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Mission News

Columban Fr. Salustino Villalobos, a member of the International Leadership Team

Connecting with Young People

Fr. Salustino Villalobos, a member of the Columban International Leadership Team, visits St. Hillary Parish in Peru and shares

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Tsukiji Church is the oldest catholic church in Tokyo, Japan.

Columban Parish Celebrates 150th Jubilee

Tsukiji Catholic Church in Tokyo, Japan is celebrating its 150th jubilee in 2024. Established in 1874 and dedicated to St. Joseph, the church has…

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Fr. Eamon Sheridan in flood waters

Flooding in Myanmar

At 2 am on Monday morning July 1, 2024, in the Columban Rebirth Rehabilitation Center in Myitkyina in North Eastern Myanmar (formerly Burma), I…

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Mindful Moment

As I look toward the future, I do so with a sense of anticipation, knowing that every experience — both joyous and challenging — will continue to shape me in ways yet unforeseen. And so, I embrace the journey with open arms, guided by the lessons of the past and fueled by the promise of tomorrow.

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spring flowers

All Souls intentions

All Saints and All Souls

Reflecting on All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day offers a profound opportunity to contemplate both mortality and the lives of exemplary individuals who have lived before us.

All Saints' Day, celebrated on November 1, honors all the saints, known and unknown, recognized by the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations. It celebrates those individuals who have lived exceptionally holy lives, serving as inspirations and role models for the faithful. All Saints' Day reminds us of the diversity of saintly lives and the varied paths to sanctity, encouraging us to emulate their virtues and seek spiritual growth.

All Souls' Day, celebrated on November 2, is a day dedicated to remembering and …

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Stories from Columban Missions

Steaming cup of tea on a table

Mugs of Hot Hope

When I first arrived in Chile, I was still a seminarian, fresh from four months at the Maryknoll language school in Bolivia, which not only…

Letters, numbers and symbols on a board.

Einsein Educational Center

Einsein village can hardly be called a village. It is a large depressed slum area on the outskirts of the city of Yangon in Myanmar (formerly…

Columban Fr. Noel O'Neill with Kim Yoon Cheong

The Key to My Own Home

A phone call from Seoul. It was Pak Hyun Sen wishing me a happy birthday. In the post there was a birthday card from Il Cheong. That same evening…

A man kneeling by a lake hands cupped with lake water.

The Simple Joys of a Priest

Like any other vocation or calling, priestly life is also filled with challenges, difficulties and struggles. Yet, amidst the toils and rough…

Sisters ministering to those affected by the floods

Go Ye Afar

In response to the words of an old song, “Go Ye Afar,” on November 15, 1926, a group of five Columban Sisters arrived in Hanyang, China, and were…

Three violins in a row

Many Strings to His Bow

Our newest Columban missionary priest has already lived many different lives. He speaks five languages and has lived in five different cultures…

From the Director

Fr. Chris Saenz, U.S. Director

Mind, Body, Spirit

Bodily issues are an interesting culture shock in Latin America because people are more upfront about bodily issues than the United States. For instance, in the United States, we wouldn’t comment on the person’s weight gain to the person directly. If we do, it is done in a very sensitive way. In Chile, it’s upfront. I could visit a person who I hadn’t seen for some time and that person could look at me and say directly, “Wow! You really gained weight! Look at how big you are!” Furthermore, people will call one el gordito/la gordita meaning fatty. In the U.S. culture this would be interpreted as taunts. In Chile, it often was an expression of cariño or endearment. A man sitting on the edge of a cliff staring at the nearby mountainsLike many people, I struggle with my weight. At one point in my life, I …

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