Christmas Greetings 2006

Merry Christmas!

The year has slipped by so quickly! November and December are
always busy times because of Mindanao Week of Peace and then Christmas.
Suddenly it's Christmas Eve and I haven't even started my Christmas
greetings yet!

This year, Mindanao Week of Peace started on November 30 with a
Walk for Peace in the morning (see attached photo), and ended on
December 6 with a Prayer Vigil for Peace in the evening. There were
various activities in between and we were pleased that all were well
attended. It seems that every year more and more people are realizing
that the way to achieve peace here in Mindanao is through dialogue
between Muslims and Christians.... most of all the DIALOGUE OF LIFE...
living side-by-side, working together, etc.

Going back a month... Ramadan (the Muslim month of prayer and
fasting) ran from the end of September until the end of October, and
even as we (the Interfaith Forum for Peace Harmony & Solidarity) were
preparing for Mindanao Week of Peace, we visited a couple of mosques at
sundown, when the fast is broken, to bring gifts of fruit for the
Muslims. (See attached photo.)

I'm also still connected with the literacy program for
out-of-school youth and have spent the last week attending parties at
all the different centres... I've become quite the party girl! At one
party I was asked to say a few words, so I asked the children, "What are
we celebrating?" "CHRISTMAS!" was the reply. I asked, "What is
Christmas?" "When Jesus was born!" Then I asked, "And what does Jesus
bring to us?" I'm thinking... PEACE, LOVE, JOY, JUSTICE..... Then,
the smallest kid of all screamed out, "FOOD!!!" And I thought to
myself: Yes, this little boy knows better than all our world leaders
how to achieve peace, love, joy and justice.... it'll only happen when
everyone has enough food. (Attached too are some of the party photos.)

Anyways... I find that it really helps to stop for a moment and try
to look at things through the children's eyes every now and again. I
hope that everyone there has a child or two to help them keep things in
perspective.... and most of all, children to help them get really
excited about Christmas!

Merry Christmas and all the best in the New Year.... 2007... can
you believe it?!?!

Peace, Christine Gebel OLM

News and Information about the Island of Mindanao.

Inside Mindanao is an online newsmagazine for the marginalized sectors in Mindanao.

It aims to provide the marginalized sectors (indigenous people, urban poor, women, children, farmers, and fisherfolks) in Mindanao a venue to voice out their issues; at the same time adhering to the time- honored journalism principles of accuracy, fairness and objectivity.

Its area of coverage is the island of Mindanao, Philippines. Read Magazine

Death of Sr. Catherine Peco

Sr. Catherine Peco


After a long battle with cancer Sr. Catherine died on Tuesday,

September 19, 2006.
Sr. Catherine served in the OLM Community Missions in Japan, Vietnam, Nigeria, and Canada.

Her Personal Message On The OLM Website:

Life is wonderful.

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May you be eternally, blessed, Sr. Catherine, for your life of faith and Chritian service.

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Let us pray in thankfulness for her years of service, and ask the Lord to welcome her into heaven.

A Mass for the repose of her soul will be celebrated at St. Mary's Parish in the near future.

Our Lady's Missionaries to sell downtown property :: The Catholic Register :: Canada's Catholic news source

Our Lady's Missionaries to sell downtown property :: The Catholic Register :: Canada's Catholic news source

Summer Greeting June 30, 2006

Greetings once again from Mindanao!

As the people of Canada are winding down and beginning to look forward to summer, the people of the Philippines are grateful for the rain that has started again after a couple of extremely hot summer months. April and May is summer here. June is the beginning of the rains, and back-to-school time.

But most of all.... June 12, 2006 was the 50th Anniversary of Sr. Mary Gauthier's entrance into Our Lady's Missionaries. For those of you who don't know her so well, Sr. Mary is from the Fourth of Kenyon, Alexandria. We celebrated with friends, old and new, last Sunday, June 11 with a mass at our house followed by a celebratory dinner. Fr. Pat Kelly SFM led us in the celebration of a creative liturgy which included the planting of a tree nourished with organic fertilizer from our compost pit to recognize/symbolize that it is in facing the "garbage" in our life, and working through it that we find new life and peace. After the tree planting, a Muslim friend offered a prayer in the Meranao language and a Chinese friend offered incense and a prayer in Chinese... helping us to recognize the inter-connectedness and sacredness of all.

We had a shared homily which Sr. Mary led by speaking of people and experiences for which she feels grateful, beginning with her family and you, her friends and neighbours in Glengarry, and continuing with friends in Sourthern Leyte where OLM's used to live, and here in Mindanao where we now find ourselves. Others shared their gratitude for Sr. Mary's presence with us here in the Philippines.

We OLM's, Sisters Mary, Margaret, Myra, Lucy and Christine, renewed our vows as well, and I'm sure the others, like myself, were conscious of how we wouldn't be able to live out those vows here in the Philippines among people who have almost nothing of monetary value to share with us, if it weren't for people like you who support us with your prayers and donations.

The old friends who celebrated with us included Fr. Pat Kelly SFM who also lived and worked in Southern Leyte before, and Irene Yusingco who was among the first to welcome OLM's when they arrived in the Philippines way back in 1966.

