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By Fr. Don Hornsey

Jesus told His disciples, "You must be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." How can we be perfect, we ask, as we are so painfully conscious of our own…

 

By Fr. Timothy Mulroy

Some months ago, a migrant friend here in Hong Kong texted me with the request that the Columbans hold her husband’s cremains in our chapel until she could bring them back…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I attended a Marian procession in Newtown, a suburb of Suva City, Fiji.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I woke up scared. I didn’t want to get out of the bed. I was due to begin a 3-day workshop on intercultural living with the Columban priests working in Korea. Most of…

 

Baptized and confirmed, in your word formed, disciple and missionary it is the gift of your calling. You make me go through every town that you have…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

I remember many years ago, around 1979, I was up in the village of Navala, in the parish of Ba, Fiji. In those days, the village had a population of around 600, almost all…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

Today I remember my mother. As a woman of tolerance, she could put up with a lot of things she did not agree with. But there was one thing she could not tolerate and that…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I had been studying the Fijian language for almost three months. It was great to have a chance to learn the Fijian language and culture after spending three years working…

 

By Fr. Alvaro Martinez

My name is Alvaro Martinez, and I am a Columban priest who has always been fascinated by photography. Through my experiences with photography, I find a connection with…

 

By Fr. Noel O'Neill

For the first 18 months of Covid-19 both South Korea and Hong Kong did such a good job in managing the spread of the virus that they were looked upon as success stories.…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

A characteristic of a classic is that it is able to say far more than the original author intended. This is evident in Paul's letter to the Romans (8:18-25). I see that…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

A sick and aged man was looked after for many years by his son and daughter-in-law. However, as the years passed their patience waned. One night the son put his father on…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

Sometime in the late 1970s, I was invited to stay overnight with a family in a village in the parish of Ba, Fiji. A member of the family had died 10 days previously. Early…

 

By Fr. Ray Husband

Traditionally we Irish have dealt with death in a positive and hands-on manner. The Irish wake is known for its celebration of the deceased person's life. In the midst of…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

The village catechist came to me recently and told me that Iowane had been living with Maria Rosa for about 18 years. They had five grown up children and now they wanted…

 

By Elena Venzon Wood

Amparo, you have passed over to the other side of life. I know I will see you again but in the meantime, I know you will continue to look after me as you always did. It…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

The prophet Habakkuk wrote his book not long before the siege and capture of Jerusalem in 586 BC, at a time when the Babylonian army was on the march towards Jerusalem.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I attended Sunday Mass on mission Sunday morning at the parish near Catholic Theological Union, Chicago, when I was on sabbatical.

 

By Lee Ji Young "Tina"

I have been working in the Community Living Services of the St. Joseph Social Service Welfare Foundation Center in Hsinchu (Taiwan) diocese for four years. The Center…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

Recently we had a Mass at the Home of Compassion for the Fiji community of the greater Wellington area. It was a wonderful occasion during which members of our community…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Today I escaped from my Hindi studies to visit two veteran French missionaries, Frs. Cocereau and Debois at Naililili mission station. I was impressed by the fine old…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

I think the Gospel of Luke 12:35-40 is mistakenly interpreted as a call to be prepared to meet the Son of Man at the time of death. This passage reminds us of the words of…

 

By Lee Ok-Bun Gertrude

How are you? My name is Gertrude, and I live close to the sea in Samcheok, Korea, listening to Songs of Praise from the seagulls and the waves. I was baptized by the late…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been in Nacemaki village now for almost two months. It is a great place for practicing Fijian after my six-month course in Suva.

 

By Maopa Dulunaqio

My name is Maopa Dulunaqio, a former lay missionary who worked in Peru for three years from 2001-2004. I was in the CLM Fiji group 7, which included Serafina Vuda (…

 

By Fr. Patrick Raleigh

Luke 10: 25-37 is the deeply touching story of the Good Samaritan. He was considered as an outsider and yet he was moved with compassion for the person left for dead on…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

A couple approached me in the parish hall after Mass. “Are you Fr. Frank Hoare?” the lady asked. Something about the timber of her voice stirred a memory.  “You used…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

1 Kings 17:7-16 tells the story of the hospitality of the widow of Zarephath who provided for the prophet Elijah even though she barely had enough for herself and her son…

 

By Salome Rabuli

The pandemic brought many changes in our lives, economically, socially and personally as well as in our communities and in our line of work. We were not able to travel to…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been renting a room from a Fijian family in Kinoya for the last few months while I continue to teach at the Pacific Regional Seminary. My landlady is a widow with…

 

By Fr. Trevor Trotter

It was only recently that I first heard of “everyday mysticism.” It is such a perfect way to describe how many live. So often we think of mystics as people who have…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

“I really only understood the Our Father when I became a father myself,” said the Anglican vicar to me. I believe he was just sharing something of his spiritual experience…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

There is an old saying, which some attribute to St. Teresa of Avila, which says that God writes straight with crooked lines. It means that though our human life often…

 

By Ana Flores

After 13 years of being assigned to the Philippines, I am now back in my own country doing mission in one of the areas where the Columbans are located at San Martin de…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Diary cover While studying Hindi at the Columban Center House during my first year in Fiji, I was saying Mass at the Home of Compassion nearby. The Sisters, elderly…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

This year the celebration of Palm Sunday here in Aotearoa-New Zealand will be more somber because of the COVID 19 restrictions. I will be the celebrant at St. Peter and…

 

By Sr. Rebecca Conlon

The explosions of grace that took place in St. John the Apostle Church in Latifabad, Hyderabad, throughout Holy Week and the Easter season of 2022 should not go unnoticed…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have returned to Fiji from holidays and met with Fr. Theo I was anxious to get the news of a marriage case I had been involved in investigating and writing up for the…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

The Gospel of Mark 10:28-31 is connected to the original question of the rich man who desperately wanted to follow Jesus - “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

Mark’s Gospel 9:41-50 is about taking responsibility for one’s own actions. When we have done wrong, Jesus urges us to undergo radical change - using the strong images of…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Miriam was married to Raju and they had six children – all girls. I liked Miriam because she was kind and gentle. She always had a cup of tea for a priest visiting…

 

By Fr. George Hogarty

Modern day Korea has undergone massive cultural and technological changes. At first glance, it seems that Koreans, in their rush to embrace modernity and all things…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

Luke 9:7-9 is the story about Herod the tetrarch, the Roman-installed ruler of Galilee and Perea. He was the son of Herod the Great who was responsible for the slaughter…

 

By A Columban Missionary

Palmer Avenido worked in a machine-assemble factory in Taoyuan County, Taiwan, for six years before returning to his home in the Philippines. While in Taiwan he…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Recently I went for a visit to Ba Parish, Fiji.

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

In seeking the language to talk about God and those places where God’s presence is mostly keenly felt, in other words “the kingdom of God,” Jesus relied on two sources:…

 

By Fr. John Marley

December 6, 2022, is the feast day of St. Nicholas, whose gifts to the poor made him the model for our modern-day Santa Claus.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Massage is a common traditional healing practice in Fiji and the Pacific. Young people massage the feet, legs or bodies of their elders.

 

By Lanieta Tamatawale

During this pandemic, the deaf people are more isolated in their own world; they only know what is going on in the world through things visual, like watching TV news and…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

It was a big occasion for me. But I wasn’t happy. The young man’s father had told me that the wedding was fixed for the school holidays in May. 
“But I will be in…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

I once visited Papua New Guinea and accompanied my friend, a patrol officer on his 1ten days of administrative rounds. He hired men from the village to carry his equipment…

 

I live in an apartment building in Quezon City (Philippines). On my floor are four apartments separated in two wings. The other apartment in my wing has been empty since…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

We conducted an intercultural workshop here in Ba (Fiji) parish this past weekend. About 50 people attended, mainly indigenous Fijians and ethnic Indians. Scripture input…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

As Columban missionaries, we have lived in other countries where we have worked closely with people from Asia, South America and Oceania. We have learned not only to value…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

The story about paying tax occurs only in Matthew (17:22-27), not surprisingly, as he was a former tax-collector. At the time of the writing of his Gospel, the question of…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Our committee president in Naleba was very interested in Tirikuttu. It is a South Indian dance drama – a form of ritual and social entertainment and a medium of social…

 

By Fr. Kevin O'Neill

On the 4th Sunday of Easter – Good Shepherd Sunday – the universal church celebrates Vocations Sunday.
The word vocation means “to call.” Every baptized Christian is…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

We have allowed dualism to color the way we have traditionally interpreted the saying of Jesus that is found in Matthew 19:23-30. To see the world in terms of competing or…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I met the fishermen last night as I crossed the Nacamaki village green on my way to a dance practice. The dau ni vucu (composer) was teaching me a vakamalolo meke (sitting…

 

By Marea Lyn M. Almirañez

“Man man” is a Chinese word meaning slowly.  I often come across this word when I’m out and about in Taiwan. Oftentimes, I would see this word written on the road.…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

Yesterday, I sat on the floor of a young man's house. I don't think he was rich, but somehow he had acquired the use of a house in disrepair. Before he repaired and…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Here in Nacamaki village on Koro Island, where I am practicing the Fijian language by living in the village, there are many blessings. But there is one frustration.

 

By Reina Mosqueda

Being a part of the Filipino Catholic Community here in Taiwan is life-giving for me as a missionary.  I feel so blessed to have built a close relationship with the…

 

By Hazel Angwani

The sweet and minty smell of the mountain air. The sound of glacier water flowing from the melting ice. The thunderous sound of an avalanche

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Election fever is at a high pitch. Just a couple of weeks to go. Ordinary people are usually fearful in the run-up to any election in Fiji.

