My missionary struggle began, with the blessing of the Pope and Patriarch Theodore of Alexandria, four years ago in the Diocese of Burundi and Rwanda, two martyred countries in East Africa. Our main concern is to heal the wounds, or rather the scars left by the fratricidal war that lasted nineteen long years and ended relatively recently, in 2006. We want to teach them love by treating them with love. Healing, love: words that are easy to say, sound good, but translating them into action is very difficult. Close to the wounds, poverty, destitution, the difficult conditions in which they live without basic medical care, without organised education, make them unable to cope on their own and they look to us as their support and spiritual refuge. They thirst to know Orthodoxy, to be baptised, to be reborn. And we do not deny them. The difficulties are many, our travels are difficult, which became even more difficult a year ago, after an accident on a rough road in our diocese, which resulted in the destruction of the old car that served us. We are now oriented towards the motorcycle solution. But I don’t know if this solution could be implemented, because the price is prohibitive for our meager income. However, we are not disappointed and we always find a way, after difficulties of course, to visit them, baptize them and establish parishes and Christian communities.
Rwanda
Specifically, in Rwanda we have fourteen communities, four of which are very robust by Rwandan standards and have five hundred members each. Unfortunately, our four priests, who tour the whole country, are understandably insufficient. Also, there are no temples. The worship needs of the people are served in the open air, under the trees, in the African baobabs, which also serve the learning needs of the children, since they cover the absence of school buildings. People of faith, readers and catechists, have undertaken the difficult task of catechesis, which precedes baptism. Also, their help is a valuable asset in our efforts to translate into the local dialects. Already we have completed translations of the Sacraments of the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, the Great Mass and the Preface, the Holy Paraclete and the Hymn of the Hymn of the Hymn, the Pentecost and Epiphany Sequence and some occasional blessings. We consider this work a blessing from God, which gives the souls of the newly enlightened joy and happiness and encourages us to continue and try to imitate the work of Saints Cyril and Methodius.
Burundi
Regarding our missionary work in Burundi, in general, the same applies as in Rwanda. Here we have eight communities and two deacons. Our movements are just as difficult as the movements of the faithful, which is why we consider it necessary to build churches in order to serve their spiritual needs. Another of our dreams, which to some extent is tending to come true, thanks to the heartfelt offerings of anonymous donors, is the operation of a high school, the only one in the Buramata area. We believe that, by September, we will be able to raise the necessary amount for the flooring, frames, doors, plastering, the purchase of desks and other furniture necessary for the whole school process. Most of the children in this area are children of single-parent families, with a mother playing the role of father and struggling to make ends meet, without any help from anywhere. People hunted, beaten by fate, look to us as a lifeline. We do not disappoint them. We are careful, of course, to be sparing in our promises and to promise them each time what is possible to be fulfilled. Cultivating false hopes for them is tantamount to disappointment and that is not what anyone wants, nor would we wish for all our efforts to end up being dismal.
† Burundi and Rwanda Innocentius
