MARTA VILLAFAÑES (Congregation of St. Joseph of Buenos Aires)

MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE SISTERS OF ST. JOSEPH OF CHAMBERY

Seven months ago, I left Argentina and came to my beloved and fondly remembered Bolivia! It still seems like a dream to me, because we had closed our community at Puente San Pablo in Beni/Bolivia and I never imagined that I would be able to return to this country that I love and miss so much. I stayed in Santa Cruz de La Sierra during the months of April and May until I received my Foreigner Identity Card.

On May 29, my heart leapt with joy when I reached Magdalena, my long-awaited community, the capital of Iténez, Beni/Bolivia. Three Sisters namely Santina, Ana Maria and Gabriela are from the Congregation of Sisters of St. Joseph of Chambery and Margarita from the Congregation of the Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament and Mary Immaculate. Margarita lives with us from Monday to Friday due to her work. I, Marta am from Argentina belonging to the congregation of Sisters of St. Joseph of Buenos Aires. I have been living with this community since I left the small house of San Jerónimo Norte.

A LIVED EXPERIENCE OF DAILY LIFE

As a community, we are taking the first steps towards integration, intercongregationality, interculturality, and itinerancy. Without a doubt, it is a challenge and a process which we live daily in our community and mission

We make this path in lights, shadows and uncertainties but, always sure of God’s ever abiding presence. We feel God’s guiding hands in our moments of doubts.

As a community, we are working in the Pan-American Network (REPAM) for the Querida Amazonia (Dear Amazon). We have been connected with the team virtually up till now. The virtual connection has brought us closer to the reality of our Itonamas indigenous brothers and sisters. Personally, I used to spend hours listening to their stories full of wisdom, joys, and pains, but we need to actively engage ourselves to bring justice to this people and help them get their lands.

A FEAST OF THANKS GIVING

 The feast of the city of Magdalena is characterized by its simple faith, expressed in dances, colours, perfumes, songs, food, bells and bands, etc. It is a very festive town. People are very grateful to God and to their Patron St. Mary Magdalene, for they had very few cases of COVID-19. Many of them were cured with natural remedies

Together with our Itonamas brothers and sisters I say: "Yorebabaste yonaya" which means "let us rejoice now in this hour" in this time, in this history, because we are called to live in communion with all our brothers and sisters and with our whole planet.