June - July 2002
Forty Years of CPPS Mission in Perú
On July 8 the CPPS Mission in Perú marked forty years of CPPS presence. The anniversary was highlighted during the Cincinnati Province assembly in May and the celebration continues in Perú with a retreat on the theme of "covenant" in August as well as with a special Mass at La Oroya, where the CPPS Peruvian Mission began.
At the Eucharist during the assembly, Fr. Ernest Ranly compared the forty years in Perú to the forty years the Israelites spent journeying in the desert. He noted that it has been a journey with certain difficulties but also one which has given the Congregation many blessings. Fr. Paul Buehler, founder of the Mission, reminded the members and companions of the words of the Holy Father to the delegates of the General Assembly in Rome last September. We have been called to go where others refuse to go; the Peruvian Mission began on that premise and hopes to continue with that premise in mind.
Fr. Paul Buehler was the first Missionary to Perú, arriving on August 7, 1962. He was later installed as pastor of the Province of Yauli which included the three parishes of Yauli, La Oroya and Morococha, on November 1 of the same year. The following year a new parish, San Francisco Borja in Lima, was entrusted to the Society. In 1981 the Mission assumed responsibility for another parish in Lima, Nuestra Señora de la Luz. Our Missionaries are also active in the educational apostolate and have been actively involved in the Conference of Religious of Perú.
Today the Mission has thirteen members: Frs. Paul Buehler, Ernesto Ranly,James Bender, James Gaynor, Geraldo Dreiling, Joseph Deardorff (Director), Dionisio Alberca, Robin Urrutia, Aurelia Chipana, Wilfredo Garcia, Maximo Mesia, Brother Santos Mateo and candidate Oswaldo Tene.
Teutonic Province Assembly
Members of the Teutonic Province gathered in early June for their annual assembly. Among the items of business was the consideration of a request by the Polish Vicariate to be granted province status. The assembly gave unanimous approval to this request which will be discussed at the meeting of CPPS major superiors to be held in September.
The Polish Vicariate has been in existence since 1993, but the beginnings of CPPS presence go back 1979 when the first candidate was accepted into the Teutonic Province formation program. The Vicariate currently has 21 definitively incorporated and 11 temporarily incorporated members.
Kansas City Province Assembly
 |
 |
 |
||
|
Assembly
gathered for Morning Prayer
and Pledged Candidacy of Matt Link |
Fr.
Mark Miller, C.PP.S. and candidate Matt Link during Pledged Candidacy
ritual
|
Fr.
Joseph Bathke, C.PP.S.,
preaching at Eucharist |
The Kansas City Province met in Assembly from June 3-6, 2002. At all or some of the Assembly were 48 incorporated members, 77 companions, and 36 guests. Some of the major decisions were approval of Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Harassment policies, approval of the offer of a financial grant for the development of a Precious Blood reconciliation ministry in Chicago, and a decision to choose St. Charles Center as the primary care center of the province for at least the next ten years.
Matt Link was received into Pledged Candidacy and fifty Companions made either one or three-year covenants. Jubilarians were honored and feted at a special dinner during the Assembly.
Pacific Province Holds Electoral and Business Assemblies
 |
 |
 |
||
|
Fr
Jim Sloan receives companions' covenants
|
New
provincial councilors Frs. Jeff Keyes, Jeff Finley,
provincial director Fr. Ron Wiecek, councilor Gary Luiz |
Steve
Santos makes temporary incorporation
|
At an electoral assembly held during the last week of June, members of the Pacific Province elected Fr. Ron Wiecek as Provincial Director and Fathers Gary Luiz, Jeff Finley, and Jeff Keyes as Provincial Councilors. Steve Santos, a candidate currently studying at the Catholic Theological Union of Chicago, was temporarily incorporated into the Society.
The assembly also included the renewal of the covenants of the Companions and discussion of a document on "Restructuring a Province or Vicariate" which is to be reviewed at the Major Superiors' Meeting in September, and an educational component focusing on the celebration of the sacrament of reconciliation.
Deacon Ordinations
Our news page neglected to mention the ordination of two members of the Polish Vicariate to the diaconate in March. Iliya Grgic and Sebastian Grzegorz Pieta were ordained in Poland on March 23.
On June 15 Mark Armstrong and Timothy Knepper were ordained deacons in the Cincinnati Province.
