He was born in 1899 in a small village in the region of Brescia, Northern Italy. Feeling the Lord was calling him to the mission, he insistently asked to join the Comboni Missionaries. He entered the novitiate in Venegono Superiore in 1925, making his first profession as a religious in 1928. During these first years […]
Comboni Brother Pietro Laffranchi: Desiring to Empower the Workers Read More »
There was a frightful drought. The rivers after a while dried up and even the springs gave no water. The animals wandered around seeking water, but to no avail. Water was nowhere to be found. A great gathering of animals was held: Lion, Leopard, Hyena, Jackal, Elephant, all of them came together. What was to
Oral literature: the Rabbit and the Tortoise Read More »
The textiles of the Andean Valley stand out not only for the technical complexity of the weaving process or for the beauty of their colours and figures, but also because their artistic symbolism reveals the socio-political, cultural, economic and spiritual worldview of the Andean people. Once the wool is obtained from the sheep, alpaca, vicuña
Bolivia: the textiles of the Andes Read More »
The Guji are an ethnic group of southern Ethiopia. They belong to the great family of the Oromo. Traditionally semi-nomadic, today they live more from agriculture than cattle-raising. A glance at some aspects of their life and culture. They are around five million people scattered around the most southerly area of the immense territory called
Ethiopia: the Guji, a people in transformation Read More »
On the edge of the on the border between Niger and Burkina Faso, the Fatebenefratelli friars have been providing medical services to the people of Atakora plateau. Brother Fiorenzo Priuli, director of the St. Jean de Dieu Hospital spoke to us about his experience as both a missionary and an orthopaedic surgeon. The city of
Benin: “The Man with the Golden Hands” Read More »
“I am a farmer by profession, self-educated for anything else.” With this candid statement, John Giori, a native of Sacco di Rovereto, near Trent in Northern Italy, introduced himself. John decided to enter the Institute founded by Comboni after meeting him in Limone sul Garda. After taking the vows, as one of the first group
Comboni Brother John Giori, Captain of the Redemptor Read More »
The Democratic Republic of Congo continues to be afflicted by most serious political and social tensions, conflicts in some of its regions and endemic poverty despite its infinite riches. This is our topic as we speak with Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, Archbishop of Kinshasa. The government of President Felix Tshisekedi which came to power in the
DR Congo: at the side of the people fighting to live and to resist Read More »
A fierce opponent of the regime of Paul Biya, he energetically promoted dialogue between the central government and Anglophone separatists. Last November he was the victim of an as yet unexplained kidnapping. They called him Wiyghan, which means ‘one who is passing through’ because his mother had lost her first two children. Born on 15
Cameroon: Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi, not just ‘passing through’ Read More »
“As missionaries, we try to share as much as possible the life of our people, creating situations of reconciliation and forgiveness.” We live in the village of Nyal, in the county of Painjiar, in South Sudan where one can come only by using the helicopters of the World Food Programme (WFP). We live in a
South Sudan: The tenderness of God Read More »
The coronavirus pandemic has taught us how vulnerable and interdependent we are. The pandemic is global; so must be the solution! Scientists have responded to this challenge by developing in record time vaccines that can help us overcome the pandemic. They were able to achieve this result thanks to the billions of dollars of public
No one is safe until everyone is safe Read More »
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