By Fr. Neil Collins

When I was in Seminary our professors taught us about using the bible, how to say Mass and baptize, and how to preach. But what about people who don’t go to Church? How do I preach the Good News of God’s love to them? They didn’t teach me that. But... Desi Mina, near three years old, showed me one way: She introduced me to her sandbox.

Ireland a Mission Country

Desi, helped by her parents Roberto and Kris mom from Marikina, Metro Manila, is a Columban lay missionary in the town of Tullamore, Ireland. Since when did Ireland need missionaries? Well, living around then are many broken families and people who never go to Mass. Problems in the neighbourhood range form alcoholism and drug abuse to robbery. That’s why their parish priest, Fr. Wellie Cleary, asked them to live in that area.

Native Customs

During a visit to Ireland I spent a day with them. Roberto walked around with me, I was impressed by the number of friends he had made in the short time they have been in Tullamore. We stopped where a man was gardening. “Its Joe, isn’t it? Said Roberto, asking for a piece of one shrub for his own garden. Later a teenager shouted, “Roberto, look. I’m Johnny Dooley taking a free strike for the Offaly Team.” He swung his hurling stick at a ball, missing it I’m afraid. We insisted that he try again, with better results. [Hurling is a wild game played by the native Irish using wooden sticks! - Editor]

Rough

Kris and Roberto have used their garden as one way to make friends, and Desi has used her sandbox. She brought me out to play, building a heap of sand and shoving sticks into it here and there.” There’s often a mob kids sitting around it,” said Kris. “And some of then are rough,” added Roberto. “They can push me to the very edge.”

Consumer Society

In nearby New bridge, three Filipinos, Gaya from Bontoc, Annie from Loboc, and Lorna from Iligan, are looking for similar ways to reach out to the many people who are lost in an increasingly materialistic, consumer society. When I spoke with their pastor, Fr. Joe McDermott, mentioning the broken families and the alcohol and drug abuse in Tullamore, he said, “There are many like that here, too.” The three Filipinos showed me a camping site for semi-nomadic “traveling people”, and a buzzing parish centre. They aren’t sure where they will fit in, but I could see that Newbridge needs them. In the meantime they are attempting to understand the Irish. Next door to their hose is a bookstore and the owner regularly lends them books on Irish Culture and politics. So far they haven’t figured out why Christians can kill each other in Belfast.

Desi could help with that problem. She’d just invite me everybody to play in her sandbox.