Through the centuries, food and plants coming from America, and in particular from Mexico, have given a great contribution to the Mediterranean diet. The first people to bring back information about the food and plants of the Americas were early explorers and conquistadors, some of whom showed a special interest in the vegetation of the […]

Spirit, body and the psyche are to be helped grow together in a journey of maturation to reach equilibrium and interior peace. This is a journey into one of the more meaningful religions of black Brazil. Candomblé is one of the Afro-Brazilian religions underlying the black culture of Salvador da Bahia, perhaps the one that

In the north of Togo and the north-east of Benin in the Atacora Range live the Betammaribe, also called Somba, a people with a history of great hunters and warriors. Here we take a brief look at the architecture of their houses, unique and original in Western Africa. Scattered throughout a green valley among the

Nearly all major religions of the world were born in Asia. We look at some common traits of Asian spirituality – inner journey, search for depth, silence, detachment, nonviolence, and honesty – shows their significance in our modern times. An inward pilgrimage is central to Asian understanding of religion. Spirituality is the removal of all

In Ceará, one of the poorest states of Brazil, and one of the most violent in the world, Sister Francisca Erbenia de Sousa, head of Crateus Diocese, as always, fights alongside the people regarded as the least important in the world: women victims of abuse, the youth, peasants without land to till and fishermen without

The Turkana are a monotheistic people. They believe in one God, known as Akuj, the creator of the universe. “All things belong to Akuj”, they say. They call upon him in times of great need, through prayers and chants and through animal sacrifices. The Turkana believe that Akuj is the source of all power: if

In Central and East Africa, the term most commonly used for a traditional healer is ng’anga. No one can doubt the fundamental role that this occupation still has in the field of health and health services in African societies. It is hard to define a ng’anga. He is a doctor, when he cures a disease;

Comboni Father Seraphin Kakwata, Congolese, shares his experience being amongst afro-descendent communities in S. Lorenzo parish, in the province of Esmeraldas, Ecuador. In 2013, I was assigned to San Lorenzo, in the province of Esmeraldas, in north-western Ecuador. On Mondays I work from the parish centre, which includes the main church building and other meeting

They threaten and intimidate him, but Father Alejandro Solalinde continues his mission, at the risk of his life. Father Solalinde is not afraid to speak out against abuses and injustice. He says “I have received numerous death threats”. The immigrant shelter, which he founded in Ixtepec, has been attacked more than once. He adds that

Forests are rapidly vanishing in Zambia. The country’s rate of depletion of this natural resource is extremely high. The government is looking for new lines of approach and action to stop the human roots of this ecological crisis. Approximately 65% of Zambia’s total land area is covered by forests. The country boasts of a great