Lavalla200> Community of Tabatinga
From the middle of the forest
We would like to share some information about the new community of Tabatinga, our new members, new dreams, new realities.
Br. Paul Bhatti has been responsible for welcoming the new members. Paul has been in the community for two years and his time in Tabatinga is coming to an end. Once this situation of the Coronavirus is over, he will return to Pakistan. We are very grateful for his work and dedication here.
Br Luke Fong from the Pacific District arrived from Fiji on 23 January. Luke has previously worked as a teacher in primary schools, as a formator of novices, and in many other roles. Mario Araya was the second to arrive on February 6. He is a Chilean layman who has just finished his three-year commitment in the Lavalla200> community in Syracuse. Finally, we welcomed Martha Eugenia Martinez, from Mexico, at the airport of Leticia (Colombia) on March 12. Last year she completed two years in the East Harlem Lavalla200> community in the United States; she belongs to the Province of México Occidental.
It is worth mentioning that in the month of November, until the middle of December 2019, Martha and Mario made their first visit to Tabatinga, at the request of Brother Ernesto Sánchez, with the aim of getting to know the city and one another. During this period, they attended the diocesan assembly, getting an overview of the situation of the Diocese of Alto Solimoes. Then they returned to their respective countries to begin the process of obtaining a visa.
Some news
In February, the community participated in the Parish Assembly, a special time to get to know the Church’s reality and possible ministries in which we can be involved as Marists.
Luke has begun Portuguese classes in a school near our house; it will be slow but sure. Martha and Mario are studying at home with a young language teacher. No doubt their natural Spanish will help the two of them to communicate more easily than Luke, but for the moment their Portuguese remains poor.
Mario participates in the Sunday celebrations on the Island of Santa Rosa (Peru) with Brother Marco (La Salle). They share responsibility for preparing children for Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation every Sunday. For her part, Martha has begun to participate in a group of women organized by the Ursuline Sisters. Luke goes with Sister Rosilda (Ursuline Sisters) every Saturday to provide religious instruction in the community of Comara.
In Coronavirus times
As you can imagine, we here in Tabatinga are also confined to stay at home. Jeff and Fachi (responsible for the accompaniment of Lavalla200) had planned to visit during the last week of February, but due to the situation in Italy and the world, everything had to be suspended.
In Tabatinga we still have no confirmed infections. Every day we hear news of possible cases, but the reality is that it is still possible to go out on the streets with some degree of normality. As a community we have decided to expose ourselves as little as possible to the virus, trying to go out only as much as necessary and prohibiting visits to the community.
We have taken advantage of this special time to start drawing up our community and mission plan with meetings every morning. We are beginning to get to know each other and share our missionary experiences, our hopes and challenges for this new beginning.
Twice a week we have a celebration of the word at home, we live the Eucharist without great rites or deep preaching, we share the bread in the simplicity of silence. We know that throughout the world everyone is facing a difficult and incomprehensible situation. We hope with all our hearts that the spirit of Marcellin and our Good Mother will accompany us this Easter.
A warm hug from the new community of Tabatinga to you all.
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Martha, Paul, Luke and Mari