Three young Comboni missionaries from three continents share their vocation stories and missionary experiences.

Fr Victor Cunanan Parungao from the Philippines reflects on 15 years of his priestly life.

As a child in a large family with ten siblings, I observed my parents, particularly my father, working tirelessly as a farmer and calesa driver, a local means of transport in the Philippines, to meet our daily needs. I, for my part, was a street vendor, selling corn and bananas in our village, a tricycle driver, and a canteen waiter, all to earn extra money
for my studies.

I can affirm that the uncertainties and doubts along my vocational journey have heightened my awareness of the abundance of God’s grace that has shaped me into a Comboni Missionary. My years at the University of the Philippines, my work experience—especially in the Department of Social Welfare and Development—my interactions with the indigenous people of my province, and my commitment to our parish have all led me to my missionary vocation.

In 1999, I embarked on my journey of discernment with the Comboni Missionaries. After one year, I joined the postulancy formation programme at St. Daniel Comboni Seminary. After two years in the Postulancy, I was admitted to the Novitiate.

This stage allowed me to deepen my relationship with the Lord and dedicate myself to the mission. As a newly professed scholastic, I was sent to Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, to continue my formation and pursue my theological studies.

During this period of formation, I came to appreciate even more the internationality and interculturality of our Institute. Theological studies, combined with practical ways of living my missionary vocation in an international context, enabled me to better grasp the radical nature of God’s call to me. Living my own culture while embracing the gifts of other cultures has enriched my understanding and appreciation
of community life.

On 6 February 2010, I was ordained as a Comboni priest in our parish in Pampanga. Shortly thereafter, I was assigned as an assistant formator at St. Daniel Comboni Seminary. After five years in this role, I requested our superiors to assign me outside the Philippines, seeking to gain experience in a pastoral setting.

In 2015, I was sent to Central America, specifically to Guatemala. This significant moment enhanced my missionary life, as I had the opportunity to meet and live alongside other remarkable Comboni Missionaries. My brief missionary service in the parish of San Luis, Petén, Guatemala, opened my eyes to the richness and diversity of each culture. It was a profoundly impactful experience that has significantly shaped my missionary life.

Now, I am back in the Philippines, serving as the Rector and Formator of our seminary.  I constantly pray to remember that every vocation story is a gift, and the underlying truth of all vocation stories is that they are meant to lead us into a relationship with God. My ‘yes’ to God’s call to the missionary life has been such a blessing for 15 years and counting.

I have been able to utilise my gifts to serve in various ministries and have met wonderful people along the way. I am immensely grateful for the gift of my missionary vocation, and I beseech the Lord to always make me a bearer of hope, mercy, and compassion to all.

Sr Eulalia: “To honour my name”

“Twelve years of missionary life in Zambia have changed my mentality and spirituality”, says Spanish Sister Eulalia Capdevila Enriquez.

From my childhood, I remember the hours spent with my sisters and my brother, and also my cousins, among fruit trees. We were farmers and my love for the countryside, plants and trees grew naturally.

From my mother, a migrant, a creative and enterprising woman, I learned to explore life and not to be satisfied with what I have learned, but to always look beyond and accept new challenges.

From my father, I learned as a child that there was a continent called Africa. He always told us about his experiences in Cameroon, where he spent some years as a lay missionary. I grew up in this environment where the narratives of Africa and those of Jesus were harmoniously intertwined. During my adolescence, the news showed the terrible famine in Ethiopia and, later, from other African countries.

I wondered how people could die while we had a place to grow crops and get food. For the first time, I felt that the world was unfair and that I had to do something. I wanted to lend my voice to announce the Good News honouring my name and also to lend my hands so that no one would ever go hungry.

That was the greatest challenge that a shy and fearful teenager could have chosen. I entered the School of Agricultural Engineering thinking that I would be useful one day somewhere in Africa, but the truth was that I still did not know where to go.

In 1997, together with the young people of my parish, I participated in the World Youth Day in Paris. There were more than a million of us young people and I will never forget the evening when John Paul II gave us a catechesis on John 1:38: “Master, where do you live? Come and see”.

That evening I realized that if I did not believe in the word of Jesus, I would not go anywhere. I had to take a big step. That same year, in October, I met by chance, at a prayer meeting, a lay Comboni missionary who invited me to meet his group.

I took the big step and for a year I greatly appreciated the missionary atmosphere and the formative process that we had, accompanied by the Comboni Missionaries. Before the end of that period, one of them said to me: “I think you should meet the Comboni Missionary Sisters”.

From that moment my life was transformed, because I found my place in the world by living my missionary vocation as a consecrated woman according to the Comboni charism.

My first missionary experience in Zambia shaped me in such a way that I feel “blessed”. I have been living my missionary vocation in Zambia for 12 years. The experiences are many, but I will tell you only three moments. The first was in a chapel in the rural villages, where I gave a group of young people three days of formation on faith and another, more practical, on agroforestry.

Young Christians in rural areas, almost all parents, depend entirely on fishing, livestock breeding and agriculture. One day a boy was caught stealing all the posters we had made in the local language. He confessed that he wanted the materials to be taken to other non-Catholic youth living in more distant villages.

Following this incident, the youth group leaders decided to respond and organized an expedition to visit those villages, so the formation began to open up to other groups outside our parish. The missionary leadership that these young Christians demonstrated was for me the best formation for the Mission I have ever had.

The second moment was when we undertook a project to develop a youth catechesis manual. We wanted to develop it in the local language with the participation of young people from the main parishes of the Diocese of Mongu. The response and commitment they showed exceeded all my expectations. We worked intensively for a year. Once the book was published, the young people volunteered to introduce it with great joy in their parishes and in the college of teachers.

The third moment was when we started to raise awareness among the local population about caring for creation, because the burning of trees for charcoal production was turning our area into a desert.

The initiative began humbly, but with the support of the local traditional chief, there is now a centre called Mother Earth that continues to raise awareness of the need to care for and manage natural resources wisely.

I like to think that such experiences have changed my mentality and spirituality. This school of life and humanity has allowed me to relate to all aspects of life. We must preach Jesus and at the same time try to alleviate the pain of our brothers and sisters.

Father Clement. Along the way

A journey of faith, trials and resilience. Fr Clement Mutie Mbithi from Kenya talks about his vocation journey.

I come from a large Christian-Catholic family and am the sixth of ten children. My late father, a devout Catholic and a man of unwavering faith, passed away in 2020. My mother, who continues to be a source of strength and inspiration, is a woman of deep trust in God. Growing up in this faith-filled environment was a profound blessing, shaping the person I am today and laying the foundation for my vocation
as a missionary.

During my childhood, I was drawn to the activities of the Church. Serving at the altar awakened in me a deep desire to become a priest. Although I kept my dream a secret, my determination to pursue it grew stronger. A pivotal moment came in 2009 when, during a casual conversation, my cousin told me, “You are going to be our family priest”. Her words echoed the deepest desires of my heart, even though I did not openly admit it. This encounter gave me courage and confirmed the path I hoped to follow.

An important turning point came two weeks before my final exams. A Comboni Missionary visited our parish for a vocation promotion. His visit coincided with a thanksgiving Mass in my school where he spoke about the work of the Comboni Missionaries in spreading the Gospel and serving the poorest and most abandoned. His testimony
touched me deeply.

After Mass I approached him with a mixture of fear and excitement and promised to contact him when I had my exam results. After the results I approached him and in 2011 I began my formation journey with the Comboni Missionaries in the pre-postulancy. A year later
I entered the postulancy.

In 2015 I entered the novitiate in Lusaka, Zambia. These two years were marked by intense spiritual growth, silence and discernment. After the novitiate, I was sent to the Scholasticate in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, for theological studies.

The four years I spent there were transformative, deepening my understanding of theology and the Bible while exposing me to intercultural life within and outside the community.

However, this period was not without challenges. During the CO- COVID-19 pandemic, I lost my father. The inability to return home for his burial was one of the most painful moments of my journey. My father had been a pillar of support throughout my life, and I longed for him to witness the fulfilment of my calling. This experience taught me to trust in God’s plan, even in the face of profound loss, and to find solace in prayer and community.

After my theological studies, I was sent to West Pokot, Kenya, for my pastoral year. This time was a mixture of missionary service and preparation for priestly ordination. I worked closely with the local community, embracing their culture and sharing the Gospel in a way that resonated with their lived experience.

On 30 February 2022, I was ordained a deacon and on 11 June 2022, I was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Kitui. These moments were the culmination of years of discernment, formation and prayer, and marked the beginning of my life as a priest.

After ordination, I continued my studies at the Gregorian University in Rome, specialising in vocational formation. This academic journey deepened my understanding of how to guide and mentor others in their vocational discernment.

In June 2023 I finished my licentiate and returned to Kenya to work in the postulancy formation. Here I accompany young men from Kenya and South Sudan who are preparing to become Comboni Missionaries.

This role is both a privilege and a responsibility as it allows me to share my experience and support others in discerning their call to the missionary life.

Looking back, my journey has been one of growth, challenge and deepening faith. Each stage, from my early family life to my current role as a missionary, has been marked by God’s faithfulness. I have learned to embrace both the joys and the crosses of this vocation, always relying on God’s mercy and grace.