New Year, New Paths of Charity

Retrospectively, 2017 was a very blessed year, filled with small and large providential gifts. In fact, at the end of the year Holy Providence had touched many hearts and opened many plentiful pockets. The sowing began September 16 but the harvest was completed in December 2017. Most of the projects benefit the following Divine Providence Province entities:
*A new award from Missio, Munich went to Good Samaritan Pharmacy, Manila, just months after they accepted a program to educate parents of the ‘good children’ there. This new donation will purchase life-saving medicine for the Quezon City Inferno.
*Our contact with the Archdiocese of Freiburg reaped a positive award in December. World Church capitular, Dr. Peter Birkhofer, accepted our request to give financial support for the 26 Indian and four Filippino Thelogy Students. The generous donation was dispersed to the respective Major Seminaries through DDP treasurer, Fr. Rinaldo.
*Constant precious contact with the German Pious Union has secured small, continous donations for the Manila Pharmacy and for the new charity shelter at Iwindi, Tanzania. Their Mass intentions helped our confreres there to survive the ‘Guanellian Spartanity.’ For this new entity in the shadow of Mount Kilimanjaro we have applied for a donation from Missio, Munich to build a medical center for 300 disabled persons. This project may receive an award as soon as the beginning of February 2018
*Since our visit to the German Caritas Office at Pforzheim with Delegate Fr. Luigi in September we have been working on another urgent Project at Noro, Solomon Islands. With an interesting flyer for fundraising among supporters in our confederate State Bad-Würrt, Director Lemke initiated press conferences. Both German Guanellian entities are also seeking to fund a multi-purpose hall at Noro. This campaign will continue through the end of January 2018. We hope that the targeted sum will be collected by then.
*Guanellian Caritas also tried to help our Guanellian Sisters in Iasi, Romania in their request of financial support to purchase a Minibus, for urgently needed transportation for the disabled, elderly and students. The project was accepted by the Bavarian Solidarity Agency Renovabis in Eastern Europe just days before Christmas. This was somewhat of a thankful gesture to them, because 2 years ago they accomodated the first Indian confreres and built the first Guanellian seminary in Eastern Europe.
Last but not least our Procure is already working on 2018 projects. The most important are the rebuilding of the Cuddalore Church and a new project for Manila. Brother Mauro has prepared a project for self sufficiency through his Piggery Project near the Good Children’s Residence there. It should provide enough food for residents and enough to create an income. Also from the Philippines Fr. Viray is involving the Procura to fund a new shelter of charity in Northern Mindanao.
We are open to all requests from the Guanellian Missionary World, like those recently received from Mexico and Guatemala. We invest patient and silent work for the reactivation of our old contact with another solidarity agency: Kindermission, Aachen which for a decade was the other important solidarity agency involved in projects in Legapzi, Philippines; RD Congo and Mexico. Each received an Ambulance that operates 24 hours daily for at-risk girls and boys or Aids infected youth; and an irrigation system for disabled kids in Bateké, RD Congo. Exactly like Fr. Guanella did in Nuova Olonia, rehabilitation of the disabled through manual work, in his first pioneering endeavor.
In this New Year we should practice the warnings of Pope Francis to make 2018 an ‘active year’ as a Chruch and Community en route.
May the Lord through the intercession of our Lady of Providence help us always be ready to focus our efforts and listen to the whispers of our unknown, poor sisters and brothers. Have a blessed and graceful 2018.

Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procure

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S.O.S. to the Heavens

A life long acquired experience in the poor countries of Africa and the Far East have taught me to keep my mind and eyes open. A simple consideration is the fact that in the opulent West, the god Mammon is often the only ruler. We are all blind and deaf. But there, where poverty is at home and everyone must fight daily for their basic survival, one is inclined to reflect and act in a different manner. Because of this serious contraditional attitude, we have noticed an increasing spiritual poverty in the West during the past thirty years. On the other side, there is an increasing spiritual thirst for God! In Old Europe, the enormous scarcity of religiosity produces a great decrease in vocations. The logical consequence is that Europe needs more priests from Africa, India and the Philippines. Nowadays in the south German regions of Badenia and Bavaria, many churches could not exist without the massive presence of ‘foreign priests’ supporting the serious attempts at a real new evangelization.
Consequently during these past months, I have reflected deeply on the intrinsic meaning of the Mission Procure. Our vocation as the third branch of the Guanellian Family is to act as ‘Procurator’ of urgently needed funds in our Missions around the Globe.
After mature consultation with my friends and supporters in the Catholic solidarity agencies, we have decided to attempt a project based on the formal request of our DPP Council to seek funding for the twenty-six Indian Theology students and the four Filippinos in Manila. The first project was handed over to Dr. Peter Birkhofer on March 15th at the World Church Office in the Archdiocese of Freiburg. We are expecting a grant sometime soon for an annual sponsorship of these thirty theology students from our Province.
Due to this initial attempt we have encouraged the African Delegation to submit a similar project. Delegate Fr. Uche Desmond recently submitted the documents. The specific project will be conveyed this week to the very generous Msgr. Thomas Schlichting from the Bishop’s Office of Munich-Freising, and who has recently approved another promising project in our Province at Manila. The Good Samaritan Pharmacy is a real gift of Holy Providence in the Township of Quezon City.
For a good outcome of both projects let us pray and ask the Lord to send more workers to his increasing Vineyard; because a great harvest is ready to be gathered. Soon we’ll celebrate the Dogma of Mary’s Assumption into Heaven. I was there on Nov. 1, 1950, as an altar boy, seated near the gestatorial chair of Pope Pius XII! Fr. Guanella put all his projects in the hands of Our Holy Mother of Divine Providence and of Our Patriarch, St. Joseph. Therefore join us in this hopeful prayer

Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procure

The Winning Route on the Road-map of Charity

Fr. Guanella had a well focused dream when he decided to, “Go North,” adapting his feeling compass to a genial intuition during the Int. Marian Congress at Treviri, a part of the former Roman Province. At a very crowded assembly in the Cathedral of St. Helena, he implored the Forum to help his charitable work, which by August 1912 was quite established. In his prophetic allocution he was begging for ‘small streams of charity’ for his daughters and sons at his Italian and Swiss institutions from Germany. We believe that he intended to give this message and roadmap to a flock of former Sicilian alumni first. After a century, this has become a tangible reality through God’s Providence: his sons carrying out his dream!
After ten years of baby steps, Guanellians have made giant progress in weaving a blessed net of benefactors among the generous Catholic solidarity agencies. The Guanellian Procure was diligent in seeking and finding ‘busy bees’ at Catholic Missio agencies, first at Aachen in 2008. The present Salesian General Treasurer, Bro. Jean Paul Muller, introduced us and mediated the first donation of a mini-bus for Fr. Frantellizzi Hogar at Ciudad DF, Mexico. Convinced by this successful trial, the DPP Provincial Council courageously established the Missions Procure in March 2009. The strong insistence of Fr. Mimi from Manila and a ‘good word’ of Fr Joseph Rinaldo at the General Council in Rome made the rest possible.

Msgr. Wolfgang Huber

Heidrun Gottler

Stephanie Schuller

This is a real charity Telenovela! Now after the first decade, it is time to thank Divine Providence which continuously opens doors and incredible possibilities for all projects presented to the Procure from the Guanellian provinces. The most generous Institution in fundraising is Missio Munich supported by Bavarian Catholics of the Archdiocese of Munich. To their President, Msgr. Wolfgang Huber, and his amazing assistants, Mrs. Heidrun Göttler and Stephanie Schüller, goes our deepest gratitude. Since 2009, Missio Munich financed the construction of the new, modern Fr. Guanella Disabled Center in Quezon City; and later, the well-equipped physiotherapy wing.

