Bible & Mission. The sources of Mission
The vocation of the children of God, which is proper for all the baptized, is fulfilled in our mission towards the brethren. We all are apostles: it is the very love of the Son that pushes us towards all the brethren (2 Cor 5: 14). He, who is boundless in His solidarity with us, in […]
Oral Literature. The Boy and the Violin
Once upon a time, there was a man who had an only son. When the man died the son was left all alone in the world. There was not very much property—just a cat and a dog, a small piece of land, and a few orange trees. The boy gave the dog away to a […]
Benin. The Artists of Abomey. ‘The Oral Historians’
Between 1600 and 1900 the city of Abomey was the pride of the kingdom of Dahomey (today’s Benin). Court art developed there, in which genius, talent, and inspiration served above all to exalt the figure of the king. Dahomey, also known as the kingdom of Abomey, after the capital, occupied the south-central part of what […]
Ghana: Sacred Golden Stool
The most important and sacred Asante stool is the ‘Golden Stool’. It represents the authority of the Asantehene (king), enshrines the soul of the nation, and symbolizes the kingdom’s unity. Among the Asante and other Akan peoples, stools play an important role in each person’s life. When children learn to crawl, they receive stools as […]
Kenya. A Social Enterprise, a Comboni Missionary Proposal
The project has taken its first steps and has a triple objective: to enhance local potential, finance missionary activities, and open new pastoral spaces. In the African context, a new experience of social enterprises is also emerging, thanks to the initiative and research of the Institute for Social Transformation (Tangaza University College, Nairobi), founded and […]
Bible & Mission. The problem of the means
You are the Son of God. Read Luke 4:1-13 Human Beings are made to become like God. Their evil doesn’t come from the fact of wanting to be like God, but from the false image they have of Him. God is not the supreme egoist, master of everything and everybody, but the supreme Love, servant […]
Oral Literature. Koba, the Hunter who stopped Hunting
There was once a man called Koba, a hunter. One day he left his house and went off to hunt in a place that was far away. When Koba reached a certain locust-bean tree, he made his camp under it. Every day he went out hunting, and every night also, resting only for necessity, to […]
India. Kantha, An Artistic Stitch craft
Kanthas are essentially made from layers of old materials, sarees etc and embroidered in running stitches. It has a number of traditional patterns based on religious symbols, tales from epics, scenes from villages, flowers, birds, animals and plants in enchanting colour schemes. Since ages hand embroidery has been used to decorate textiles and garments. Excavations […]
Eritrea. Kunama. The Celebration of Marriage
The Kunama, an Eritrean ethnic group living in the remote and isolated area between the Gash and Setit rivers near the border with Ethiopia. We look at the celebration of marriage. After the initiation ceremony (Anfura-la) or the passage from adolescence to youth, the young Kunama sets out to find a girl to marry. This […]
Saudi Arabia. A Church of Migrants
This coming month of July, Monsignor Paolo Martinelli celebrates one year since the beginning of his ministry as a bishop in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia. “The Arabian Peninsula challenges the Church to live her mission authentically, supporting the faith of migrants, so that in this complex society they may be witnesses of the joy […]