Maria Madre Del Buen Pastor

One of my favorite presentations of Our Lady in Bogota numerous churches. Revisiting today in my heart and mind and in prayer to Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd, as I get ready to arrive tomorrow to my mission in Kiabakari to continue relentless quest of fulfilling the Lord's Will and the Vision of Divine Mercy in Kiabakari. Praying for all of you at the feet of Our Lady in that church in Bogota in my spirit and asking for your kind prayers for my safe trip back home and for God's Mercies and Blessings for the challenges that lie ahead of me there.

Our Mother of the Good Shepherd, pray for us!

Post-WACOM Bogota 2014 Documents

If you wish to browse through the wealth of the Congress teachings, videos, see the works of mercy in Bogota or to download an applet for WACOM for easier mobile access, please visit the official website of World Apostolic Congress on Mercy here.

Southbound

'Our Father' In Swahili Language

ORIGINAL

COVER

THE PRAYER

Baba Yetu uliye mbinguni,

Jina lako litukuzwe;

Ufalme wako ufike,

Utakalo lifanyike

Duniani kama mbinguni.

Utupe leo mkate wetu wa kila siku,

Utusamehe makosa yetu,

Kama nasi tunavyowasamehe waliotukosea.

Usitutie katika kishawishi,

Lakini utuopoe maovuni.Amina.

Final Day Of WACOM Bogota 2014

Pictures, pictures...

WACOM Bogota 2014 - The Fourth Day

So much has happened yesterday on the fourth day of our congress that I will more time to prepare images and videos and to upload them here. First, we traveled outside of Bogota to the extinct salt mine in Zipaquira turned into a museum and a place of worship, where deep inside the mountain we had our fourth day talks, testimonies and the Holy Mass. We listened to the official letter of the Archbishop of Kraków, His Eminence Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, to the participants of the Congress, read to us by his delegate, Mons. Jan Machniak, the rector of the International Academy of Divine Mercy in Kraków.

Then, in the afternoon we were transferred to the Centro Convenciones Compensar where were had a nice surprise - a taste of a great Colombian wine and a water, light, music and color show. We sat in the stands and marveled at the latest technology. We listened to the message of the Holy Father Francis who spoke us from a projection shown on a curtain of water mist. Incredible. We were given paper hats, masks, candles, whistles, you name it. A truly joyful end to the long and eventful day. Such a nice touch by the organizers!

Just a few images below as I could not manage to upload videos from the light show.

Have a great day and may Divine Mercy be you light, strength, consolation, inspiration and motivation!

ZIPAQUIRA SALT MINE

Mons. Jan Machnak delivering Cardinal Dziwisz's message to WACOM 2014

CENTRO CONVENCIONES COMPENSAR

Celebrating WACOM Bogota 2014 in joyful mood

The message of the Holy Father Francis projected on the water mist screen

Third Day Of WACOM Bogota 2014 - A Festival Of Mercy

On the third day of World Apostolic Congress on Mercy we have moved to the open space of Colegio San Pedro Claver at Fontibon district of Bogota City. The entrance was open to anybody, it was a Divine Mercy invitation day for all inhabitants of Bogota. We started the day as usual with Laudes, proceeding with talks from various speakers, confessions for all participants and the Holy Mass presided by His Eminence, Cardinal Francisco Javier Errazuriz Ossa from Santiago de Chile, one of the nine Cardinals to assist Holy Father in the governance of the Holy Church.

The Presentation

Tonight I had an opportunity to share some insights into the personal and missionary experience of Divine Mercy in Tanzania during the meeting of Cardinals and Bishops with the continental and national coordinators of World Apostolic Congress on Mercy.

Speakers who wanted to share similar insights were many thus we were allocated just a few minutes. This forced me to cut short what I prepared on behalf of Divine Mercy followers in Tanzania. Here I present the full text of my presentation.

WACOM III Bogota 2014 - Videos

Here a videos from the day of registration to the WACOM III and the first two days (Friday and Saturday). You may spot me somewhere in there.


Official TV advert

Day of registration

Friday

Saturday

WACOM 2014 - Day One - Impressions

I will comment on the proceedings of the congress in upcoming posts. Today just a bunch of images from the first day of the congress. Enjoy!

Registration For WACOM Bogota 2014

There was a couple of hours delay when the actual registration process has finally begun. It took me an hour to get through the all stages but at the end it all went fine and I have become a happy owner of my congress participant special kit. See below what I found in that lovely bag (no, that scarf is not a stole to celebrate sacraments. This is in fact a poncho!).

The congress first session begins tomorrow morning but tonight there is going to be a concert in the city. 

Time to find a coffee shop nearby and work on my address I was asked to give on this coming Sunday. I know what I would love to share with the people but time allocated for speakers is only 8 minutes. Some editorial work to make my speech precise and straight to the point.

Have a blessed day! Staying together in prayer!

Mission Town - Images

Came back home late last night, woke up this morning to do some post-production work on pictures I shot yesterday with that little excuse of a camera. Hard to get anything decent out of these pictures, especially those shot in low light conditions. Anyway, here they are - images from the pilgrimage up the Monserrate, then La Candelaria, the Cathedral, Museum Botero mixed some street graffiti and busy city life caught on camera while sitting in the back seat in the car. Enjoy!

Mission Town

Today is the mission town day. After yesterday trip to Laguna de Guatavita, the entire day today I am going to spend in the city. First, going up the mountain to the Shrine of Monserrate, the true spiritual powerhouse of Christian Colombia. I will pray for all of us and our intentions there.

Then, La Candelaria (the Bogota old town)

and so forth. Time permitting, perhaps some museums on the way.

I am not going to return to the apartment any time soon, as we found out there is no water in the entire building - thing that astonished my hosts as they said it never happened before. Probably I brought some bad luck? To me it does not make for a tragic circumstance as one can wash in a bottle of mineral water or do the toothbrushing with coca-cola or something like that. But to my hosts this made them considerably upset.

Okey dokey, my tiny camera ready, battery charged, memory card emptied. My bag pack ready with the essentials. Sneakers on and off I go. See you soon here later tonight. God bless us all!

Laguna De Guatavita

Yesterday, instead of going up the mountain to the Shrine of Monserrate, we decided to go first out of town. It took some time to buy and activate the local simcard with data plan, but thanks to my two angels Adriana and Stella who were my guides in the trip, things went rather smoothly. I can't imagine how I would get in terms with the salesmen who knows only Spanish and my Spanish is close to zero.

The weather yesterday was not apparently at its best, nevertheless we had a nice drive up the Andes towards Guatavita town on the lake Tomine, some 70 km from Bogota. It was drizzling so we were unable to see much there. I asked my guides to go up the mountains to Laguna de Guatavita, a sacred place for Muisca ancient people. That place was and still is the powerhouse of spirituality. I wanted to go there to pray for the success of the upcoming Congress on Mercy and for all intentions - mine and of my friends. This trip included quite significant physical effort on my part. It was the day after arrival to Colombia, so jet lag was still there and the altitude of the Laguna - above 3,000 meters a.s.l. meant an extra difficulty. These two factors and the fact that due to my weight and health issues I am not a good climber, all added up to the flavor.

III World Apostolic Congress on Mercy - Bogotá 2014

Hola! Buenos dias!

Thanks be to Merciful Lord for the safe journey from Krakow via Warsaw via Frankfurt to Bogotá, the capital city of Colombia. I was met by my hosts at the airport last evening and driven to my location in the commercial city center where I will stay throughout my stay in country.

I have two days to overcome the jetlag and to get used to the altitude (2600 m above sea level) before the actual Congress starts on Thursday afternoon, beginning with the registration and handout of packages for the participants.