Msgr. Thomas Schlichtig

Recently, after an intensive search of donors, Msgr. Thomas Schlichtig of the Awarding commission in the Munich Archdiocese, accepted the challenge of Missio to create a great stock of life-saving medicine for the Guanellian ‘Good Samaritan Pharmacy!’ To him, his archdiocese, the Missio staff and to all Bavarian donors, “Vergelt’s Gott!” which means Blessings will remunerate your generosity.
We also convey our sincere thanks to Missio at Aachen, which in the past 10 years has been an attentive partner for our presence in Legazpi with five nutrition programs, physiotherapy of special children. They also pioneered support in many Guanellian Projects in Central Africa. In 2014-15 a new ambulance for transporting children, AIDs sufferers, and the poor from the infernal streets of Kinshasa, RD Congo, through a 24-hour daily service was purchased and Bro. Mauro can fill their listening hears and open hearts. Thanks also to Mrs. Beate Jantzen for projects within Kinshsa and Mrs. Elaine Steiner for supporting the projects of Fr. Battista Omodei at Legapzi Philippines.
This story contains an encouraging message to our confreres in Africa and Asia to be confident that every request, every small project, has for us absolute priority! This is our vocation and commitment, to be the ‘third child in the Guanellian family!’ We do not baptize, nor confess, nor preach, but all our mental resources and ‘savoir faire’ are in service to the poor, because they reflect the image of God on Earth!
May the Sacred Heart of Jesus bless all our donors, supporters and friends of our Procure for remaining beside us as bridges to the German charity sources.
Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procure

German Guanellians as Solidarity Globetrotters

During the Marian Month of May both Guanellian entities in the Black Forest have been very active.
Fr. Rocky accompanied a group of Italian pilgrims to Fatima. Fr. Wieslaw went for the annual pilgrimage to Our Lady of Lourdes. Confreres of the Italian Mission have been busy preparing children for First Communion, Confirmation, and Marriage. On June 2nd subsidiary Bishop Gerber will celebrate the confirmation of many youth of our district. Guanellian Alumni of Naro are organizing a solemn feast and procession of St. Calogero, patron of Naro, through the streets of Pforzheim mid-June.
The other half of the Procura has been busy raising funds and refreshing contacts with our best donors: Missio, Munich; Kindermission, Aachen; the Bishop’s office, Freiburg; and the charitable nuns of the Pious Union in the Black Forest.
New projects from the Philippines have been submitted and partially funded. The Good Samaritan Pharmacy has received sufficient donations to purchase life-saving medicine for a long time. The astonishing thing is that even agnostic friends of Guanella Works have opened their pockets. New sources of charity have become members of the GLM, increasing the circle among professional and influential pesonalities from the Italian community.
We are following the development of missions in West Africa, encouraging confreres to send well documented projects for submission to agencies in Germany. As The most recent in Africa is the Guanellian shelter in Mbeya, West Tanzania. There is an urgent need of sufficient drinking water for the disabled communities as well as for the neighboring Christian villages.We’ll apply for support at Missio, Munich. We are closely connected since we ‘adopted’ a young boy, whom Fr. Furaha has given my first name. Little Gero is a sunny disabled boy, who has become in Germany the symbol of Guanellian loving attention toward God’s neglected children in Africa and beyond.
The last coordinated activity is with the German Pious Union and the establishment of a branch of the St. Josef Confraternity in Indore/Madhya Pradesh. Mother General Simone has obtained approval of Bishop Chacko Thottumarical, the local bishop. The German Procure plans to submit the project to the Pious Union in Rome for Canonical approval. We hope that this will foster practical cooperation among Guanellians with the efforts of the Daughters of St. Josef in South India to increase the veneration of the Holy Patriarch, great St. Josef, and promote the blessed apostolate for the salvation of the suffering and dying around the world. This brillant inspiration of our Founder should become an imperative act of all Guanellians practicing his maxim, “The worry for the dying of this day is an important duty of true Christian love toward our neighbor.”
May the Holy Spirit this Pentecost inflame our hearts and turn our thoughts to be attentive to the poor.
Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procure

