Rice being distributed in India |
SRI system of rice cultivation in Cambodia |
Beginning ground preparation in 2010 for the new school |
Old temple inside high rise complex in Kerala |
Fr. Yves Pleyber, M.S., standing fifth from left, as a young missionary in Betafo, Madagascar |
Beginning of the National Workshop |
Fr. Ernst Schnydrig, M.S., born on Sept. 16, 1912, professed on Sept. 9, 1932 died on April 15, 1978 |
Editor: Mike Ursini, a La Salette alumnus told me about this article about Fr. Ernst Schnydrig, M.S. on the web site of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, founded in 1926 by Pope Pius XI. This article shows the power and courage of one La Salette when confronted with need and injustice.
A giant Nile Crocodile |
A fearsome predator in the bush country of Madagascar is the crocodile. Known as the Nile crocodile, its origins are in Africa where it is the largest reptile south of the Sahara. It can weigh as much as 2,100 lbs, thus growing to become about 4,000 times heavier than the 2 inch egg from which it was hatched. And from that 2 inch egg, it can grow to a length of 20 ft. Although its regular habitat is in fresh water, some regularly swim the Mozambique Channel from mainland Africa to Madagascar – some 400 miles. They need water to survive – be it in a river, a waterhole, a lake, a reservoir or a ditch – and can remain completely submerged for extended periods. During the dry season or a prolonged drought, they will travel over land as much as 15 miles to find water.
Unlike mammals and birds, a croc cannot regulate its body temperature. Crocs love the morning sun and, as if they were sunbathing, are often seen basking on the sandy banks of the rivers
Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia, is situated on a plateau in the geographic center of a country half the size of Alaska. In 2002, acquiescing to the request of the Archbishop of Windhoek, La Salette Missionaries from Angola came to minister in Opuwo – a city of some 11,000 inhabitants in the northwestern region of Namibia called Koakoland. It neighbors on Angola.
The majority of Namibians live in pronounced poverty because of widespread unemployment and striking inequality of production distribution. With an elevated unemployment rate in the whole country – and nearing 50% in Opuwo – families live from hand-to-mouth off the land.
Fr. Maurice Tochon, M.S., welcomes pilgrims |
Editor: Fr. Maurice Tochon, M.S. has worked at the La Salette Shrine in France for many years. During this time he has explored the geological history of the mountains surrounding the Shrine. His studies and learning, with the assistance of some professional geologists, have been well utilized in a weekly display and workshop, explaining the geological background of the site and the materials used in the building of the Basilica on the remote mountaintop where Mary appeared. Here he describes an imaginary meeting with a curious pilgrim on one of his Wednesday workshops.
Pilgrim: “What? ...learning about geology at the La Salette Shrine? People come to the Shrine in France to pray – not to learn about stones and rocks!”
Fr. Tochon: “And what was the Basilica – where you pray – built with?”
Pilgrim: “It's true! It is stone, not concrete ... Its age?”
Fr. Tochon: “Some of the stones used are anywhere from 150 years old to 25 million years. Some may even be over 200 million years old!”