Congregations of the Assumption
Religious Sisters of the Assumption, Augustinians of the Assumption
Oblates of the Assumption, Little Sisters of the Assumption
Orants of the Assumption

re: Message of support and of communion for our brothers and sisters living and working in the Diocese of Butembo- Beni

At the meeting of our General Councils from January 4-6, 2016, we were informed of the latest events of the bloody Christmas experienced by the inhabitants of Mbau-Oicha and most recently those that happened at Luofu on January 7.

How do you adequately thank someone who had such a positive influence on your life?

I not speaking about my parents.  Of course they had a major role in my development. I’m speaking about someone who was a teacher, a mentor, a friend, a role model, and a priest.

I first met Fr. Camilus Thibault, A.A. as a gangly fourteen-year-old entering Our Lady of Lourdes Seminary (OLLO) in the tiny town of Cassadaga, NY in September 1964.  My very first impression was: “Wow, this guy is really bald.”  Yet, Fr. Camilus had an infectious smile and a very engaging personality.  Despite the pandemic of homesickness felt by myself and so many of my fellow freshmen who were away from home for the first time, Fr. Camilus made so many of us feel right at home.

(The Orants of the Assumption are one of the five main branches of the Assumption Family, founded in 1896 by Fr. François Picard, one of Fr. d’Alzon’s first disciples. This past September, 80 Iraqi and Syrian refugees were welcomed at the Orants convent an hour outside of Paris in Bonnelles, France. One month later 20 Afghanis arrived. The sisters have joined hands with Habitat and Humanism [a French NGO], State and local government agencies, and many volunteers, to give these war-weary, malnourished, and desperate refugees hope and peace.)

by Sophie Lebrun

Sr. Monique, superior of the local community, tells me, “September 9, the day that the first refugees arrived was quite a day; all at once, our convent, rather calm the past few years, became a beehive of activity. Having arrived from Germany, the refugees were haggard after a long and daunting trek from Syria and Iraq. The local prefect and mayor were here to welcome them as well as the bishop, firemen, the Red Cross…. After a few days you could hardly find place to walk in the lobby; it was chock full of clothes and other items donated by neighbors and townspeople.”

The Oblates Sisters arrived in Beni-Paida (Belgian Congo at the time; today the Democratic Republic of the Congo) on December 23, 1935. Two days later, an infant was left on their doorstep. That was the beginning of an orphanage that has survived to this day. The following is an interview with Sr. Françoise Bichunchuma, an Oblate Sister with detailed knowledge of this facility.

By Sr. Zoé Vandermersch, O.A.

ZV: Could you tell us a little about the arrival of the Oblates in the Congo and the beginnings of their orphange?

FB: In 1929 the Assumptionists arrived in the Belgian Congo, in the Vicariate of Butembo-Beni in the eastern part of the country. Soon thereafter, they felt the need for sisters to collaborate with them especially for an effective promotion of women. Fr, Henri Piérard, the superior of the Assumptionist mission, asked Mother Berthe-Marie Paré, the superior general at the time, to send some Oblates to help out.  Immediately, three sisters began preparing for the mission --- Sisters Marie-Laurentine and Philomène (Belgians) and Sister Marie (French). On board the ship that would take them from the Belgian port of Antwerp to the Congo, they spent their time learning Kiswahili, the local language. They arrived in Beni-Paida on December 23, 1935. Two days later, On Christmas day, a baby orphan was brought to them. That is the humble beginning of the orphanage.  From the earliest days the sisters have continually welcomed between sixty and eighty children.  For lack of means that number has diminished in recent years to between twenty-five and thirty-five.

What is it about?

Talking of beatification and canonization involves mentioning the saints who have gone before us, those whose life was completely turned towards God, who devoted themselves in active charity towards others so as to respond to the needs of their time. Father Etienne Pernet was one of those.

The procedure for the beatification and canonization of persons who lived and died in the odor of sanctity comprises several stages:

• Servant of God: It is the first stage towards canonization, since 2007 this title carries a meaning given by the bishop to the candidate for beatification and later for canonization.
• Venerable: It is the title given to the Servant of God after the promulgation of the decree on the heroicity of the virtues.
• Beatification: It is the solemn act by which the pope declares that a public cult may be accorded to a Servant of God, according to the forms and in the specified places. It requires the recognition of a miracle obtained through his intercession, that is, an exceptional event due to a special intervention of God that goes beyond the normal course of nature to ease sufferings and demonstrate the love of God.

At the beginning of 2015 the Assumptionists opened a new international community in Colombia, consisting of two Chileans, Fr. Esteban Monsalves and Br. Juan Nuñez, and one Congolese brother, Jean-Aimé Kakule Virivusiga. After settling into their various new responsibilities (Esteban as superior of the community and regional delegate of the provincial for Colombia) and Juan and Jean-Aimé as students in theology, they decided to spread their wings this past Christmas and get involved in a heavy dose of pastoral ministry in rural settings. Juan traveled to our community high in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador where he lent a hand at our parish. Jean-Aimé accompanied a group of missionaries to two farming villages in the mountainous region of Boyacá (central northeast Colombia bordering Venezuela) and Fr. Esteban to northern tip of the country. What follows is a short description of Fr. Esteban’s experience.

"We arrived on December 13 in the state of Riohacha bordering the Caribbean Sea. We thought we would be working along palm-lined beaches with salty breezes. Wrong! In fact we ended up in an arid inland region known as Guajira where the diocese hoped that we could help a fairly underserved population to prepare for Christmas.

The Assumptionist Center in Brighton recently hosted its first “Conversations…” of the semester. The topic “Called to Witness As Who We are: A Conversation for Helpers, Lovers, and Evangelizers,” was addressed by Sam Keffler (a resident at the Center), Jennifer Verkamp and Gabriela Seufferheld who shared their perspectives on evangelization in the field of social work. All three of them are pursuing their Masters in Social Work at Boston College.

The over- riding inspiration was the quote from St. Catherine of Siena, “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”

In facilitating a very inter- active discussion, the community, residents and guests were first asked to address the ‘Who’ in this process of evangelizing by getting in touch with their own self- identity as persons in relationship with self, others and God. After a few minutes of reflection and sharing, the group moved on to the ‘Why’ and the motivation, the passion, the driving force of their vocation and/ or preparation for a career. What is it that gives us joy? What are our God-given gifts and talents? And lastly, what does the world need of us? In what way can we make a difference, no matter how small? It was most interesting to note that everyone in the room has already chosen a life of some kind of service to others or is preparing to do so in the future.

WORCESTER, MA (January 14, 2016)—This month, two separate groups of Assumption College students will head to Washington, D.C., and Atlanta for hands-on educational experiences.

Twenty Assumption students will travel to Washington, D.C., from January 21-23 to participate in the annual March for Life, an organization whose mission is to provide all Americans with a place to testify to the beauty of life and the dignity of each human person. The event brings together pro-life leaders and groups to organize, unite and strategize around a common message. After the Jan. 22 march, the group will attend the Cardinal O’Connor Conference on Life at Georgetown University on Jan. 23.  This year’s conference will focus on the paradigm of the current debate surrounding issues of life, which revolves around the opposition between the pro-life and pro-choice positions.