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

In Genesis 44-45, we hear the story of Joseph’s emotional reconnection with his brothers. This familiar Old Testament story reminds me of the time an aging Fijian Catholic…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

A week ago, I heard on the coconut wireless that two men here in Nacamaki village had noticed a small shark in shallow water off the coast. They quickly took shovels from…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

A youth march to highlight the climate crisis was suggested by Atelemo Cakaudrove, a student from the Fiji National University, Nasinu Campus, at a zoom meeting with other…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

“Go home.” These can be tough words for foreign missionaries and sometimes people can bluntly tell us to go back to where we came from. Such words can be said when what we…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

When I was back for the first time in Ireland after four years in Fiji, it was great to be home. My mother had knitted me a warm sweater now that my blood had been thinned…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

I recall the story of a missionary who went to Africa with the stated intention of bringing God to a people whom he thought had never heard of God before.

 

By Joan Yap

There is so much to tell about missionary life, but one thing to never miss to mention is that missionaries go where God sends them. It is often said that the family is…

 

By Fr. John Marley

Some journalists were fascinated by the fact that Pope Benedict XVI freely surrendered his infallibility in giving up the Papacy. However wonderful Papal infallibility may…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

I vividly recall the first coup in Fiji. It took place on May 14, 1987. Shortly after the takeover of Parliament and the imprisonment of government members, soldiers…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

The Catholics of Naleba settlement held their annual Church AGM while I happened to be there on a return visit. Some young teachers who had just completed three-week…

 

By Fr. Brian Vale

Early in September 2021, a small group of us Columbans visited the Buddhist Tsz Shan Monastery in Tai Po, Hong Kong. In this era of restrictions on our mobility it was…

 

By Fr. Donald Hornsey

In Matthew 12: 38-42, the scribes and Pharisees tell Jesus that they want to see a sign from Him. He rebukes them and says that the only sign they will receive will be…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I am teaching and counselling seminarians at the Pacific Regional Seminary in Suva.

 

By Fr. Patrick Colgan

It's not every day a member of your parish brings home a gold Olympic medal! I was very happy therefore to finally meet Waisea Nacuqu, from Votua, after his 2 weeks'…

 

By Fr. Bill Morton

After four years as an air traffic controller in the U.S. Navy, I began my journey with the Columban Fathers in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1975 and was ordained in my…

 

By Fr. John Boles

Deep in the industrial heartland of northern England, Columban Fr. John Boles encounters a parish with a remarkable tale to tell.
"Every picture tells a story," goes…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I was shocked when a daughter of close Indo-Fijian friends eloped 45 years ago. I sought her out at that time begging her, in vain, to return to her family. Her mother was…

 

By Marjorie C. Engcoy

Today, I finally set foot in Navala village. For a number of times, previous plans of going to Navala have been postponed because of one reason, the weather. But today was…

 

By Jennifer "Jake" Lunor

Being a stranger in a foreign land isn’t always easy, in terms of learning and adapting to the culture, as well as the language.

 

By Fr. Alo Connaughton

People sometimes ask “Why did you become a missionary?” What made about 12 of my 45 classmates in secondary school decide that they wanted to be missionary priests?

 

By Kurt Zion Pala

In the past few weeks, I’ve started to post a challenge to us priests, religious and lay people who consecrate our lives to the service of God’s people.

 

By Kim Sun-Hee "Maria"

Before I was assigned to a regional mission unit as a Columban lay missionary, I was attending the orientation program, and in the seminar held on “the Day of Overseas…

 

By Fr. Don Hornsey

After the stoning of Stephen, a severe persecution began against the community in Jerusalem, led by Saul, who entered houses and dragged off men and women to prison.…

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

The claim of a number of political leaders in the recent past to be protecting the Judeo/Christian civilization has not gone unnoticed. However, when this claim is…

 

By Lanieta Tamatawale

I began to search for my vocation in high school. I belonged to a “Young Vinnies” group made up of students from the Catholic high schools in Suva, Fiji.

 

By A Columban Missionary

October is to be celebrated as Mission Month.

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

The words of the poem by Grace Nichols depict a situation existing not just in Jamaica and the Caribbean but around the world where women have to leave home and children…

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

The story about the encounter between Philip and the eunuch (Acts 8:26-40) is remarkable.

 

By Fr. Tom Rouse

During my years in Fiji, I sometimes wondered how and why I got caught up in certain things or got involved with particular groups.

 

By Sainiana Tamatawale

The blessings I’ve had being a Columban Lay Missionary are when I journeyed with the Filipinos in my ministry in the Malate Parish, Philippines, for three years, and with…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

When I see the newly arrived children – all victims of human right violations and sexual abuse – healing and recovering in our Preda Foundation home and striving to be “…

 

By Fr. Gabriel Rojas

In 2017, due to pastoral circumstances, I lived in the parish's most impoverished area, the "Santos Arcángeles" in the district of San Martin de Porres; the "Jazmines de…

 

By Fr. Kwon Taemoon

I am living with an Irish priest and seven Columban seminarians in Manila. These students are from Myanmar, Fiji and Korea, and during the spiritual year they are…

 

By Kim Chong-hwan "Ignatius"

When I was experiencing major difficulties in my life I was greatly consoled and encouraged to keep going by numerous Columban priests. As I recall my meetings with those…

