Real Or Fake?

The question I raised in today’s homily was - whom actually am I following as a Christian? Do I follow Jesus of Nazareth, a real one from the Gospel, Son of God; true Jesus as He presents himself to us? Or do I follow Jesus created by my expectations, shaped by the father of the lie, nature of this world and people’s criteria which tell me what kind of leader, messiah, savior our acceptable Jesus should be? Let me explain...

 

Let The Roller-skates Roll!

The wait for the charity challenge 'Roller-skates Without Borders' start is over. Kamil, the hero of the challenge is on his way to Zittau, the departure point on his journey map. Last minute preparations are almost over as well. We, in Kiabakari, are ready as well. I will be sending daily dispatches from Kiabakari, reporting on what has been going on on each given day during the duration of the challenge, enriched with pictures from our daily life in the parish and our institutions. You may follow the daily report from the route of the challenge along with my reports and pictures by clicking on the link of the official blog of the challenge - here. Let the roller-skates roll! Please, continue to spread the word on the challenge, support it if you can by kind donations and help us to improve the quality and broader spectrum of medical services offered in our health center in Kiabakari! Together we can make a difference!

The One Who Knows

Saint James Apostle, the first among Apostles to shed his blood for his Master, whose liturgical feast we celebrate today, is one of the three true 'Illuminati', the chosen ones among the Apostles, who were allowed by the Master himself to know Him best and participate in the full account of His life, teachings, mysteries and actions...

Halftime Over

As I feel better and better each new day, I reckon the halftime is almost over. After six months of hectic schedule and huge challenges with little or no rest, my body gave up and I got sick...

Personal Links

Just a quick post to draw your attention to the new item on the right sidebar - Personal Links. There you will find links to my other personal sites, starting with the personal homepage which is still under construction (hopefully, this year will be  completed), my Foundation Kiabakari, links to LinkedIn, Pinterest, photo galleries and my YouTube Channel. Welcome!

Day Of Obligation

Twice a month in Kiabakari everybody, regardless of one's creed or belief, celebrates a "day of obligation" when people gather in one place around a sizable tree. This day of obligation is called - a market day (siku ya mnada - in swahili language). The dates on which this day of obligation falls are - each 6th and 23rd day of each month...

It All Comes To This

Yet another sentence from today's Gospel of St Mark, chapter 6, caught my attention and came to me with unique force as I continue to struggle with this flu and was forced to stay home and celebrate the Holy Mass in private in the house chapel this morning: 'The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught'...

Rest A While

Tomorrow's Gospel, taken from Mark 6:30-34:


"The apostles gathered together with Jesusand reported all they had done and taught.
He said to them,
"Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."
People were coming and going in great numbers,
and they had no opportunity even to eat.
So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.
People saw them leaving and many came to know about it.
They hastened there on foot from all the towns
and arrived at the place before them.

When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things."

Rest a while...

Dunes

I had no time to reflect upon the last Sunday's Gospel. As it touched me deeply, I wanted to share with you a few thoughts on this. Since I am homebound and sick with flu, this is an opportune time to fulfill my desire...

Support 'Rolki Bez Granic'

One week remains till the charitable challenge 'Rolki Bez Granic' sets off at the point where three borders meet - namely, Germany, Czech Republic and Poland. Our volunteer - dr Kamil Bekalarek with the support of his future wife - Katarzyna Nawrot - intends to ride roller-skates along the western border of Poland from that three countries borders meeting point till Szczecin (Stettin) at the north-western tip of Poland. All this trying to raise awareness of the healthcare problems in Tanzania and in my mission in particular, as they get ready to come to Kiabakari next July for one year to serve my community in our health center. They will speak about the moral and financial support. They will need your support. So, please join us as we try to raise funds for the new equipment in Kiabakari health center, in particular - a new dental unit - which is badly needed in our Mara region community.

400 kilometers on roller-blades is not a feat for faint-hearted. I salute our volunteers and thank them with all my heart for their noble initiative. And you, my esteemed reader, I ask for support. You may contact me via my email - lalafofofo@gmail.com or by visiting the blog of the challenge - Rolki Bez Granic - by clicking here. Check also the poster of the challenge which I encourage you to download and repost it on your blog, Facebook profile or your website. Thank you in advance for your kind cooperation. Let's all support our volunteers, pray for the success of the challenge and keep our fingers crossed for them!

The Official Opening Of The New Delivery Unit

Yesterday we held a simple function of the official opening of the new delivery unit in our health center in Kiabakari. The modern equipment was donated free of charge by the Polish Foreign Ministry through the embassy in Nairobi in Kenya. We hosted the representative of the Polish ambassador in Kenya, Miss Joanna Popławska, who officiated the opening and received the project report. The photos from the occasion can be seen here. We are very grateful to the Polish government for this wonderful gift who certainly will improve the mother and child healthcare in Kiabakari and the whole Mara Region. Thank you!

Altar Servers Happy Day

Indeed, a very happy day for my altar servers who received a wonderful gift from parents of our German volunteers who visited Kiabakari recently and brought a lot of things for the school, health center and also for the parish. We are very grateful to them and their friends in Germany who magnanimously donated all these valuable gifts. Thank you, Denise and Thomas, our volunteers in Kiabakari, for spreading the word and involving your families and friends in caring for Kiabakari.

Ad Gentes

I am truly grateful for the Polish Episcopal Conference 'Ad Gentes' Department funding for the provision of breakfast for our pre- and primary school students and the salaries of a cook and a cleaning lady - for the next two years. This - together with Foundation Kiabakari continuous educational adoption program - certainly will ease off immensely the pressure to increase school fees due to skyrocketing costs of life in Tanzania and will help to maintain the same high quality education for our children in Kiabakari for the basement level of financial committment of the families. Very, very happy!

Relief

This is a prevailing feeling after the conclusion of five-day long bishop's visitation of my mission. We never did something like this, so long, so fully packed with variety of activities, events, meetings and things. More than six months of preparations involving hundreds of people, donors, task force, man power, workers and specialists to make it happen. As I sit now and breathe after bishop left, I just come to realize that it was a near miracle to synchronize everybody and everything and put all pieces in place in right time perfectly. What a relief now... I am just relieved, happy, satisfied, tired and worn out, but happy and proud of my people and all who helped us especially with preparation of our confirmants and our projects. Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo!