Bishop Luciano Capelli – Servants of Charity

A fraternal invitation to visit the Pacific Islands was extended by Bishop Luciano Capelli of the Diocese of Gizo in the Solomon Islands. Gradually the dream of visiting the fifth continent, where Guanellians are not yet present, has become a reality. On August 1, 2015, Fr. Luigi De Giambattista, General Councilor of the Servants of Charity, made the long trip to Honiara, the capital where he met with the Salesians and Archbishop Adrian Thomas Smith. “I received a warm welcome from simple people,” said Fr. Luigi. “New cultures met, with English as a common language to facilitate communication thanks to Bishop Capelli.”
On August 3rd, Fr. Luigi took a one hour flight to the Diocese of Gizo where he was joined by Fr. Soosai Rathinam, Provincial Superior of the Divine Providence Province. “I felt at home,” wrote Fr. Luigi. “St. Guanella is blessing the poor even on this continent. We are listening to Providence. I celebrated Mass in a parish that is led by a young Vietnamese Salesian missionary. There are also Italian, Filipino, Indian, Bangladeshi and Burmese missionaries among the Dominican and Marist brothers. The church here is in great need of the witness of Charity.”
“The meeting was peaceful, happy and full of faith. Thank you for sending your representatives here,” Bishop Capelli wrote in a letter to Fr. Alfonso Crippa, Superior General of the Servants of Charity, continuing, “We are enriched with their precious thoughts and their example. We hope to become the fifth continent for the Servants of Charity.”