Our visit to Tigray, Ethiopia
On February 21, Srs. Genet, Elfinesh and Maureen flew to Tigray at the invitation of the Bishop Tesfaselassie Medhin. Our purpose was twofold - to be a supportive presence to the Bishop, Sisters, Priests and others who we would be meeting, as they have endured great suffering for a long time now, and secondly to introduce our Institute, our Charism and ourselves. The Church in Tigray is very devout, active and strong, and rich in vocations. Currently, most of Tigray is peaceful, though there are signs of the damage done from the conflict as we went around. The Bishop told us that 6 of his parishes are still under occupation by Eritrean military forces and the people have no way to leave those areas.
Friday - 21 February - We flew first to Mekele, where we had the pleasure to briefly meet up with Fr. Samuel SDB, who is a great friend of the MSCs. He took us to meet his sister (Sr. Letegebriel) who is a Daughter of Charity and well known to our Sisters, as she worked for many years in Soddo, Wolayta. Then, after lunch at the Salesian Community, we set off to Adigrat by road. The scenery is quite stunning. The Journey was about 2 & ½ hours. On the journey, we stopped at one small town to meet another sister, Sr. Alemitu, a Daughter of St. Anne, and good friend to the MSCs, who hails from Wallacha in Wolayta. In Adigrat, we stayed with the Religious Sisters Filippini, who were very friendly, kind and generous to us. They have a large school there, and the sisters also care for some orphans from the conflict. Once settled in our rooms, we went to visit the Bishop. He is a very warm and humble man and welcomed us well. We shared our purpose for coming, and he was very happy that we took the initiative to visit and be present among the people. He gave us a tour of Holy Savior Cathedral.
Saturday - 22 February – We had morning Mass with the sisters in their Chapel, and we later visited the Parish Priest, Abba Berhaye, who showed us around the Church and compound, and shared about all the activities on their mission. We visited the minor and major Seminaries with some of the priests who are professors there, and they shared coffee with us, and talked about their experiences. In the afternoon, Sr. Alemitu and another Sister of St. Anne, Sr. Mana, arrived to take us on a tour of the historical places in Adigrat where the first Catholic missionaries arrived in Ethiopia. This was located high up on the rocky hills where St. Justin de Jacobis met with Bishop Massaia (who was on his way to the south of Ethiopia) to be ordained a Bishop, so he would be able to ordain priests in Tigray. We shared Evening prayer and rosary with the Filippini Sisters and also enjoyed their beautiful flower garden.
Sunday - 23 February - it was the Feast of Kidane Mihiret, which in the Latin Rite is called “Our Lady of Perpetual Help”. Kidane Mehret (ኪዳነ ምሕረት) is a Ge'ez phrase meaning Covenant of Mercy. It refers to the Ethiopic tradition that Jesus promised his mother that he would forgive the sins of those who sought her intercession. The first Mass was at 5.30 am, and the second Mass, started at 6.30 am – even so early the Mass was packed with the Faithful, young and old. The 2nd Mass was “extra special”as it included the ordination of two seminarians into the transitional Diaconate. Many priests were present to concelebrate. During his homily, the Bishop mentioned that we Missionary Sisters were present in the Church and encouraged the young women to meet with us after Mass if they desired. We were expecting that possibly a few young women may approach us but following the Mass more than 60 young women came, though some quite young still. The two priests of the Parish, Fr. Berhaye and Fr. Hailemariam also accompanied us, and helped with the translations into Tigrinya. Sr. Genet spoke about the MSCs and why we were present at this time. They seemed a very happy group of young people, and after the meeting some asked for our contact details.
Before leaving Adigrat, we went to see the Bishop again to thank him for his openness and kindness to us. In Mekele, we stayed overnight at the Salesian Guesthouse as our flight was early the next morning. During the evening, we attended a Eucharistic Holy Hour with the Salesian Fathers, their Aspirants, other local young people, and some other parishioners. It was very lovely, and so good to see the devotedness of the youth to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. We were also asked to share a few words of encouragement to the young people present, which we did.
Monday – 24 February We flew back to Addis Ababa, tired but encouraged and grateful!