 

By Fr. Sung Hoon Jung "Francisco"

When I arrived here ten years ago, the people started talking about the need for a resting place, a shelter, for migrant workers. For political and economic reasons people…

 

By Muhn Sung-Yun Leo

I am working in the diocese of Thaibay at the Chinese Martyrs parish church. Here I am fulfilling my practical training on my first mission assignment having completed my…

 

By Columban Fr. Warren Kinne

The Church causes distress when it “manifests itself as proud, arrogant, damaging, hierarchical, hypocritical and irrelevant,” and it points out the obvious - that this is…

 

By Fr. Hong Kison-Hijino

The parish of Kogin is the northernmost parish on the east coast of Korea. It is above the 38th parallel and next to the Demilitarized Zone (the DMZ). I am a native of…

 

By Ling, Chuah Hui

Before I arrived in my mission assignment in Britain, I spent my last few weeks in New Zealand busily saying goodbye to my dear friends, and all the while preparing myself…

 

By Fr. Trevor Trotter

It is nice to hear someone say to you, “Make sure you stay in touch." You might be leaving to move to another place or to go on mission somewhere overseas.

 

By Columban Fr. Michael Hoban

Columban Father Chris Saenz returned to Omaha after many years as a missionary priest in Chile where he worked among the Mapuche people in the south of Chile and in the…

 

By Fr. George Hogarty

I first considered becoming a priest when I was seven years old. Mysteriously enough I still remember that strong feeling of being called by God.

 

By Fr. Kevin O'Rourke

After a poem by the Koryo monk Ch’ungji

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

The empowerment of women and girls is a most urgent need in today’s world where discrimination, violence and exploitation of women and girls, especially in the developing…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Learning a new language is only part of the challenge for missionaries. Local people have their own cultural values and see things differently from outsiders.

 

By Lilibeth Sabado

A few years ago, I was enrolled in a university in Wuhan, China.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Savenaca Momo from Nadelei in Ba Province, Fiji, is the epitome of a gentle giant. He joined the first team of Columban lay missionaries to leave Fiji.

 

By Fr. Kevin O'Rourke

In Memory of Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan

 

By Columban Missionaries

The Columban Missionary Society which was originally founded for mission in China finally ordained its first Chinese Columban at the beginning of 2020.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

This video production by Preda Foundation shows the life and recovery of the teenagers who were rescued from human traffickers and the horrors of abuse and …

 

By Fr. Neil Magill

In 1970 I was a theology student at our Columban seminary in Ireland and worked in our book store.

 

By Fr. Charles Rue

God takes us beyond what our minds can imagine beyond the limits we put on our hearts knowing that the cosmos and all earth creatures are brother and sister as St. Francis…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

The latest letter of Pope Francis, his Encyclical, Fratelli Tuttii “Brothers and Sisters All,” is one that should touch every heart, stimulate our minds, awaken our…

 

By a Columban Missionary

When we look at the scene of the baptism of Jesus as depicted by Christian artists the important figures seem to be Jesus, John the Baptist and the Holy Spirit descending…

 

By Fr. Rufus Halley

The dawn has broken through
The fears and snares of darkness
Are shattered, scattered, put to rout
Hold your head up high, oh man,

 

By Fr. Charles Rue

The providence of God gives earth its seasons.
The equinox sun sets glory over the equator
radiates tempering flowers south and colors north

 

By Ana Flores

I first arrived in the Philippines in December 2007 and have been assigned in Mandanao ever since.

 

By Luda Egbalic

My heart was filled with gratitude and awe when I finished my first term mission in South Korea meaningfully and gracefully. Praise be to God and Mama Mary.

 

By Kim Sun-Hee Maria

Thanksgiving Day is called Zhong-Qiu-Jie in Taiwan, which means mid-autumn festival which is held on the 15th day of the 8th month of the lunar…

 

By Sunhee "Sunny" Kim

Columban lay missionary Sunhee Kim writes about her ministry to children trapped in deplorable conditions at a dump in the Philippines.

 

By Fr. Charles Rue

Pulsating through our world, oceans and land
the tropics and artic, our home
flows the presence of God
loving a myriad of creation faces.

 

By Rose Basada

I’ve been living here in Ciudad Juarez in the Parish of Corpus Christi in the Northern part of Mexico, Rancho Anapra, for almost eighteen months now.

 

By Fr. Noel Connolly

I was ordained in 1969. Those were confident and energetic times. Neil Armstrong walked on the moon a few days later.

 

By Joan Yap

There are times in my life when I feel I am at a crossroad, not knowing which way to go.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

A case of gang rape of a 19-year old young British woman in Ayia Napa in southeastern Cyprus by 12 youth 15 to 18 years old in July 2019 received international attention…

 

By Fr. Barry Cairns

September 1 has been designated for us as World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

In 1981, Columban Fr. Frank Hoare was at the Namata Ashram running a Hindi-speaking lay leaders course. He shared with us the following story from that time.

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Latai Muller

Where there is heart there is love; where there is Love there is Joy; where there is Joy there is God, and all things begin with God.

