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| At the door to one of the houses run by the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India. | |
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Naples, Italy. September 6, 2008. Mission Youth and Family in
Italy organized its first ever mission to India from August
12 to 30, 2008. The young men, from the Italian
cities of Naples, Catania, and Palermo, went to serve the
poorest of the poor alongside Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity
in Calcutta. Fr Miguel Cavallè, LC, and Fr Arquímedes Sánchez,
LC, accompanied the group as chaplains.
The city of Calcutta
is one of the poorest in the world, with a
social situation extremely difficult to imagine. Poverty in Calcutta reaches
to the very depths of what the human person can
endure, and the hot climate and lack of sanitation make
it a rugged experience. The missionaries on the trip showed
great zeal and generosity as they faced the many difficulties
that cropped up during their stay in India.
The example of
the Missionaries of Charity, with their charity and spirit of
prayer, was deeply edifying for them. They witnessed firsthand the
sisters’ profound love for Christ and his Church, and how
it led these women to dedicate themselves totally to the
most abandoned and neglected of society. With their help, the
Italian missionaries contributed their own bit to the sisters’ precious
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| A missionary prays at the tomb of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, whose mortal remains are in Calcutta. | |
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work of evangelization and care for the poorest of the
poor. They lent a hand in various tasks at the
“Nalanda Viyapeeth” center for orphans, and at the “Daya Dan”
house for children afflicted with encephalitis.
Fr Miguel Cavallè, LC, spent
most of his time hearing confessions. The missionaries also had
the honor of attending a Mass celebrated by Fr Miguel
in the chapel of the Missionaries of Charity’s Mother House,
where the mortal remains of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta are
kept.
Upon their return home, the missionaries raved about the
experience and expressed their desire to come back next year
for another mission. Arrivederci until August 2009!
For more information about
missions trips, visit the Mission Youth and Family web site
at www.missionyouthmissions.com.
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