Guanellian Presence on Tanzanian Soil

Fr. Furaha Ntasamaye, a young diocesan priest in Tanzania, through his own initiative scoured Europe to obtain substantial contributions to help care for almost 250disabled girls and boys in a very vast region of West Tanzania.
This is the first Guanellian settlement in this beautiful country.
Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procure

German Guanellians as Charity Globetrotters

The Advent season in Germany is a month of rich harvest for religious orders engaged in fundraising campaigns for solidarity projects around the globe. Therefore every household will soon be overflowing with appeal letters. We have also been busy for the past four weeks, and holy Providence seems to hear our sorrowful knocking.
Both Guanellian entities have been hard at work. The Italian Mission had to face a long convalescence of our Polish confrere, Fr. Wieslaw. Meanwhile Fr. Rocky has covered the Italian community, Masses at area German chapels and assisted in a yearly retreat for the neighboring Italian mission of Mühlacker.
The Procura has been working on a multilingual brochure profiling the Founder and Guanellian mission to easily spread his charism throughout German speaking regions. A constant source of support and funding has been the German Pious Union. These sisters collected funds from their confraternity members, the first donation went to the Good Samaritan Pharmacy in Manila. Brother Mauro was able to open the Pharmacy as a result. We have been introduced to a pharmaceutical producer who could supply medicine for Manila as well as other Guanellian missions globally. The German Pious Union has also made a donation to the new shelter in the Solomon Islands.
Meanwhile, we have concentrated further efforts to draw the attention of our German donors and of the Catholic solidarity to the next Guanellian disabled center in Mbeya, East Tanzania. I am convinced of what the Bible says, “I called my Son out of Egypt” and that on the Via Dolorosa not an Israeli nor a Roman nor Greek, but a poor African farmer of Cyrene accepted the task of carrying the Cross for our Lord. For this reason our Procure has developed a special attention to Guanellian Africa; convinced that Africa will be strong for the future of our Christian faith.
2016 was the Year of Mercy and we were abundantly blessed in our constant efforts to open windows of hope and love around the globe. Fr. Guanella must have smiled from above when his sons arrived in Oceania and begin to set up a new mission near Kilimanjaro. Who could have imagined that his charism would spread from his native Mount Spluga to Central Africa and beyond into the periphery of the World?
For all these unmerited gifts we praise and thank the Lord, who will soon return to humanity and share our weakness. Let us properly prepare to meet the Divine Child in the manger. Let our hearts burn with tender love and blow a warm breath toward His innocent body. We wish a joyful and peaceful Christmas and a blessed healthy 2017 to all our readers.
Gero Lombardo Guanellian German Procure

