“LOOK UP, SOW HOPE”
From January 12 to 18, 2025, we have been on a mission in the parish of “Virgen de Lourdes”, in Santiago del Estero, capital of the province of the same name, located in the north-central part of Argentina. A geographical area crossed by aridity, heat and many social injustices that impoverish its people; a town that is also rich in its cultural tradition and popular faith.
Together with the 2 priests of our parish, 4 seminarians and 60 young and adult missionaries from Cordoba, we visited the communities of “Los Diaz” and “Ardiles” in two groups simultaneously. Inspired by the jubilee year, we had the motto: “LIFT YOUR EYES, SOW HOPE”; a message that challenged the life of each missionary and also the families we met, seeking precisely that: “to sow hope in the encounter of glances, stories, lives; sometimes crossed by pain, but always crossed by the Love of God.”
In time with the rhythm of the Good Shepherd, the missionaries walked for hours to reach the house of some neighbors in the middle of the mountain, others spent hours under a tree sharing mate and faith. The doors opened confidently from inside with a hand signal, without many questions, as if waiting for the pilgrim.
In the afternoons, when the sun stopped beating down a bit (temperatures were over 40°), activities with children, youth and adults began. And at dusk we celebrated Mass or the celebration of the Word. On the last day, the Sacraments of initiation were given to those who did not yet have them, and we celebrated as a community with theater, music and food.
We thank God for the beauty of his simple people, for coming out to meet us, for renewing our strength and desire to love. And in particular, we give thanks for the experience of the young people in recovery from addictions, with whom we have been walking, who were willing to go out of themselves, to meet these brothers; their testimonies of life and faith were a source of hope in those arid lands and undoubtedly a key space in their healing processes. As our Cordoban saint José Gabriel Brochero says, “God is like the rain, which wets everyone,” and has soaked us.
Sr.. Marisa Loser and Sr. Gabriela Cavallero, sjbp
Community of Cordoba - Argentina
Enlaces con videos recopilados de la misión:
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