended the weak and the abandoned. He gave his life as a ransom for many by dying on the cross to rise again to life. Christmas is therefore a great challenge for all of us. It is a challenge to live like Jesus, to think like Jesus and to act like Jesus. We need to reach out to the poor, to give life to them and to help them to liberate themselves from all forms of injustice and inhumanity.
The new year 2013 is an year of grace for the entire Church as well as for the Fransalian Family. Pope Benedict XVI has declared the year as an year of faith. The recently held Synod of Bishops in Rome has called for a new evangelization of all peoples and cultures. The year 2013 marks multiple jubilees and important events for the Fransalian Family. The Congregation celebrates 175th anniversary of its foundation on 24th October 2013. It is also the 150th anniversary of the death of its Founder Fr. Peter Mermier (+ 30.09.1862). The English Province of the Fransalians has just celebrated 150 years of its existence. The East Africa Province is celebrating its silver jubilee. As a crowning point of all these historical landmarks, the 19th General Chapter of the Congregation is scheduled to be held from 01-15 February 2013 at Hyderabad in India. As we rejoice and thank the Lord for the great things He has done for our Congregation, we continue to trust in the providential care of the Lord. We ask the Lord to bless our Congregation and send more labourers into His vineyard.
My dear Friends, I thank each one of you for all what you are and all what you do to strengthen our hands to help the poor and needy in the remote missions of Africa. I wish each one of you a very happy Christmas. May the joy and peace of this Christmas be in your hearts and in your families.
Yours cordially
Fr. Thomas Cherukat, MSFS