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Kim Sunhee

I recently began my new ministry in Our Lady of Remedies parish in Malate, Manila, Philippines.

 

By Fr. Charles Rue

As a promise, God created a Chosen People
guiding them in deserts, freeing them from slavery
giving them a promised land as their home.

 

By By Columban Lay Missionary Marjorie Engcoy

One of my passions is in the area of ecological justice, so I decided to initiate a recycling program in the parish in Raiwaqa, Fiji, where I am assigned and launch it…

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Joan Yap

I work as a shelter supervisor at the Hope Workers’ Center in Taiwan, and I can say that I enjoy the work.  Every day I facilitate activities for the residents in the…

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Febie Gonzalez

It took a long time for me to discern my full-time ministry until I finally found myself working with mentally and developmentally challenged individuals at Ai Jia (House…

 

By Fr. Gonzalo Borquez

How many times has someone climbed a mountain only to find that they are still not at the summit? And, in fact, a cliff lies between them and the higher peaks.

 

By Chuah Hui Ling

My name is Teresa, but most people here call me Ling. I was born in Malaysia and before coming to Fiji, I lived in New Zealand for eleven years.
Everything went…

 

By Sherryl Lou Capili

I started serving at the Hope Workers’ Center (HWC) last year as a fulltime pastoral coordinator among the Filipino Community of volunteers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus…

 

By Reina Mosqueda

Talking about gratefulness, many people say that it is all about being appreciative of the good things in our lives.  We appreciate the person who shows kindness or…

 

By Jennifer Lunor

Opportunity comes once in a lifetime, and not all of us have the chance to be able to share with others the gifts that God has given to each of us: gifts such as life, our…

 

By Columban Missionaries

A few years ago the Oxford Dictionary’s Word of the Year was “post-truth.” Every day people are subjected to many false words, “fake news,” “alternative truths,” and…

 

By Lee Ji Yong "Tina"

In January 2019 I returned to Taiwan with my husband Jung-Woong Bosco as a Columban lay missionary couple.  At the moment, I’m completing month seven of a full year,…

 

By Fr. Charles Rue

God the creator keeps faith with the universe forever
in the evolving journey of planets, plants and animals
loving humanity and guiding our journey

 

By Mereani Naileyu

I believe as human beings we all have a call, a call to be a particular type of person.

 

By Kim Jung Woong

I’m doing missionary work with the mentally and physically challenged individuals at St.

 

By Fr. Patrick McInerney

I feel as much on Columban mission here in Sydney as I ever did in Lahore, Pakistan, if not more so, and it is usually in the ordinary encounters of every day.

 

Fr. Shay Cullen

In the dangerous southern island of Mindanao in the Philippine archipelago of more than 7,000 islands, martial law reigns.

 

By Mary K.

I am a butterfly,
Know that I like Flying among colorful flowers But now, I won’t do like this I offer to you…My lord.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Mani Ram told me today that he had just had a terrifying experience.

 

By Hyein "Anna" Noh

At last, I am back in Korea, my home country. I returned in March 2019 and threw myself into the surging waves of work awaiting me as the new Columban Lay Missionary (CLM…

 

By Fr. Patrick Colgan

One of the striking aspects of spending four months in San Antonio, Texas, is the very Hispanic/Mexican feel of the city as well as the way it manages its social…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

What greater duty does any person of integrity have than to speak the truth about that which is morally wrong, unjust and despicable?

 

Sr. Redempta Twomey

"Quit being a lemon and make some lemonade in these straitened times," a journalist urged in a recent article.

 

By Fr. Alvaro Martinez

A couple of years ago, before starting the Christmas Mass, in a chapel in the southern area of the archdiocese of Santiago, Chile, a family arrived with their children.

 

By Fr. Charlie O'Rourke

As Christmas draws near my thoughts go back to 1973 and 1974 when I was in Korea.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

The catechumenate is the period of preparation for baptism that adults go through.

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

Noisily he made his haggard way 
down the corridor to the departure gate
a gimp exuding anger.
Taking a seat he announced under his breath

 

By Fr. Gonzalo Borquez

The night is ending, darkness making way for light, winter has gone, and spring is here.

 

By Virgie T. Tanate

My missionary journey in Ireland was the highlight of my entire career and my greatest accomplishment in life.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been attending a training of trainers at the Methodist Conference Center. I was unhappy with the sleeping arrangements.

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

The river came out of the ground underneath the rocks
We watched and wondered where it came from
Drank it, used it for cooking
Washed ourselves

 

By Fr. Kurt Zion Pala

The parish church of Jimenez is considered a national heritage building one of only two from Mindanao, the Philippines, the other is in Jasaan (next stop). It is said to…

 

By Violeta V. Villaraiz

My journey in Korea as a Columban Lay Missionary can be compared with my first experience of the FOUR SEASONS – Spring, Summer, fall, and winter.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

After spending over a year in India from February 1979 to March 1980 I began to understand the reverence that Hindus gave to the cow and the importance for them of not…

 

By Necita A. Fetalvero

The presence of immigrant spouses in Korea, together with the even larger population of immigrant laborers, has challenged the long-held homogeneous Korean society. With…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been studying the Fijian language for almost 3 months now. It is great to have a chance now to learn the Fijian language and culture.