Our congratulations to these men who are in their final period of formation for the priesthood!
Two Veteran CPPS Missionaries Called to New Life
Father Howard Lesch died on June 14 at St. Charles Center not long after moving from Florida. He was 82.
After serving in parish ministry for several years after his ordination in 1944, in 1951"Howie" began a career as a chaplain with the United States Air Force which was to continue for nearly thirty years. After retirement from the service he became associate director of the Office of Family Life for the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Florida.
The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on June 18, 2002.
Father John Lefko died on the morning of the Feast of the Precious Blood, July 1, at St. Charles Center. Born in 1912 and raised in the tenements of New York City of first generation immigrant parents, John was a legendary raconteur who spent most of his priestly life advancing the cause of Catholic higher education, as Director of Development at St. Joseph's College in Rensselaer, Indiana, and later as President of Calumet College in East Chicago (later in Whiting), Indiana.
A few years ago John wrote a typically colorful autobiography entitled "God is Good." John had an unflagging trust in the providence of God and those three words frequently came to his lips. He was buried at the cemetery of the Society at St. Charles Center on July 3.
A Gala Celebration of the Feast of the Precious Blood in Rome
One of the four major basilicas of Rome, St. Paul Outside the Walls, was the site for the celebration of the Feast of the Precious Blood on July 1. Pilgrims came from as far as Poland to mark the event which centered around a Eucharist celebrated by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe along with about thirty priests and a congregation of fifteen hundred. Before and after the Mass red-scarved members, sisters, and lay people joined in song, prayer, and personal testimonies.
The event was organized by the the four provinces of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ in Italy, the Italian Province of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood and the leadership of the Union of the Blood of Christ, along with the general curias of the Adorers, the Daughters of Charity of the Precious Blood, and the Missionaries of the Precious Blood.
General Curia Meets
The Moderator General and all four Councilors gathered in Rome from July 4 through July 11. The first day was special not only because it was Independence Day in the United States but also because it was Fr. Luís Felipe Cardoso's thirtieth birthday. We had an American-style barbecue in the evening complete with hamburgers, hot dogs, and charcoal (which took too forever get hot!).
The two most important topics facing the Moderator and Council were the meeting of CPPS major superiors in Canada in September and the course for formators in Italy in July of 2003. The latter will be held in Rome and Giano (the birthplace of the Society) over a five-week period and will include presentations on the history of the community, spirituality, community life and apostolate and will conclude with a week's retreat at San Felice in Giano. Participants will have ample opportunity for mutual sharing.
The General Curia hopes that this course will provide our formation personnel with a common understanding of formation program goals and policies as well as material for helping candidates in formation to understand the "three pillars" of the Society: mission, spirituality, and community. Printed resources in four languages will eventually be published so that there will be a resource book which can be used by all members of the CPPS.
Schreiter Installed in Bernardin Center Chair
On April 14 the Bernardin Center in Chicago, Illinois, USA, installed Fr. Robert Schreiter, CPPS, a General Councilor of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, as first holder of the Vatican Council II Chair in Theology.
In his remarks at the ceremony, Schreiter summarized the positive accomplishments of the Council but pointed out that the Church of the Council was largely European and North American and since then the southern hemisphere has become more significant. Those who instrumental in the accomplishments of Vatican II are now nearing life's end and a new generation will take their place. He concluded: "A concern for the world as a whole, in its joy and its hope, its grief and its anguish, rather than retreating from it, will always stand as a theological tenet of a Church that hopes to be a sacrament to and for the world of God's grace and love."
May 2002
Father
Luigi De Fazio Ordained in the Italian Province
 |
The city of Mirto in Calabria celebrated the ordination
of one of its sons on May 4. Father Luigi De Fazio of the Italian Province
was ordained in his home parish (Sacred Heart) surrounded by family, friends
and members of the Congregation. He celebrated a Eucharist of Thanksgiving
on May 5. After the ordination a reception complete with a fireworks display
was held in a local square.
Cincinnati
Province Assembly
 |
|
Fr.
Angelo Anthony, CPPS
|
The Cincinnati Province held electoral and a business
assemblies from May 13 to 16. Re-elected as provincial director was Fr.