So, I guess I will do some city sightseeing with my hosts, buy a local Sim Card with data package, after that we will go to the major Shrine of the city on the mountain at Montserrate. Then today still or tomorrow we plan to go to the Andes and the countryside.

Since I am not a tourist who wants to tick off page long list of things to do and places to see, I will do it my way. Slowly, meeting first people, learning their ways, their look at the local matters, trying to grasp the soul of the country and its people, the culture, the customs, the present and the past intertwined in daily people's lives. Also, to share a smile and a good laugh with my friends here over a local food and drinks.

When the Congress sessions begin on Friday morning, you will be able to follow its proceedings on www.wacomcolombia.org or watch it live on internet TV at www.cristovision.org (click the tab - III Congreso Apostolico Mundial de la Misericordia). More to follow as the Congress unfolds. Don't go away :)

Que pase un bien diá! Have a good day!

Quiet Reflections Over Sunday Morning Coffee

Waking up to the last day in the homeland before starting my long journey back to Kiabakari which will lead me initially to South America for the third World Apostolic Congress on Mercy. I will attend the Congress in the capacity of the national coordinator of Divine Mercy in Tanzania. I feel deeply honored and privileged as this will be my third time to participate in such a global event (the first was the Congress in Lateran Basilica in Rome, the second in the Divine Mercy Shrine in Kraków-Łagiewniki). 

But - first things first. 

Today is the last full day in Poland. The Mission Awareness Sunday in one of the Kraków's parishes. As I pray silently to gather my inner strength and resolve targeting them towards today's goals, the morning coffee brews across the room. In a few minutes I will be ready to cross the city from Grzegórzki to Biały Prądnik to begin my service to the Word of God. 

The so familiar scent of a freshly brewed coffee reminds me so many meeting and quiet chats over a cup of coffee with so many good friends throughout the past three months in Europe. So much to be grateful for to God and to His people. So many recollections, so many good experiences, so many challenges faced off boldly, so many things that happened shaping in a way the months to come.

I ask humbly for your kind prayers that the Word of God I will sow today with the power of the Holy Spirit yields abundant fruit in the Holy Church. I wish you all a blessed Lord's Day! 

Time to go.

Last Visit

Today was marked by two last visits to various health specialists. The last one was with the leading doctor who collected all documentation from the entire period of my medical checkups and procedures. She is the one responsible for laying out the way forward. She is the one responsible for issuing prescriptions I need for the next few months ahead. And she did just that.

I am happy and relieved that this three month period of countless visits to doctors, hospitals, specialists is finally over. It is not over for addressing my health shortcomings, but anyway, for now we are done and the outcome is not bad if not positive in general. I am positively happy and full of hope.

Now is the time to buy medicine prescribed and start packing before I begin my journey first to Colombia for the Congress of Divine Mercy and then back to Tanzania.

Thank you all who prayed for me all this time! Thank you so much! God bless us all!

Nothing Else Matters

As my time in Europe is coming eventually to an end, I wish to thank all great people, communities, parishes, families, institutions, congregations and companies who answered my plea for Kiabakari since I arrived here. Nothing else matters to me as much as Kiabakari and its development according to Lord's Will. I pack now my few things, head on to Bogota, Colombia on Monday for World Apostolic Congress on Mercy and from there to Kiabakari to continue our quest to fulfill he Lord's Will in that chosen place. Watch our official video of the history of Kiabakari (click here) and you will understand why to me nothing else matters as much as that place... God bless! Stay with me!

St. Peter's In Dar

Got an email this evening from my friend - Mr Florian Ludovick Kaija - Tanzanian artist from Dar es Salaam, whose art decorated Kiabakari shrine. He notified me in the email that he was given a big job of interior wall paintings in one of the most prestigious and important Catholic parish churches in Dar es Salaam - St. Peter's in Oysterbay. Four sample pictures were attached to the email.

I must admit I am quite impressed with his new works. See for yourselves!