May the Lord Jesus place His hands on our eyes
that we may begin to catch sight
of the thing that are not seen
more than the things that are seen.
May He open our eyes
that they will alight on the things to come
more than on the things of this age.
May He unveil the vision of our heart
that it may contemplate God in spirit.
O Lord, You have gifted the Church
through the goodness of your Grace
to be your hands and do your work,
to be your voice and share your words,
to bring healing to a fallen world
and broken lives make whole.
You have gifted your people
with the blessings of your Spirit,
the power to transform lives
and make all things new.
O Christ Jesus,
when all is darkness
and we feel our weakness and helplessness,
give us the sense of Your presence,
Your love, and Your strength.
Help us to have perfect trust
in Your protecting love
and strengthening power,
so that nothing may frighten or worry us,
for, living close to You,
we shall see Your hand,
O Most Holy Virgin,
I venerate you with my whole heart,
above all the Angels
and Saints in Heaven.
I consecrate to you my soul with all its faculties.
I consecrate to you my body with all its senses.
I consecrate to you my heart with all its affections,
begging you to obtain for me of the Most Sacred Trinity
every help for my salvation.
Heavenly Father,
We give you thanks for the privilege of sharing
the joy of the Gospel in many cultures.
Keep us faithful in responding to your call to communion
with your creation, with the poor
and with those who are spiritually alienated.
O Most Holy Virgin,
who stands before the throne
of the Most Holy Trinity,
and to whom it is granted at all times
to pray for us to your most beloved Son,
pray for me in all my necessities;
help me, combat for me, give thanks for me,
and obtain for me pardon of all my sins;
help me especially at my last hour,
encourage me,
I have mixed feelings reflecting on my experience of learning the Chinese Mandarin language. This includes happiness, sadness and confusion. By the end of this semester, I will be finishing up with full-time language studies. This makes me feel sad because I would not be seeing my classmates again, and I know I will miss them.
It is with much joy and heartfelt gratitude that I, on behalf of Columban missionaries and co-workers invite you, our benefactors, your families and friends, and the people among whom we live and serve, to join us in our Centennial Year celebrations which commenced on November 23, 2017, on the Feast of St. Columban.
In the middle of the night, with the wedding guests gathered around, the groom is led to a specially-prepared canopy. There, he is seated, facing north. A short time later, his bride is led in and is seated next to him. This is their first moment together during the wedding ceremony and they spend it gazing silently at the Pole Star.
There was a frantic voice at the end of the phone. “Fr. Peter our Filipino friend Genalyn is sick in hospital and our Taiwan broker is going to send her back to the Philippines this afternoon. Can you please come to the hospital to help her.” I asked Sr. Joyce, our Hsinchu diocese migrant center’s Filipino pastoral coordinator to come with me.
The Columbans are a society of missionaries, including priests and lay people, who minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing to the universal love of God.
We go in the name of the Church to announce, by deed and word, the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Missionary Society of St. Columban
1902 N. Calhoun
St. Columbans, NE 68056
Phone: 877-299-1920
Fax: 402-291-4984
email: mission@columban.org
