The testimony of the formators this time comes from the Novitiate of Sagana in Kenya, with the novice master, Father Geoffrey Kimathi Kiria, IMC, who attended the course held in Rome last September. In this video, the novice master talks about his formative community and also shares a message on the occasion of the canonization of Saint Joseph Allamano.
By Jaime C. Patias *
In July of this year, 17 students began the Novitiate of the Consolata Missionaries in Sagana. Of these, 4 are from Kenya, 4 from Ethiopia, 3 from Tanzania, 3 from the Democratic Republic of Congo, 1 from Mozambique, 1 from Benin, and 1 from Burkina Faso. Father Geoffrey and Father James Munene Githinji make up the team of formators.
“It is an international community that seeks to live and promote the vocational discernment of young people through prayer and, above all, community life. Everything we do in Sagana aims to emphasize these two aspects,” explains Father Geoffrey Kiria.
Regarding the formation course for formators, Father Geoffrey says he was struck by many of the topics studied together, “especially the need to take care of ourselves and also to try to help young people understand the motivations behind their vocation. We also learned something beautiful about the charism of the Founder and, above all, the mission,” he states.
In conclusion, he says: “This moment of the canonization of Saint Joseph Allamano helps us understand the needs of the mission and, above all, that faith, when it is not shared with others, dies. Therefore, the Founder, for me, is someone who helps us go out and do mission because this is the mission of Christ, and Saint Joseph Allamano has shown us the way to walk this path.”
Father Jaime C. Patias, IMC, Office for Communication, Rome.