Golden October – Our Second Marian Month

I guess that October is really the brother of May. Not only because both are Marian months, but also because in a certain way they are climatically similar. Metaphorically one is a symbol of the explosive beginning of spring and new birth; while the other is a sign of the decline of summer and life. The month of October has enriched our Guanellian entities with many signs of the benevolence of Holy Providence.We in fact have experienced that what we do is ultimately the work of God. Our fund raising efforts were abundantly remunerated by the Catholic Solidarity agencies for small projects in the Philippines, Soloman Islands and India.
Following our announcements in previous reports, we can inform the DPP that the formal request of sponsoring support for our theological students has been submitted, and in the next few weeks we’ll pay a personal visit to the Bishop‘s Office in Freiburg. A similar request for four theology students in the Philippines will be submitted separately in order to increase the chance of a positive approval.
Meanwhile the Christmas cards made by our special children in Legapzi have arrived. Sisters Bernita, Gertraud and Emanuela are also preparing a surprise for Bro. Mauro’s pharmacy before Christmas. During a spiritual retreat, they have collected small offerings among the attending believers. Then they’ll add their personal gifts! Therefore, our gratitude goes to the three Sisters as well as to their re-elected Mother General Simone, who is approving all initiatives which her sisters at the St. Josef Confraternity are starting in favor of Guanellian projects in Asia and Africa.  As we always say, Holy Providence is often good for a surprise.
Our Procure has also been active for the theology students in Guanellian Africa. Fr. Uche, the Delegate for Ghana, Nigeria, RD Congo, has submitted the paperwork for the theology students in Nigeria and Congo. These have been conveyed already to the Bishop‘s office.
As a strongly active entity in East Africa, our Procure is very happy to announce that a new charity shelter will be opened in West Tanzania by the end of November 2016. The initiated exploration by Fr. Oggioni has been continued by our Procure in the last five years. But the linking angel is Fr. Furaha, a diocesan priest, entirely in love with our Founder and the Guanellians. We had promised total availability and renewed our engagement to help him and his numerous disabled centers. Another dream of Fr. Guanella becomes reality; from his Alpine Spluga to the bottom to Mt. Kilimanjaro. Safari Jambo, Fr. Guanella!
During the past month an international meeting of former alumni of the Guanellian Sicilians took place, and one of these German/Sicilians has expressed his secret wish to become a permanent deacon.The seeds of our long work are beginning to spread!
Finally just before the liturgical Feast of Fr. Guanella, we had received a copy of a nice portrait of Fr. Guanella, which our procure had prepared with the help of Fr. Bruno Capparoni SdC. The Catholic Week newspaper of the Diocese had just published this portrait on October 23rd! This small but long lasting homage has been our tangible sign to belong to a great family; Father  Louis Guanella!
Soon on November 12th, we’ll celebrate the feast of our patroness, St. Mary, Mother of Divine Providence. Let us put all our actions, joys, sufferings, hopes and sorrows in Her hands. She and her silent husband have never disappointed our Founder. She will also surely do this for us.
Gero Lombardo Guanellian German Procure

Fr. Guanella: Passionate Hope for Amatrice Earthquake Victims

It could be that in the last few days Fr. Guanella received special permission to return to Earth to visit his tortured homeland. It’s easy to imagine that he would be working beside the first responders during the recent Earthquake in Central Italy, just like he did at an advanced age in Avezzano in 1915. Earlier, he ran into a similar tragedy that occurred in Messina, Sicily in 1908. Our first thought following that terrifying instant went to our House in Perugia; very close to the epicenter of the quake. Fortunately, nothing has happened there so far. A fire brigade from our town immediately organized a convoy to help a sister community near Amatrice. Some German GLM friends volunteered, taking a small picture of Fr. Guanella for their identity, in case other Guanellians were within the search parties; as Fr. Piero Lippoli has done before.
Our recent daily work has been more than satisfactory due to a series of good events. We organized a barbecue to benefit the Good Samaritan Pharmacy in Manila with a few friends. And we were pleased with the exchange of ideas between the Procure and several DPP missions in India asking for financial support for their centers for people with I/DD and religious structures. The Guanellian delegation in West Africa has also resumed close contacts with the Procure to insure major financial support from our German solidarity agencies.
Fr. Uche is efficiently preparing his African confreres for the future by initiating activities for his pastoral needs as well as for their structures, using diversified sources from abroad. We recently learned that Fr. Furah, a Tanzanian diocesan priest, is preparing a residence for our Confreres at Mbeya, using his contacts in Central Europe and the mediation of our Procure. We can also inform you that our Procure has made formal attempts, through the Archdiocese of Freiburg, for periodic support of the Guanellian Major Seminaries in Africa and India to benefit our theological students. Fr. Soosai Rathinam, Provincial Superior, and Fr. Uche, African delegate, are working together to prepare a proposal for funding. This is happening because since their arrival, the Servants of Charity have been recognized for their commitment, and because they are also interested in placing more Guanellian priests throughout our Diocese, due to a scarcity of vocations to the diocesan priesthood in Europe.
More good news is a joint effort between the German Pious Union and our entity for a new branch of the Confraternity of St. Joseph in the Province of St. Marc in Kerala and Andra Pradesh, India. Cardinal Mar George Alencherry of Kochi/Kerala and Bishop Chacko Thottumarickal of Indore Diocese, will be asked for their approval to open a branch of the German Pious Union in their dioceses. If approved, an offical request will be transferred to Fr. Mario Carrera in Rome at the Central Office of the Guanellian Pious Union.
Our confreres in India, principally Fr. Rathinam, were asked to consider this initiative involving the SdC and later the DSMP‘s for this opportunity to join our forces for good, and to eventually benefit our own financial needs. Please contact Sister Pushpa Madassery of the St. Marc Province via email:(pmadassery@gmail.com).
Let us conclude this report with a simple prayer of soon to be canonized Mother Teresa of Calcutta:
Lord,through your intercession and our Mother Mary, let us become the little pencil in your hand in order to spread throughout the world your merciful tenderness toward the voiceless, suffering and abandoned children in this egotistical society.
As a new season begins. Let us mobilize all of our resources for God’s greater glory and passionate love for His Son, Jesus Christ.
Gero Lombardo Guanellian German Procure

