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For a poor Catholic from a rural area like me, it was not easy to come to the big city and study in a communist university. At first, I felt so bad that I wanted to quit. But my father reminded me that we, Christians, are different. And things began to change. Following Jesus changes our lives, even in communist China.
Father Francisco de Medeiros, known as Fr. Chico, has been working in South Africa for 15 years – in different places with varied challenges. At the beginning of this year, he leapt from an urban Babel of languages, cultures and religions to a rural mission bordering the jungle. A sort of an SOS missionary, he is always ready to be called at any time for any emergency.
The Philippine prison system is described in a recent book as a living hell, more in tune with the 19th century than the modern age. Due to overcrowding, many inmates sleep standing up; the toilets run like rivers; disease and death are the only way to “rehabilitation.”
In prison… in South Africa? No, I was not charged of any crime! When the scholasticate was looking for new forms of ministry at the beginning of 2006, one of the proposals was to start a prison ministry in Pietermaritzburg. I readily volunteered because of my previous experience in the New Bilibid Prison in the Philippines. And I must confess: being in prison has enriched my understanding of being a Christian.
