World, 14 September 2020 -- On 26 August, we celebrated, as we do every year, the liturgical memory of Blessed Ceferino Namucura, one of the fruits of the first Salesian evangelization in Argentina. The son of the Mapuche tribal leader, who lived in his native Patagonia, passed through Buenos Aires, Viedma, Turin and Rome. His life witness of 19 years lived in a simplicity but joyful and credible witnessing to Jesus Christ attracts young people and people of God today too.
In his native Argentina, already well before his beatification in 2007, popular devotion and pilgrimages (this year already the 50th pilgrimage to Chimpay, his native town), many Ceferino prayer groups, magazines, websites and FB pages, statues, booklets, paintings and decorations are evidence of his attraction. However this shining example, partly due to the language barrier, is still very much limited to Latin America. When we walk around the EAO region we might spot a beautiful statue of Ceferino in the Don Bosco Formation Center in Lawaan, Cebu (FIS); we may be impressed by the 'Namuncura' vocation experience in Papua New Guinea (PGS) or young people's hearts may be touched by Peter Lappin's novel Bury Me Deep, already translated into Burmese (MYM).
Last week, one of the EAO formators was asking for any 'solid biography' of this young Salesian aspirant, but so far we can't offer any more than some 2-5 page sketches or very short presentations published around the beatification year in 2007. During a serious search on the web you may be able to also find short video-biographies in Spanish with English subtitles, but no more than this. Again we turn to the hard-working tribe of EAO translators to bring this figure of Salesian holiness closer to our Youth and young Salesian generations. Probably the first candidate for translation would be the most recent book written by Salesian Bishop Esteban Laxague (Viedma, Argentina) and Fr Pedro Narambuena 'Ceferino - Hijo de Dios y hermano de todos' (2nd edition August 2020).
Blessed Ceferino Namuncura, Pray for us!
Blessed Ceferino Namuncura - ENGLISH subtitles of short video biography (5 parts)
- Youtube Channel (DocCeferino)
- Part I Mapuche cultural background-childhood
- Part II Buenos Aires - student life
- Part III Mapuche - Viedma - Rome
- Part IV The legacy and spirituality of Ceferino
Related news articles:
- AustraLasia 5308 (III) Blessed Ceferino Namuncura book finally in Burmese (Peter Lappin: Bury Me Deep)
- AustraLasia: The Namuncura experience (my news - PGS viceprovince)
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