austraLasia #2653
Solemn opening of Salesian Pastoral Centre Hamamatsu
HAMMAMATSU, JAPAN: 01-06-10 -- Sunday 30 May, in the presence of the Bishop of Yokohama, Bishop Rafael Masahiro Uemura, saw the blessing and opening of the new two-storey building intended for ministering to the people of Hamamatsu.
Revisitng the history up to the present, we can say that this Salesian presence began with the dream of one Salesian of Japanese descent, in San Paulo Province Brazil, who asked to come to Japan as a missionary to accompany Brazilians who had emigrated to Japan in search of a better life. The missionarys' name is Fr Evaristo Higa, who on arrival in Japan set up in an area where there were already many Brazilians working in auto-part factories. Thus he began his mission amongst his own gradually building up a Catholic Brazilian community in Hamamatsu bringing together various communities which had spring up in different cities in the Shizuoka area.
When the Japanese Province officially took up this presence, Fr Evaristo had already been working there for ten years and had built up a strong Christian community open to other groups from Latin America and Asia, showing prophetic attention to homeless Japanese, helping them especially through Brazilian and other Latin American volunteers, and also some Japanese.
In 2006, the then Provincial, Fr Orlando Puppo, sent Fr Angel Yamanouchi to Hamamatsu to study possible directions for opening a Salesian Pastoral Centre. Amongst other things, the socio-economic situation in Japan was in strong recession and the crisis was affecting migrants especially. God in his Providence and Mary Help of Christians through her protection led to the purchase of a property almost adjacent to the parish. After much coming and going, especially involving those responsible for administration in the diocese, and also the architect and engineers, this large, modern Salesian Pastoral centre was built in less than a year.
The Salesian Provincial today, Fr Aldo Ciprian,i thanked the Bishop for his welcome and for the confidence he had shown in the Salesians in his diocese, and then he thanked the people for the affection and support they had shown, something which has grown more and more over these years.
May Laura Vicuña and Brother Zatti, the protectors of this Pastoral centre, fill us with joy and hope so that this Centre may be an authentic Salesian Home, especially for poor children and youngsters and others in need of acceptance, education and Christian formation.
_________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
Solemn opening of Salesian Pastoral Centre Hamamatsu
HAMMAMATSU, JAPAN: 01-06-10 -- Sunday 30 May, in the presence of the Bishop of Yokohama, Bishop Rafael Masahiro Uemura, saw the blessing and opening of the new two-storey building intended for ministering to the people of Hamamatsu.
Revisitng the history up to the present, we can say that this Salesian presence began with the dream of one Salesian of Japanese descent, in San Paulo Province Brazil, who asked to come to Japan as a missionary to accompany Brazilians who had emigrated to Japan in search of a better life. The missionarys' name is Fr Evaristo Higa, who on arrival in Japan set up in an area where there were already many Brazilians working in auto-part factories. Thus he began his mission amongst his own gradually building up a Catholic Brazilian community in Hamamatsu bringing together various communities which had spring up in different cities in the Shizuoka area.
When the Japanese Province officially took up this presence, Fr Evaristo had already been working there for ten years and had built up a strong Christian community open to other groups from Latin America and Asia, showing prophetic attention to homeless Japanese, helping them especially through Brazilian and other Latin American volunteers, and also some Japanese.
In 2006, the then Provincial, Fr Orlando Puppo, sent Fr Angel Yamanouchi to Hamamatsu to study possible directions for opening a Salesian Pastoral Centre. Amongst other things, the socio-economic situation in Japan was in strong recession and the crisis was affecting migrants especially. God in his Providence and Mary Help of Christians through her protection led to the purchase of a property almost adjacent to the parish. After much coming and going, especially involving those responsible for administration in the diocese, and also the architect and engineers, this large, modern Salesian Pastoral centre was built in less than a year.
The Salesian Provincial today, Fr Aldo Ciprian,i thanked the Bishop for his welcome and for the confidence he had shown in the Salesians in his diocese, and then he thanked the people for the affection and support they had shown, something which has grown more and more over these years.
May Laura Vicuña and Brother Zatti, the protectors of this Pastoral centre, fill us with joy and hope so that this Centre may be an authentic Salesian Home, especially for poor children and youngsters and others in need of acceptance, education and Christian formation.
_________________
AustraLasia is an email service for the Salesian Family of Asia Pacific. It also functions as an agency for ANS based in Rome. For queries please contact admin@bosconet.aust.com . Use Bosconet-wiki to be interactive. RSS feeds - just go to Bosconet, click on austraLasia 2009 in the sidebar. You will see the RSS orange icon in your browser address bar - add it from there. Or be interactive with the EAO blog Cetera Tolle. Avail yourself of the Salesian Digital Library at http://sdl.sdb.org
