By Fr. Joseph Broderick, SSC
Guess Who
The doorbell rings and I open the door to a young couple who, by the look of them are up to some good.
Not Christians
We greet each other and I invited them in. “WE would like to get married in your church. It is possible? We are not Christian.”
By Sr. Virginia Guerrero, MIC
Japan
Mantra
Every Wednesday and Thursday, starting out from our convent in Aizu Wakamatsu, I take a thirty-minute walk to the station- to take the bus that brings me up to Shimo Yanagi Wara. From there I walk another ten minutes to Ai no Sato which means Haven of Love. Surrounded by the beauty of God’s creation I find myself repeating like a manta the words, “Thank you Lord!”
Many Filipinos go to Japan for work. They go as dancers or entertainers or as domestic helpers. Now a different reason is moving some Filipino to go Japan. They are following the footsteps of St. Lorenzo Ruiz and going on lay mission with the Philippine (Catholic) Lay Mission Program.
Read On:
Lory and Cely
Lory Antonio and Cely Reyes are among the lay missionaries who set out from the Philippines for the diocese of Chiba, Japan, there to work with Bishop Paul Mori and his priests by doing something for the Filipino immigrants. But first let us look back at the history of Christianity in Japan.
By Fr. Martin Dubuc
Nabeoka Miyosaki Prefecture
Japan
No Road to Escape
When I was assigned as missionary to Japan a little over ten years ago, little did I think that I would also be working with Filipinos, but for the past five years, besides my work with the Japanese, I have also been involved with migrant workers from other Asian countries, mostly from the Philippines. Most of these migrant workers were women, and the vast majority would be in Japan officially as dancers or singers. But some who come to Japan with a dream of making much money for themselves and for their families find themselves forced into prostitution with no road of escape.