Angelo Anthony. Father Kenneth Schnipke is the new vice provincial director
and Frs. Kenneth Schroeder, Thomas Hemm and James Dugal and Brothers Thomas
Bohman and Joseph Fisher make up the new provincial council.
 |
 |
 |
||
|
Members
gather in the dining room
|
Morning
prayer in the chapel
|
Fr.
Paul Buehler,
founder of the Peruvian Mission |
At the business assembly members approved plans to proceed with the initial phase of renovating St. Charles Center as a retirement facility which would be available to the public as well as to members of the CPPS.
During the assembly the members celebrated forty
years of the CPPS Mission in Perú and the incorporation of two new members.
 |
|
Tim
Knepper, Fr. Barry Fischer, Moderator General, and Mark Armstrong
|
Mark Armstrong and Tim Knepper, students for the
Cincinnati Province, were definitively incorporated into the Society on
May 15 at a Eucharist celebrated during the annual provincial assembly.
During his first week in Rome Fr. Francesco represented
the Society at a meeting of superiors general of missionary institutes at
the Pontifical College “Urbaniana” where he presented an overview of the
missionary activity of the Society and some of the challenges we face in
that apostolate. Cardinal Sepe,
Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, called this
first ever meeting in order to gather information for the Congregation and
to promote the sharing of ideas. More than two hundred communities of religious
were represented.
April 2002
Vatican Congregation Responds to the General Assembly
Cardinal Eduardo Martinez Somalo, prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic life, has expressed congratulations on the election of the Moderator General and General Council. He also made some very positive comments on documents that had been sent to him.
In his letter Cardinal Martinez comments first of all on the book of letters to members following his visitation of the members of the Society during the past six years: "They manifest an awareness of the importance of recognizing work well done as well as a confidence in pointing out areas of difficulty…”
In response to the materials from the General Assembly, he writes: “The challenges which have emerged from your Chapter gathering, namely of developing new leadership, of restructuring certain areas of the society, of preparing a school for formators, of developing your founder’s concept of a mission and of determining the role and place of lay associates in the Society provide a full working program for the leadership team and all the members of the Society.”
He closes with a prayer for God’s blessing on the Society and quotes from the address of Pope John Paul II to the members of the general assembly in September 2001: “…Two centuries later another Pope summons the sons of St. Gaspar to be noless bold in their decisions and actions – to go where others cannot or will not go and to undertake missions which seem to hold little hope of success.”
The full text of the letter (English original and translations) may be found by clicking on the appropriate language: English Italian
In response to requests from leaders of Missionaries of the Precious Blood throughout the world, the General Curia is sponsoring a workshop for formation personnel in Rome from June 30 through August 2, 2003. The first four weeks of the course will be devoted to understand formation in the C.PP.S. today, the life and vision of St. Gaspar and his companions, the history of the Society, community life in the C.PP.S. and the spirituality of the Precious Blood. The final week will be a retreat held at the birthplace of the Society, the Abbey of San Felice in Giano.
Participants will be accommodated at a house of the Italian Province in Rome (Via Narni) except for the retreat. The council is also planning a tour of the “Rome of St. Gaspar” (using a new book published by Fr. Gennaro Cespites, C.PP.S.), visits to Sonnino and Albano and a papal audience.
Part of the planning for the course includes assembling a core set of C.PP.S. resources translated into the various languages of the Society. More information will be provided both here on the web as well as through provincial leadership.
 |
 |
Two members of the C.PP.S. Polish Vicariate, Fr. Grzegorz Ruchniewicz and Fr. Henryk Czubat, and two sisters, S. Kaspra Sannikova MSC, and S. Agnieszka Kacprzyk MSC, spent two weeks in Russia in January, arriving in Moscow on January 7th, Orthodox Christmas. They were invited to spend some time with members of the Union of the Blood of Christ there and later traveled to Vladimir, some 200 kilometers east, to be with members of the group “Sancta Sanguis,” (“Holy Blood”), made up of people ill with hemophilia.
 |
 |
Over the Christmas holiday four seminarians from the Italian Province – Salvatore Scardicchio, Valerio De Vita, Domenico Berardi and Danilo Sacchetti – traveled to Albania, where they worked in a parish helping to prepare the young people for a concert. They were warmly welcomed by the people and, despite a loss of power during the Midnight Mass, the birth of Christ was celebrated with the joyous music of the youth.