 

By Columban Fr. Shay Cullen

We entered the so-called Bahay Pagasa, ??House of Hope.? It turned out to be a children's jail. We brought snacks and drinks to share with the young people in the cells…

 

By Marguerite McManus

As a Columban lay missionary, I have been working and living in a community in Puente Alto near Santiago, Chile. I worked in a parish named after St.

 

By Columban Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been renting a room from a Fijian family in Kinoya for the last few months while I continue to teach at the Pacific Regional Seminary.

 

By Fr. Robert McColloch

In Pakistan, terminally-ill patients are treated as sources of income by the medical profession and the hospital culture.

 

By Fr. Barry Cairns

Once upon a time a young prince has an extensive and beautiful garden. Above all he loved “Bamboo’’ in his grove and used to visit him frequently. Bamboo reveled in his…

 

By Ariel Presbitero

I suppose what really attracted me to become an associate with the Society of St. Columban as a lay volunteer was  conviction and commitment to the same message that…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I have been studying the Fijian language for almost three months now.

 

By Sr. Redempta Twomey

From the seclusion of his monastery in Kentucky, the Cistercian monk, Thomas Merton, reached out to the men and women of his time with a wise and compassionate heart.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Today I escaped from my Hindi studies to visit two veteran French missionaries, Frs. Cocereau and Debois at Naililili mission station. I was impressed by the fine old…

 

By Gloria Canama

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…

 

By Columban Missionaries

As he lies in his sick bed, Columban Fr. Frank recalls some of his mission outreach: The first time I went to the leper colony, I traveled with (the late)…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I’m at the Namata Ashram running a Hindi-speaking lay leaders course. I’ve just had a meeting with a Fijian seminarian.  I was supervising him on his cross-cultural…

 

By Rowena Cuanico

It all started as a simple idea. I remember Columban Fr. Dom Nolan and Lourdes de Guzman both of Mission Awareness asking us if we would accept some donations for a garage…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Four of our Columban seminarians are studying philosophy at the Pacific Regional Seminary (PRS). During our community night one Sunday evening someone asked one of them…

 

By a Columban Missionary

The personal experience of loss and grief over the death of a loved family member is universal.  People tend to remember the lives of those who have recently died.…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

The Philippines is a country with some of the greatest inequality. There are 16 million Filipinos who suffer serious poverty out of population of 107 million. Six million…

 

Columban Fr. Shay Cullen

The vast majority of Filipinos love their children, they care for them, pamper and spoil them at times.

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Lee Su Bin

Travelling to strange places and leaving familiar things behind entails a mixed feeling of excitement, joy as well as fear.

 

By Columban Fr. Neil Magill

The closing of the Columban centennial in Myanmar was held in Myitkyina where Columbans worked for decades until 1979 before being expelled by the military government.

 

By A Columban Missionary

Personally, the world looked different after the sorrow of my parents' death. All the small disappointments disappeared. Instead, I came to more deeply appreciate and…

 

By Columban Fr. Cyril Lovett

"Where do you find comfort", you asked,
and I found myself at a loss for an answer.
I am accustomed to comforting others
and now, when I need comforting,

 

Fr. Shay Cullen

Recently, we at the PREDA Foundation have opened a new home for troubled boys which was possible with the help of our supporters.

 

By Fr. Liam O'Callahan

When Columbans began working in the parish of Greentown, Lahore, Pakistan, in 2007, I tried to build up Christian-Muslim relations, for example hosting Iftar dinners…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Columban Fr. Ed Quinn began the major work of building a new parish center in the bush at Vudibasoga. He has gone on holidays leaving Fr. Theo and myself holding the fort…

 

By Columban Sr. Kathleen

We are united with you in heart and prayer during this very special time of year. This has truly begun as a very graced Advent for us in Myanmar. The coming of the Pope…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

My friend Prabhu Dass arrived at the Naleba church just as I finished my meager breakfast.

 

Fr. Daniel O'Connor

Ramadan is the Holy Month for Muslims. This takes place during the ninth lunar month of Ramadan. Muslims are required to abstain from food and drink from dawn till sunset…

 

By Sr. Redempta Twomey

They are remembered every day. They are prayed for at Mass, at the Divine Office, during community prayers. Many have died but they are never forgotten. Every day, without…

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I am half way through my two months stay in Nacemaki Village after my course in the Fijian language. The villagers are very welcoming and friendly.

 

By Columban Lay Missionary SunHee Kim

In January 2015 I began a new ministry in Payatas, the Philippines, known as the second Smokey mountain.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Let us look at ourselves as human beings with dignity, values, and inalienable human rights.

 

By Ray Collier

About 18 months ago, after leaving the parish of St. Catherine’s, I felt called to go and explore opportunities of volunteering with groups which are responding to the…

 

By Justice Ju

I am flying like a bird across the ocean
Sometimes I feel debilitated and depressed
I am trying and flying with my wings
Fighting the worst weather

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Last night Fr. Theo and I decided to visit separate Indo-Fijian families in the same settlement about five miles from town. We borrowed the parish van.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

A fund-raising bazaar took place at Raviravi church today. A large multi-ethnic crowd attended, and there were different cultural items presented.

 

Sun-Hee "Maria" Kim

On October 2017, I returned to Taiwan as a second term lay missionary.

 

Columban Fr. Shay Cullen

We read and see reports about the terrible number of child sexual assaults and how few perpetrators ever get convicted.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Catholic Church leaders have spoken out to condemn the brutal killing of a young priest, Father Mark Anthony Ventura, 37, from Gattaran town in the province of Cagayan on…

 

By Columban Lay Missionary Reina Mosqueda

Before I become a lay missionary, I was a full-time volunteer at Jesuit Volunteer of the Philippines (JVP).

 

By Fr. Pat Colgan

Apart from my General Council work, I have found myself unofficial chaplain to foreign inmates in five Hong Kong prisons.

 

Fr. Donal McIlraith

It all started about three months ago when catechist Timoci Matakiviwa turned up on our doorstep offering to compose a Centennial Meke for us.

 

Fr. John Burger

The Portuguese have become a part of Rhode Island society, but not at the price of entirely losing their religious heritage.

 

Fr. Frank Hoare

When I was growing up in Ireland we used to hear about the bogey man – who would snatch naughty children and spirit them away.

 

Fr. Cyril Lovett

A week-end retreat with the women
from the desolate city slum ??
delight in grass, and flowers and shrubs;
joy, to be free for two whole days

 

Fr. Cyril Lovett

I have discovered
that a buttercup has five petals,
that several colors enliven a patch of moss
that grass comes in near-infinite variety

 

Fr. Kurt Zion Pala

My main interfaith experiences in the Philippines were with Muslims; things in Myanmar are very different given the very large majority Buddhist population.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Church and police authorities and non-government organizations (NGOs) came together recently in the Vatican under the Santa Martha Group headed by Cardinal Vincent…

 

By Fr. Dan O'Connor

When I was told of the death of Asma Jahangir I thought that she may have been assassinated.

 

For Father Donal

Eyes clenched,
I conjure your grave,
White above Boyne grasses,
Stone processing
Like acolytes.
All questions buried,

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Archbishop Petero Mataca confirmed about 50 young people at Nabala (Fiji) today. As part of the preparation we priests had invited Beniamino, a blind dau ni vucu…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Journalists, writers, reporters, commentators will just have to curb their passion for speaking and exposing the truth if they want to continue to live.

 

Fr. Frank Hoare

I did a funeral in a small village near Dogoru a few months ago.

 

By Fr. Dermot Carthy

You snubbed me and the others laughed.
You were right in what you said
But were wrong in the sneering way you said it

 

By Columban Missionaries

In the middle of the night, with the wedding guests gathered around, the groom is led to a specially-prepared canopy. There, he is seated, facing north.

 

Fr. Peter O'Neill

There was a frantic voice at the end of the phone.  “Fr. Peter our Filipino friend Genalyn is sick in hospital and our Taiwan broker is going to send her back to the…

 

By Fr. Kevin O'Neill

It is with much joy and heartfelt gratitude that I, on behalf of Columban missionaries and co-workers invite you, our benefactors, your families and friends, and the…

 

Last year, I was visiting Monasterboice, an Irish monastic settlement that dates back to the fifth century, with a group of Australian pilgrims who were on pilgrimage in…

 

By Columban Sr. Redempta Twomey

Reflecting on his visit to small-town America, one writer listed some of the very appealing traits of that society – the warmth of the people, their politeness, their way…

 

By Fr. Cyril Lovett

Leprosy - that dreadful word
causing terror in the heart
bad enough to live with rotting flesh
but even worse to be among the living dead

 

Fr. Chris Saenz is a native of Bellevue, Nebraska, and belongs to the Missionary Society of St.

 

By Fr. Charles O'Rourke

During the years between 1972 and 1975, I was pastor of a parish in Seoul, Korea.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Columban Fr. Frank Hoare shared this page from his missionary diary:

April 16, 1992

 

By Marea Lyn Almirañez

I have many aspirations in life. Some of them I have already achieved. I am happy every time I achieve a goal.

 

Who is she? We asked our grandmother pointing to my mother. “My sister. You are the teacher.” My grandmother mumbled and whispered in her already weak voice.

 

By Fr. John Boles

Milly Hampson is eleven years old. She lives with her parents Darren and Beatriz in a tower block of flats overlooking the River Mersey in a rather unfashionable part of…

 

By Fr. John Burger

This spring a pair of great horned owls took over a large nest in a tree not too far from the Narragansett Bay shoreline.  As one would expect before too long little…

 

By Jenanydel Nola

For more than a year I spent most of my time visiting the elderly. I would say that meeting the different types of elderly is interesting and enjoyable, but needs a lot of…

 

By Valeria Marquez

When was the last time I said "I love you" to my dad? Have I thanked him lately? How long has it been since I prayed for him?

