Quarterly Newsletter of the Clerics of St. Viator • Volume 9, Number 1
The Journey of a Viatorian Missionary Padre Brian Cooper, CSV, has a vision much like Father Louis Querbes, the founder of the Viatorians, and has responded to the cries of the poor in Libano, Colombia.
building has a large room which has been converted into a lunch room, a kitchen, a number of smaller multi purpose type rooms and a courtyard for outside activities.
Libano, about a four hour drive from Bogota,` is one of the main coffee growing regions in the verdant mountains of Colombia. But its magnificence is often over shadowed by devastating poverty. Many people have come to Libano to escape the violence of civil war, earthquakes, flooding and worms which have destroyed coffee plants.
The Centro Viatoriano Ministry Team, a group of dedicated volunteers working with Padre Brian, ministers to the barrio families providing them with emergency food baskets, powdered milk for children, a daily lunch program that feeds over Provincial Charles Bolser, CSV, with Br. Gustavo Lopez, CSV, 120 children each weekday, a special treat and Padre Brian Cooper, CSV, in front of the Viatorian Center of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to programs in both parishes preparing children 150 children every Friday afternoon, and for First Communion and Confirmation. educational assistance (tuition and/or school supplies to over 400 children). Recently, the center has purchased an oven
Since January of 2000 many projects have been developed under the direction of Padre Brian to alleviate the suffering of the poor, especially children. Today, most of these projects are coordinated out of the “Centro Viatoriano” (the Viatorian Center) which is located near an area where poor barrio families live. This center is a former two story elementary school which has been leased to Padre Brian for five years at no cost by a St. Vincent de Paul group. The
This ministry team also travels every Sunday with Padre Brian, on a very long, bumpy, jeep ride, to two countryside parishes in the villages of Delicious and Tierradentro. Members of the team serve as lectors, altar servers and musicians in the village liturgies. They are also responsible for the catechesis
and all the needed utensils to bake their own bread. Soon the children will be able to enjoy “homemade” bread with their meals baked by villagers who are unemployed. Bread will also be distributed to poor families and other soup kitchens serving meals to needy children. continued on page 3
Our Mission... In the Gospel of Luke which was read on the 3rd Sunday of Advent, we are confronted with the challenge of John the Baptist to those coming to him seeking salvation.
Fr. Charles G. Bolser, CSV, Provincial
“The crowds asked John the Baptist, “what should we do?” He said to them in reply, “Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise.” Even tax collectors came to be baptized and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” He answered them, “Stop collecting more than what is prescribed.” Soldiers also asked him, “And what is it that we should do?” He told them, “Do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.” In modern times, John F. Kennedy paraphrased these teachings in his inaugural speech in 1960 when he said,
“Ask not what your country can do for you, rather, ask what you can do for your country.” In the Gospel message, Jesus was constantly requiring his disciples to first of all learn through reflection and observation, but then to act – to respond to the call to mission. It was never enough to simply learn – and yet Jesus was called teacher or rabbi. In his teaching, Jesus was preparing his disciples for mission – to serve others. In order to respond to this call, the disciples were first called to understand that God was in all of creation – that God was incarnate in the world – in human flesh. Secondly, the disciples were called to understand that the diversity of creation was in fact somewhat of an optical continued on page 2