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Life in Rome and the Oblate General House During the Covid-19 Virus March 23rd, 2020
By Fr. Salvador González, OMI
Fr. González ministers at King’s House Retreat and Renewal Center in Belleville, IL
Fr. Salvador González, OMI
Oblate Fr. Fernando Velazquez, OMI, is an Oblate from the US Province studying in Rome on his doctoral degree in Missiology. Together with the whole community of the General House in Rome, Fr. Fernando is experiencing first-hand the consequences of the Corvid-19 virus. Fr. Fernando and I have been friends since 1994. I got to know him when I was in the pre-novitiate program in Tijuana, and Fernando was a young man who would visit the house of formation as part of the affiliate group we had in Mexicali, B.C. Upon hearing of the drastic measures put in place by the Italian government that included home confinement, I called Fr. Fernando on Wednesday March 11, 2020, to see how he was doing and I want to share some of our conversation with you all.
Fr. Fernando Velazquez, OMI
The Corvid-19 virus has quickly changed the way we live here in the United States but the measures are not yet as stringent as they are in Italy. In the city of Rome and all of Italy, residents are confined to their homes. Residents are only allowed to leave to get food from grocery stores or medicine from pharmacies. Checkpoints are placed throughout the city to make sure residents follow the instructions. Police are present to verify that people on the street are only visiting authorized places. Fr. Fernando tells me that the closest police check point for their neighborhood is at the famous small chapel of the Madonna del Riposo, which is well known to any visitor to the General House.
Read the full article on OMIUSA’s website.
Congress Urged to Make Struggling Communities a Priority In COVID-19 Sign-on Letter March 20th, 2020
Here is an excerpt from the letter. OMI JPIC is among signers.
The Coronavirus outbreak, or COVID-19, has shaken countries around the world and threatens a recession. Uncertainty grows as communities are struggling to respond. We applaud Congress for working in a bipartisan manner to quickly pass the initial response packages. We also know they are insufficient. We come from a variety of faith perspectives, but our moral principles and scriptural teachings all affirm that we must prioritize individuals most in need and enable all people to live with dignity and the opportunity to flourish.
As you develop yet a third legislative package responding to the Coronavirus outbreak, we call on you again to prioritize the needs of people who are economically at risk and their families. We have a sacred and moral obligation to ensure adequate resources reach those who do not have the financial ability to weather this crisis. Love of neighbor and care for those in poverty must be the hallmark of Congressional efforts to stem this health emergency and any related economic downturn.
Preventing Corruption & Promoting Transparency in Cameroon, West Africa March 6th, 2020
Between February 27-29, 2020 OMIUSA JPIC partner organization, Africa Faith and Justice Network (AFJN) facilitated a workshop in Cameroon, West Africa on Preventing Corruption and Promoting Transparency.
The workshop was held at Monastère de Babete in Cameroon with participants from Diocesan social justice offices, religious communities, and local parishioners. (Photos courtesy of AFJN media)
2020 Joint Meeting of the General Mission Committee & General Service of JPIC February 28th, 2020
The Joint Meeting of the General Mission Committee & General Service of JPIC (February 24-28) Rome, Italy
On February 25, Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI, was the resource person of the day. He is the Chief of Faith Consistent Investing, OIP Investment Trust; and past Chair of the Board of Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).
Among the pictures, you will find the translation booths where Bonga Thami, Diego Saez Jean Marie Sene help the participants with translations.
(L to R) Fr. Daniel Leblanc, OMI & Fr. Fernando Velazquez, OMI
Querida Amazonía: A Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation February 13th, 2020
Pope Francis has released the post-synodal apostolic exhortation Querida Amazonia (Beloved Amazon), which is follow up to the Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazon Region, ‘Amazonia: New Paths for the Church and for an Integral Ecology,’ held in October 2019. Missionary Oblates participated in the synod in Rome.
In Querida Amazonia (Beloved Amazonia) Pope Francis emphasizes that “Our dream is that of an Amazon region that can integrate and promote all its inhabitants, enabling them to enjoy “good living”. But this calls for a prophetic plea and an arduous effort on behalf of the poor. For though it is true that the Amazon region is facing an ecological disaster, it also has to be made clear that “a true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.” We do not need an environmentalism “that is concerned for the biome but ignores the Amazonian peoples.”
Querida Amazonia (Beloved Amazonia): http://www.sinodoamazonico.va/content/sinodoamazonico/en/documents/post-synodal-apostolic-exhortation–querida-amazonia-.html