 

By Sr. Virgie Mozo

The summer mission appeals starts in June and finish by the end of August.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

St. Anthony is a favorite saint of South Indian Catholics. Today I celebrated his feast with the mainly Indo-Fijian congregation at Raviravi, a rural settlement on Fiji’s…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Rosi, in the photograph, was a six-year old child detained in the police detention cell of Police Station B on Magsaysay Drive in Olongapo City, the Philippines, some…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Life is for living. It is to experience freedom to love and help others, to be free to grow and have family. To be human is to be free from fear and punishment and ill…

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

In the 1980s before the onset of cheap air fares and the free movement of people introduced by the European Union Irish immigrants in London were always on the look-out…

 

By Fr. Cyril Lovett

To be human means to live from day to day,
Searching the way forward,
Inching towards a clearer sense of identity and purpose.

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Bennie had a thin, hollow face, the picture of malnutrition at 22 years of age, and had never been to school for more than a few months, could not read or write and he was…

 

By Fr. Bobby Gilmore

One day when I was working in Montego Bay, I got a call from the bishop requesting that I go out and bless the foundation of a new hotel, the Ritz Carlton. He was invited…

 

After spending a year in Yangon to learn the Burmese language, Columban lay missionaries Catharina, Columba and Lenette moved to Banmaw (Myanmar) to start their ministry…

 

By Fr. Bill Sullivan

It was a rainy Sunday morning in San Marcelino, Zambales, Philippines. I was to celebrate the San Isidro fiesta Mass in barrio Pili. Pili was a Village far from town.

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

I am back in Naleba – the rural settlement on the second Island of Fiji where I began, in 1975, my missionary journey. After seven years away I feel the need to refresh my…

 

By Fr. Jack Evans

Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else. 

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

Today I went to take photos of the fire-walking at the Hindu temple at Nadera, a few miles from Suva. In the early 20th century, the British colonial government brought…

 

By Fr. John Keenan

The war on drugs initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte on July 1, 2016, has made headlines around the world.

 

Two new Columban priests were ordained in Chile – Rafael Ramí­rez and Gonzalo Borquez

 

By Fr. Frank Hoare

The drive from Ba, where I am stationed as assistant priest, to Suva takes well over four hours. Load-carrying trucks are one of the obstacles on the way, as I found out…

 

By Fr. Thomas A. Greisen

I have never known life without him. My great-uncle, Bishop Henry Ambrose Pinger, O.F.M., returned to the United States the year I was born, having served as a missionary…

 

By Fr. Kurt Zion Pala

Jesus said to His disciples, “Peace I leave you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.”

 

In April 2016, I joined Archbishop George Lucas of the Omaha archdiocese on a trip of a lifetime – spending 17 days in China!

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

The rise of women into to high public office has given a new dimension to the global political scene.

 

It is truly an age of disbelief. Respect for the values of human life has plunged.

 

As told to Fr. George Hogarty

I am Mercy Gawason, and I am a Subanen woman. I am 26 years old, and I work in the Subanen Craft Center in Ozamis City, the Philippines. I met Columban Fr.

 

A long time ago in Japan there lived a travelling man who went from place to place with his monkey who could dance.

 

By Fr. Pat Colgan

At the end of May 2016, during the General Audience of Pope Francis with representatives of the permanent diaconate, Rev.

 

In March 2013, Columban Fr. Bobby Gilmore wrote this letter to his niece Sarah and her husband Rob when he found out that Annabel Grace was born with Cystic Fibrosis.

 

On Saturday, May 14, 2016, Columban Fr.

 

Once upon a time many years ago, a man and his wife lived in the countryside in Japan.

 

Recently, we received a note of thanks from the diocese of Mytikyina for the donation we gave towards the completion of St.

 

The farmers have just cultivated their crops, such as corns and potatoes. They hope for a good harvest so that they will be able to share it with one another.

 

Fr. Kevin O’Neill, Superior General of the Columban Fathers and Fr. Patrick Colgan, member of the General Council, attended a meeting of leaders of Society of Apostolic…

 

Graduations have started for some of the kids. There was a Recognition Day on March 31 for Ariel Bulangis who has completed Grade 10. After that he still has two years of…

 

By Fr. Shay Cullen

Jessica Mary, along with thirty other recovering child survivors of sexual abuse and human trafficking, marched down the streets of Olongapo City on International Women’s…

 

A few weeks ago Maria Johnson, Director of Hispanic Ministry, sent a note to Columban Father Maurice Foley asking him to write some articles about his missionary…

 

Parola is one of the largest shanty-towns in the Philippines. It is in the capital, Manila, on a long stretch of low-lying land between the Pasig River and the busy North…

 

There was a lonely Mission
Where Jesus was adored
They knew His ten commandments
And read His holy word.

 

Peru opened its arms to me in the first days of September 1978. That meant learning the language, and the language school was in Cochabamba, Bolivia.