Historically Italy and Albania have had close ties and there are many Albanians living in Italy today. The Adorers of the Blood of Christ have a significant presence there.
CPPS Missionary Dies in Switzerland
Father Robert Rinderer of the Teutonic Province died on 24 March, 2002, in Lucerne, Switzerland, at the age of 92. A native of Switzerland, Fr. Robert became a member of the Congregation in 1929 and was ordained in 1934.
Fr. Robert ministered in Portugal and Spain for many years and eventually returned to his native Switzerland in 1967.
April was a busy and happy month for the Indian Mission. On April 20th Pannerselvam Chinnappan was ordained to the priesthood and Susaiappan Madalaimuthu was ordained to the deaconate. On the same day the members of the mission celebrated the inauguration and blessing of the new seminary, St. Gaspar Ashram.
The ordaining prelate was Archbishop Paul Pinto and the current provincial director of the Italian Province, Fr. Giovanni Francilia, was present along with past provincial director Fr. Pietro Battista. The director of the Indian Mission is Fr. Giuseppe Montenegro.
On April 25th, the Mission celebrated the definitive incorporation of seven new members: Amalanathan Savarimuthu , Arokiaraja Mathakanickam, A. V. Robert Devadoss, David Arockiaswamy, Shaji Francis Kunnel, Susainathan Aruldoss, amd Yesuraj Rayappan.
Each year the General Curia is required to make a statistical report to the Vatican Secretariat of State. We share some of the highlights of this year’s report with you.
As of December 31, 2001, we were a community of 513 definitively incorporated members: 2 bishops, 449 priests, 42 brothers and 20 candidates. These members are working in 19 countries. More than 200 men are in various stages of the formation process, the largest number in Tanzania and India.
During 2001 there were 9 ordinations to the priesthood and 11 definitive incorporations. 11 members died and 4 left the congregation.
March 2002
Incorporations in Perú
On Saturday, January 26th, Luis E. Castellanos Toribio and Joel J. Nolasco Naupari made their first profession as religious, Huber E. Diaz Solano and Hilton Rodriguez Roca renewed their profession, and Brother Santos Javier Mateo Lázaro made his definitive incorporation into the Society of the Precious Blood. The professions were celebrated in the church of San Francisco de Borja in Lima.
The incorporations came at the end of the annual assembly of the Peruvian Mission which this year marks its fortieth anniversary.
Ordinations in Poland
 |
 |
Four deacons from the Polish Vicariate, Franciszek Piotr Grzywa, Daniel Rafal Mokwa, Michal Józef Przybysz and David Wróblewski were ordained to the priesthood on February 1.
The celebration took place in the Basilica of Jasna Gora in Czestochowa.
The Polish Vicariate now has 18 priests, 1 brother and 2 definitively incorporated students. The latter two will be ordained to the diaconate on March 23.
International Symposium on Parish Ministry and Precious Blood Spirituality
This summer the Cincinnati Province of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood will host an international symposium entitled: “Parish Communities: Called, Nourished and Sent by the Blood of Christ.” Keynote speakers will include C.PP.S. members Barry Fischer, moderator general of the Society, and Robert Schreiter, general council member and theologian from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. Members from the “Precious Blood Family” have been invited to make presentations at the symposium.
The symposium will be held in Dayton, Ohio, USA, from July 22-26, 2002. For further information contact the Provincial Office, 431 E. Second Street, Dayton, OH 45402-1762 USA. Telephone: 937-228-9263. The province web page is: http://cpps-preciousblood.org
July 1, 2002: Celebrating the Feast of the Precious Blood in Rome
The major basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls will be the site for the celebration of the Feast of the Precious Blood this year. On July 1 members of the “Precious Blood Family” will gather at the basilica for a morning of song, reflections and testimonies. Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, will preside at a solemn Eucharist at 11 AM.
Cooperating in the planning for the event are the CPPS Italian Province, the four provinces of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ in Italy, the general curias of the Adorers, the Daughters of Charity of the Precious Blood, the Missionaries of the Precious Blood and the leadership of the Union of the Blood of Christ.
Recovering from Racism
Clarence Williams, a Missionary of the Precious Blood from the Cincinnati Province, was featured in a recent issue of the National Catholic Reporter for his work to combat racism. He has developed a program called “Recovery from Racism” which helps participants, both black and white, to recognize their own negative attitudes and to move beyond them.
More information on this program can be found at www.ifrfr.org
Precious Blood Leadership Conference Sponsors Conference on “Women in the Church”
The final workshop in a series entitled “Proclaim Jubilee! Precious Blood Spirituality and the Call to Justice” was held at St. Mary’s Center, O’Fallon, Missouri, March 8-10, 2002. Among the goals of the workshop were working toward a collaborative model of ministry and re-energizing Precious Blood members for shared mission in the Church.
Past topics of the series were global debt and capital punishment. For further information on the PBLC visit their web page at http://precious-blood.org/
Two CPPS Missionaries Die in February, March
Teutonic province member Father Heinrich Schon died on February 13, 2002. Born in 1921, he had a career in civil service before joining the community in 1954. He was definitively incorporated and ordained to the priesthood in 1960.
For more than twenty-five years he worked in pastoral ministry in the city of Lindenberg and was especially involved in working with young people. The city recognized his work and awarded him a gold medal.
The Iberian Province mourns the loss of Father José Peral Pacheco who died on March 3. A member of the Society since 1968 and ordained in 1969, he ministered at the Colegio de San Francisco Javier in Fuente de Cantos, Spain, for most of the past thirty years. From 1995 through 1999 he was provincial director of the Iberian Province.
A confrere from the province described him as a simple man who worked quietly and without attracting attention to himself. He was tireless in his ministry and was not afraid to spend long hours in the formation and education of young people. He had a profound enthusiasm for the spirituality of the Precious Blood.
January 2002
The Precious Blood Leadership Conference held its fall meeting on October 5 - 8, 2001 at the retreat house of Villa Del Maria in Santa Cruz, California. The meeting was hosted by Fr. Ron Wiecek, C.PP.S., Provincial of the Pacific Province and in attendance were: Fr. Angelo Anthony, C.PP.S. (Cincinnati Province); Sr. Susan Borgel, C.PP.S. (O'Fallon); Sr. Maryann Bremke, C.PP.S. (Dayton); Sr. Barbara Jean Franklin, ASC (U.S. Adorers of the Blood of Christ); Fr. Mark Miller, C.PP.S., (Kansas City Province), Chairperson of the Conference and the PBLC's Executive Director, Sr. Joni Belford, C.PP.S., (O'Fallon). Fr. Peter Nobili, C.PP.S., (Atlantic Province) was absent.
During the past two years the PBLC has sponsored a series of workshops on justice issues for members and lay associates of the participating communities. For Year III of the project the theme for two workshops is “Women in the Church: A Journey in Mutuality.” The first workshop on this theme was held in October 2001 and the next will be March 8 – 10, 2002, in O’Fallon, Missouri. The PBLC is also considering holding another Precious Blood Congress in 2004 or 2005.
Cincinnati Province Awards $100,000 in Grants
Over the years the Cincinnati Province has been able to support numerous peace and justice projects through their commitment to tithe a portion of the resources that came to them from the sale of Bunnerdale High School Seminary.
This year a total of $100,826.00 in grant money is being shared among eighteen projects. Throughout the coming year, their newsletter will feature stories from the groups that have received funding through the Fr. Bunner Peace and Justice Fund. The grant committee is chaired by Fr. Paul White.
Grants have been made to projects in Central and South America and the United States. Projects include education for adults, health care, direct aid to the poor, training for Hispanic ministry, and providing financial assistance for retreatants.
Jeff Keyes Elected to International Leadership of Retrouvaille
Fr.
Jeff Keyes, center,
with CPPS students in Chicago
Fr. Jeff Keyes, a member of the Pacific Province, was recently elected, along with a lay couple, as the new Deputy International Coordinating Team for Retrouvaille. After a two-year apprenticeship they will they will become the International Coordinating Team for the organization.
Retrouvaille, which means “finding again” or “recovery” in French, grew out of Marriage Encounter in the 1980’s as a response to the needs of married couples with difficulties in their relationships. From its roots in Canada it has spread throughout the world.
More information on Retrouvaille may be found in the recent issue of the province newsletter, Cup and Cross, at http://cppspacific.homestead.com.
"Music from the Banquet Hall" - New CD by Fr. Keith Branson
Late last year Keith Branson, a member of the Kansas City Province, released a new CD featuring recordings of his "Compositions and Arrangements in the Spirituality of the Precious Blood." The new CD, entitled "Music from the Banquet Hall," features both original works by the composer as well as his arrangements of traditional works. Lyrics of some of the songs are by fellow province member Joe Nassal.
More information on the CD as well as sheet music may be found at www.preciousbloodmusic.com.
Three Missionaries Called to Eternal Life
Brother Bernard Barga of the Cincinnati Province was called to eternal life on December 26, 2001, at St. Charles Center, Carthagena, Ohio. After dealing with heart problems for several years, he wrote in 1999: "I look forward to being with the Lord Jesus as I continue my relationship with Jesus." Born in 1928, Brother "Bernie" entered the Society in 1943 and was incorporated into the Community in 1951. After working on the farm and in the dairy at St. Charles for twenty years, he began parish ministry in 1972. He was involved in a project promoting peace in Northern Ireland called the "Ulster Project" and spent several months in that country in 1986. In addition to parish ministry he was involved in the retreat and renewal apostolate and in formation work.
Father Marciano García Martin of the Iberian Province entered eternal life on January 18, 2002. Born in 1938, entered the Society at Cáceres, Spain, in 1954 and was incorporated in 1960. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1964. Father García spent many years of ministry in the United States and returned to Spain for reasons of health in the past few years.
Father Richard Elo of the Kansas City Province entered eternal life on January 19, 2002, at St. Charles Center, Carthagena, Ohio. A native of Whiting, Indiana, Father Richard was born in 1936 and entered the formation program of the Society in 1950. He was incorporated into the Society in 1957 and ordained in 1962. Several years after ordination he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and spent more than thirty years at St. Charles Center coping with the disease. He accepted his illness quietly and without complaint and spent those years ministering to the Society and to the world through a ministry of suffering and prayer.
Assembly of the Brazilian Vicariate
 |
 |
 |
||
From January 3 through 6, 2002, the Missionaries of the Precious Blood of the Brazilian vicariate met for their annual assembly in the Casa Merlini in the city of Belén, Province of Pará, Brazil. Eight members representing five different nationalities attended.
The general theme of the assembly, in continuity with the theme of the last General Assembly, was "A New Face for the Missionary of the Precious Blood for a New Beginning: A Choice for Life."
Topics covered under this general theme were: missionary identity, apostolate, vocation promotion and the formation of our candidates, new fields of apostolic work, community life, the mission house in the light of the insight of St. Gaspar.
On Sunday, January 6, the assembly concluded with Eucharist and a fraternal gathering in the Casa Albertini, in the city of Ananideua, Pará.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||
The Groups of Prayer and Friendship, also known as GOA, are an interesting experience shared by the priests, students and teachers of St. Gaspar College in Santiago, Chile. There are groups for adults, young people and children which meet once a month in different homes to pray, share the reading of the Gospel, review their faithfulness to the promise of daily prayer and finally to celebrate the joy of being friends.
Twenty-seven GOA groups are active in our College: 10 for youth and children and 17 for adults, which include about 230 persons. Group meetings are enthusiastic, with the help of the C.PP.S. priests Father Antonio Baus, Rector of the College, and Father Luis Briones, Director of Pastoral Ministry, who accompany each group in their meetings and bring the message of the spirituality of the Precious Blood.
Sunday, November 11, marked the Sixth Annual Conference of the GOA. It was an opportunity to reflect on the message given by the Holy Father John Paul II on September 14, 2001, on the occasion of the Seventeenth General Assembly of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood.
The message of the Pope offers light in the midst of the darkness which we encounter in our times, with the wars, political conflicts, poverty, uncertainty and so many divisions. “…go where others cannot or will not go and … undertake missions which seem to hold little hope of success.” This was the challenge which Gaspar took up in his era and which all of us today, religious and lay people, must continue to address.
Our community received the word of the Pope with great enthusiasm and energy. We are convinced of the necessity that all communities united by the bond of the Precious Blood reflect on and put into practice his teachings, particularly this message.
We send greetings to the great family of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, priests, women religious, lay people, and to the community in general. May we remain united in prayer for one another and in the friendship which unites us in the bond of charity.
Archived News:
For news from the year 2001 visit the following links: