Formation

This year, the seminary of the Priestly Fraternity of the Servants of the Holy Spirit celebrated its 40th anniversary. Those four decades have seen 66 priests ordained, and they now serve in 17 dioceses of Colombia, as well as in six other countries: Honduras, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Bolivia, Spain, and the United States. Today, there are 32 young men training in the seminary. Their rector, Father Amaury Antonio Mestra Duarte, writes, “They are working together for the renewal of ...

Chad is one of the largest countries in the world, at roughly three times the size of Texas. But with only 16.3 million inhabitants, it is sparsely populated, and since Chad lies partly in the Sahara, it is underdeveloped. Another challenge facing this overwhelmingly Muslim country is the spread of radical Islam and extremist threats. The Diocese of Sarh is in southern Chad, in a region with 220,000 Catholics and a total population of about 1.6 million. There are 58 ...

“Pakistan‘s Vatican.” This is how Khushpur, in the Faisalabad district of the Punjab, is sometimes humorously referred to, as it is the largest Catholic ‘village’ in all Pakistan. This village, which has close to 8,000 Catholics and a very active Church life, is a pillar of strength for Catholicism in this overwhelmingly Muslim country. It has already produced numerous vocations to the priesthood and religious life—including two bishops.  Also from Khushpur was the former Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti, murdered by ...

The Central African Republic is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped nations in the world. It is a country that is plagued by constant unrest and attempted coups; many areas are under the control of armed rebel groups.  In the midst of these difficult circumstances, the Church continues to proclaim the Good News of the Gospel and bring the Sacraments to the people. The Church has also stepped in to help in many areas that are normally the responsibility ...

In Uruguay, the Catholic Church holds a far less influential position in society than in most other countries of Latin America. Only some 30% of the country‘s 3.5 million citizens declare themselves to be Catholic, and religious faith and practice have been largely relegated to the private sphere. The second smallest country of Latin America, Uruguay has a long history of secularism, a process that began in the middle of the 19th century. To this day, Christian feast days are ...

With a population of 272 million, Indonesia is the most populous Muslim nation on earth. Christians account for just 10% of the population, with Catholics at just 3%. While relatively small in number, the Church in Indonesia has good grounds for hope and joy, as there are many vocations to the religious life in this Southeast Asian nation.  Typical of this religious dynamism are the Daughters of Our Lady, Queen of the Holy Rosary, a home-grown congregation, founded in 1958 ...

The Congregation of the Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod, founded in France, has been present in India ever since 1886. Today, the Sisters are present in the capital, New Delhi, and in 17 of the federal states of the country.  The Sisters are dedicated to the service of the poor and marginalized, who they work with in a variety of ways. The Sisters care for street children and for abused and exploited women, for mentally and physically handicapped children, ...