Thy Kingdom Come!
Mexico City, February 2024
Dear Friends, peace,
Hope your year has begun in a productive way! At CANELA, we have been very busy. The first harvest of chili peppers was at the end of December. We hope to harvest about 5 times, ending in the middle of April. The plants are healthy and very fruitful.
We were able to support Father Pablo’s soup kitchen this Christmas. This has now become a yearly tradition, together with the benefit dinner for Full-Time Catechists in Guatemala. Have a look at the pictures!
In Nicaragua things are not quite as rosy. The government has now thrown out almost 20% of the priests: they are in exile, together with several bishops, with no improvement in sight. We have to be very careful to make sure that our help gets to where it’s supposed to. Join me in praying for that beautiful, suffering country.
In Africa, especially southeast Africa, the School of the Faith is growing steadily. Mr Ignatius Mvula from Malawi has joined our team. He will provide strongly needed on-the-ground support.
Finally, in Mexico, CANELA now exists as a registered charity. That means that our project of offering health insurance to poor Mexican priests just moved ahead by a big leap. We hope to begin the program with 10 priests on the first of July and grow slowly from there. But there are so many bureaucratic hurdles! Let’s see what happens.
When you receive this letter, it will already be Lent. I hope you will be able to take time for reflection and prayer so that it will be a time of growth, and getting closer to the Lord.
That is what I will pray for, as well as for your intentions and your family.
God bless you!
Fr. Robert