Time for a New Perspective

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Pforzheim – The most important dream of my long Guanellian life has become reality. Now the two first Guanellian missionaries have started a very promising apostolate and are slowly absorbing the nuances of the German mentality and behavior. Therefore they must now start their long flight with their own wings as my mission is accomplished.
During the recent visit of Vicar General Fr. Umberto Brugnoni, we had the opportunity to discuss our next targets and projects for new Guanellian adventures in the Middle East and southern Africa. Consequently, our parish priests should continue the written dialogue with our benefactors around the world, the readers of Italian and Spanish bulletins. This should be secured by Fr. Wieslaw who is presently working amongst not only the Italians but also the Polish community. I, futhermore, encouraged Fr. Rocky to start writing for the readers of our DPP in India, USA and the Far East. The procure will concentrate all activities for strategic attempts for the Guanellian charism in new countries, places where I spent time during my business career. Principally in order to open new doors and flow the increasing Guanellian priests of India, soon also from Asia and West Africa, into these activities.
With consent and eventual permission of the Catholic bishop at Abu Dhabi/Emirates we could have easy entry into this rich and tolerant country also counting on the support of a dear personal friend, Sheik Faris Al Mazroui, close relative of the Emirates ruling Sultan Bin Sayed. During our visit in Jan. 2012 we had interesting contact with the Salesian priests at Foujarah. They are the only religious, apart from the Franciscans, operating in high schools. A German humanitarian agency, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, would support a Guanellian disabled center. In talks with Mr. Faris and resident Indian Anglican friends, we realized that there is an urgent need for such a place principally for children of the expatriates from India and the Philippines as well as for children of local parents. I have often discussed this project with Fr. Luigi, who wrote a letter last year to Bishop Paul Hinder of Abu Dhabi thanking him for his invitation!
I don’t know how long our Lord will allow me to work in His vineyard, so I invite Fr. Luigi to join me on an explorative trip to Dubai-Abu Dhabi and evaluate every possibility to seriously consider this project with a certain urgency. Meanwhile I’ll send a video of our structure in Nazareth to Mr. Faris with an invitation to visit in order to report to his cousin, the Sultan, and to the Ministry of Social Affairs.
The other very urgent project should be a visit to Mbeya to Fr. Furaha: a young, clever diocesan priest in Africa, who on his own initiative and means is guiding a disabled center and still considering becoming a Servant of Charity. I suggested that Fr. Luigi travel there personally with the assistance of my dear friend Julius Makundi at Dar es Salam. Following Fr. Furaha are other young priests wishing to join the Servants of Charity.
Finally, not an irresponsible dreamer, but with both feet on the earth I’m following projects of Africa, Philippines and now the most important one in Vietnam. Unfortunately both projects for Vatluru and Sivagangai have been denied. The first because of many discrepancies, the second because at present, Kindermission is financing other projects in North India. Our project for a minibus for the disabled at Sivagangai has been postponed until mid 2015. We’ll continue knocking on many doors for the Fr. Mimi Project at Tala /Philippines, the nutrition and PT center for children of leper parents and an efficient medical center. Therefore let us pray insistently to holy Providence and our holy Founder. I’ll personally pray in August 2014 during our stay in his chapel and ask for further assistance in our daily tasks!
Dirige me Domine per aspera ad astra: Guide me, o Lord, through all difficulties to Heaven!

Gero Lombardo,  German Guanellian Procura

A German Guanellian Reaches Pope Francis

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It is not an April Fool’s joke, but a joyful truth!

What a unique and precious gift. A Guanellian confrere was recently received by Pope Francis at his private residence, St. Marta House inside Vatican City. My former seminarian pupil and now director of the Mother House in Como, Fr. Angelo Gottardi, was a private guest of Pope Francis on his 70th birthday. I assisted Fr. Angelo, a Swiss confrere of Bale, in 1958-59 before he went to the novitiate at Barza. After his ordination, he was sent at length to South America, where I met him several times in Chile and Argentina. During his pastoral time at the Guanellian Basilica of St. Josef in Avenida Castro, he was often in touch with the former Archibishop and later Cardinal Bergoglio.

Since that time contact with this Church prince remained very close so that many confreres like Fr. Silvio Sperotto, Fr. Gustavo De Bonis, Carlos Blanchoud and my novitiate classmate, Fr. Settimo Zanella, have recently spoken of their edifying experiences with this great Pope, who has had the courage to burst open the windows and encrusted gate of our Church.

Following the pastoral letter of Archibishop Dr. R. Zollitsch, we have intensified our efforts in preparing a large pastoral view in our adoptive ambiance, and increased our contact with the local Charitas. Through the Guanellian charism, sensible attention is being paid to the severely disabled, care of the elderly, and the supportive initiatives of Catholic solidarity agencies like Missio and Stern Singers, who are now our best benefactors; recently awarding 40,000 Euros for a van in Kinsasha. As previously reported, Charitas Pforzheim has a large center for the disabled, which curiously was built on an ancient Roman villa. Haus am Kappelhof hosts more than 150 disabled girls and boys. Director Lemke has also constructed a special school for the physically disabled. In the two senior centers, St. Marin and Albert Stehlin Haus, many neglected elderly have found not only medical assistance; but warm, fraternity and love.

As our German Procura owes gratitude to our Salesian cousins, this month we supported their funding appeals for the street children in Congo and the victims of the recent typhoon in the Philippines. But our main task was finalizing the pending projects of our mission stations. So we praise the Lord for His Providence. Fr. Battista received a donation of $20,000 for his nutrition and PT center at Legapzi, and on November 21st, Missio Munich will submit our project for PT at Quezon City, Manila. Our generous ladies there, Mrs. Heidrun and Stephanie, believe that 30,000 Euro will be approved for their project.

For our Indian confreres in Sivagangai, the hour of Providence will begin in December, when the medical commission will give the green light to purchase a van to transport the disabled. The project of Fr. Peter Sebastian for the kitchen in Vatluru has now been submitted. Pray that Providence will enlarge his maternal mantle on all our benjamins, worldwide.

The German community would like to report that both confreres are working hard. Fr. Wieslaw is at Boxberg, training for his German pastorate; including wedding celebrations, funerals,and taking Holy Communion to the sick and elderly. Fr. Rocky is becoming familiar with the German culture and receiving excellent marks in his lessons.

Finally, we congratulate Vicar Bishop Rainer Klug on his 75th birthday. As a sign of our respect, devotion and gratitude, we are asking our Curia in Rome to procure a parchment for him. We’ll miss his paternal attention and protection, and assure him of the prayers of our German community for the introduction of our Congregation into Germany. For the first time since the prophetical dream of Fr. Guanella in August 1912, during the Marian congress at Trier, we are now the carriers of Guanellian charity. We look with hope for the long line of our saints to grow. While in November we celebrated the Feast of All Saints, we now look forward with trepidation to Christmas. Let us be the silent sheperds and new evangelizing Magi at his cradle! Gaudium magnun anuncio vobis, quia hodie Verbum DEI Caro factum est! (We announce today that the Word of God has become flesh!)

Gero Lombardo, German Guanellian Procura