austraLasia #3327
Far-flung Flights of Fancy
GHIZO: 11 December 2013 -- A list of one of the more isolated dioceses in the world would have to include Ghizo, which covers the westernmost extremes of the Solomon Islands. Bishop Luciano Capelli sdb, visits the furthest flung populations in his diocese, usually by flying himself there - where he can land on sea or water. The landings are not always 'soft', as he hints at in one comment below. Amongst his concerns, as well as the spiritual health of the people, is their physical health - and that means clinics and hospitals in a part of the world where they are few and far between and hard to reach for outlying populations:
VoruVoru - Choiseul
Two years ago VoruVoru became a parish (Christ the King). Bishop Capelli visited recently...
"After the not-so-sweet splashdown last year, 'epsicopal prudence and wisdom' dictated otherwise this time. This year I decided to land at Taro (capital, Choiseul province) on flat and firm ground (no reefs!) and then 2 hours by boat to VoruVoru ...
The sea was beautiful and inviting. Maybe next year courage will return to try another sea-landing there. The population at VoruVoru is amongst the most isolated on Choiseul Island, but setting up a parish and the presence of a local Dominican priest with much pastoral experience along with encouragement from the Bishop... well, there are miracles taking place of new hope and dreams..
The infant school has repoened, and areas unreachable because of the noxious pools left by high tides and overabundant rains can now be reached thanks to the clever work of a footbridge built by the parish priest and his helpers.
The primary school is not only going well but the people are now dreaming of a secondary school and a carpentry centre to improve the huts and build less humid, more airy buildings that will reduce the incidence of malaria.
The only clinic in the area is 25 km away along a most impractical track through the forest; it is run by an unqualified nurse sent by the Ministry of Health (equipped mainly for cases of malaria and pneumonia, the two killer diseases of the area). Christ the King parish is dreaming of a small clinic 'in loco'."
Nila - Shortlands Islands
Taking advantage of a day without rain I accompanied the director of the Interdiocesan seminary, Fr Eritreo TecleMicael, a Vincentian, on a visit to the mission at Nila, the outskirts of the outskirts, in the Shortlands, on the border with Papua New Guinea... he was preapred to trust the pilot.
A beautiful flight of an hour and twenty minutes amidst mist, clouds and not much sun, but at least no rain ...
We were greeted by a nice shower but the 'splashdown' was texbook perfect with all the episcopal prudence and wisdom in place.
Sr Chris Konasa received us (she is the director of the Area Health Center) with the parish priest, Fr Robert, from Myanmar, and he accompanied us on our visit to the building site where our Italian volunteers were working with 7 local builders finishing the foundations for the new mini hospital.
Building materials only arrived last week so work is only at the beginning ...".
Far-flung Flights of Fancy
GHIZO: 11 December 2013 -- A list of one of the more isolated dioceses in the world would have to include Ghizo, which covers the westernmost extremes of the Solomon Islands. Bishop Luciano Capelli sdb, visits the furthest flung populations in his diocese, usually by flying himself there - where he can land on sea or water. The landings are not always 'soft', as he hints at in one comment below. Amongst his concerns, as well as the spiritual health of the people, is their physical health - and that means clinics and hospitals in a part of the world where they are few and far between and hard to reach for outlying populations:
VoruVoru - Choiseul
Two years ago VoruVoru became a parish (Christ the King). Bishop Capelli visited recently...
"After the not-so-sweet splashdown last year, 'epsicopal prudence and wisdom' dictated otherwise this time. This year I decided to land at Taro (capital, Choiseul province) on flat and firm ground (no reefs!) and then 2 hours by boat to VoruVoru ...
The sea was beautiful and inviting. Maybe next year courage will return to try another sea-landing there. The population at VoruVoru is amongst the most isolated on Choiseul Island, but setting up a parish and the presence of a local Dominican priest with much pastoral experience along with encouragement from the Bishop... well, there are miracles taking place of new hope and dreams..
The infant school has repoened, and areas unreachable because of the noxious pools left by high tides and overabundant rains can now be reached thanks to the clever work of a footbridge built by the parish priest and his helpers.
The primary school is not only going well but the people are now dreaming of a secondary school and a carpentry centre to improve the huts and build less humid, more airy buildings that will reduce the incidence of malaria.
The only clinic in the area is 25 km away along a most impractical track through the forest; it is run by an unqualified nurse sent by the Ministry of Health (equipped mainly for cases of malaria and pneumonia, the two killer diseases of the area). Christ the King parish is dreaming of a small clinic 'in loco'."
Nila - Shortlands Islands
Taking advantage of a day without rain I accompanied the director of the Interdiocesan seminary, Fr Eritreo TecleMicael, a Vincentian, on a visit to the mission at Nila, the outskirts of the outskirts, in the Shortlands, on the border with Papua New Guinea... he was preapred to trust the pilot.
A beautiful flight of an hour and twenty minutes amidst mist, clouds and not much sun, but at least no rain ...
We were greeted by a nice shower but the 'splashdown' was texbook perfect with all the episcopal prudence and wisdom in place.
Sr Chris Konasa received us (she is the director of the Area Health Center) with the parish priest, Fr Robert, from Myanmar, and he accompanied us on our visit to the building site where our Italian volunteers were working with 7 local builders finishing the foundations for the new mini hospital.
Building materials only arrived last week so work is only at the beginning ...".