The new friends included those with whom we work in two urban poor communities and in Muslim-Christian Dialogue for Peace, and the OLM Associates.

It was a grand way for Sr. Mary to BEGIN her celebration of her 50th anniversary. I say BEGIN because I know that she is looking forward to continuing her celebration of life with you there when she goes home for a visit next year!

Bye for now.... Peace, Christine Gebel OLM

Easter Greetings

From: Christine Gebel chris10@skyinet.net

Subject : Easter Greetings from the Philippines!

Happy Easter!

Holy Week is very important here, and we had Stations of the Cross followed by mass every day at 4am. I only managed to go on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I decided that it was better not to get too overtired so that I could still do my regular work well.

The stations were set up around the parish and the mass was outside too.... a different area every time. On Friday it was the whole parish that we walked around for the stations.

On Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings I attended a mini-retreat at Xavier University. The reflections given were very nice and it was a good way to spend the Triduum... reflections in the mornings and masses/service in the afternoons.

Well... the school year here runs from June to March, so last month each of the 5 literacy centres had culmination ceremonies. Then on March 29, 30, 31 most the children from 3 of the centres (the children from the male and female minor sections of the prison obviously couldn't go) attended a summer camp. 61 children started the camp, but 2 went home early on the afternoon of the first day... one was sick with a fever, and the other just got too homesick and wouldn't stop cryiing for mama. At any rate, the kids had a ball! Attached are a couple of photos.
It's summer here now, and hot, hot, hot.... wish we could send you some of our heat!

So, hope that spring in Canada is a joyful reminder of the Resurrection as people begin to look forward to planting and being able to get outside more.

Peace, Christine Gebel

Letter from the Philippines

This letter from Sr. Christine is a response to our letter congratulating OLM on their recent award.

Hi from the Philippines!

Thanks very much for the congratulations. We have been receiving messages of support and the news of how last Sunday evening went from various friends. It certainly is nice to be reminded in such a clear way of how many people do know about us and keep us in their thoughts and prayers. It was only tonight that I realized that people had to pay to attend the function. It really took me by surprize that people would actually pay money to watch US get an award! Wow!

We've been having our own excitements here... you probably heard that the country spent one week under a "State of National Emergency." The President declared that it was necessary because of groups that were trying to destabilize and overthrow her government. It was a dangerous time for the country as rallies were banned, a couple of newspapers were shut down for printing seditious material, and warrant-less arrest were possible. Before the State of Emergency was declared we were planning to attend a Prayer Rally on the main street of town. Since rallies were banned, it was changed to a "Prayer Assembly." And, instead of being held in a public place, there were three meetings points, Xavier University, the Cathedral Grounds, or Cagayan Capitol University. Some of us when to Xavier and some of us went to the Cathedral. Both held very nice ecumenical and inter-faith prayers for peace, honesty, and justice for the nation.

Yesterday we had a good excitement here when 38 people met at our house to renew their commitment to inter-religious dialogue between Muslims and Christians. We had prayer and sharing stories before sitting down to lunch together. I'm mad at myself though because I had brought the camera down to take photos, and completely forgot to do so! Everyone had left when I remembered about it.... Hopefully the next time we have some kind of event, I'll remember to take some photos and send some to you again!

Bye for now then... Peace, Christine

Katherine Hawkin Award

READ FULL ARTICE - GO TO 'NEWS' ON LINK BELOW:
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The Canadian Churches Forum for Global Ministries is honoured to announce the 2006 recipient of the Katherine Hockin Award, Our Lady's Missionaries.

This is the first time that the award has been offered to a community in mission. This Communities work is recently best known in Canada through their role in initiating the Out of The Cold program. However this program is only part of their work.

In Our Lady's Missionaries we see a sisterhood of Christians who sustain each other in a lifetime of breathtakingly generous response to the call of the Gospel. In ways that are practical, contemporary, profoundly respectful, courageous and full of compassion, they have hurried to the aid of people in need in Africa, Asia, South America and here at home. As their first priority they have cherished the invitation of Jesus to meet him already present in the poor, sick and hungry of the world. In faithfully living out that "option for the poor", they have consequently found new ways to obey the Lord's command to go, teach, and make disciples in every nation. More...

Women Say No To War

I just received this request from Sr. Christine. If you are interested please go to the provided link.

CODEPINK�:�Women Say No To WarPlease join in the following action if you are interested! Peace, Christine Gebel OLM

Men are invited to be in solidarity by signing this petition too!

Brief History of OLM

History of Our Lady’s Missionaries

Our Lady's Missionaries was founded in 1949, in Alexandria, Ontario, Canada under the direction of Msgr. Dan R. MacDonald (picture above). In 1959 the group relocated to Toronto. OLM receive members universally, who participate fully in the life and mission of the Congregation and the Church.

The first mission was opened in 1956 when four sisters went to Japan. In 1957 another mission was opened in Nigeria. As requests came from various countries, missions were opened in Mexico, the Philippines, Brazil, Guyana and England. Short term support work has also been provided in Vietnam, Thailand, Mozambique, the Canadian North and East Timor.