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Latin America

Bolivia. The ‘Andean romeria’. A Festive Path among Songs and Prayers.

The pilgrimages of the various Andean communities are a combination of ancestral traditions and Christian spirituality. The pilgrimage festivals take place between the months of September and October, which according to the Andean agricultural calendar are the months for sowing. The pilgrimage is prepared one year in advance when an organiser is selected for the…

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Peru. The Asheninka. Mijado, the Time for Sharing.

By the word mijado this indigenous people, living in the rainforests of Peru, refers to the time of migration of fish and fishing activity, an occasion to strengthen the ties of friendship and brotherhood with loved ones, members of the same communities, or other communities. Basically, mijado is the time for sharing. Before talking about…

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Mexico. Saint Joseph ‘the Worker’.

‘Labour Day’, is celebrated on the first of May along with the religious feast of ‘Saint Joseph the Worker’ in the municipality of Chilapa, Guerrero, in south-western Mexico. The celebrations held in honour of Saint Joseph the Worker begin on 30 April with a great fair. Merchants from all over the region come to sell fruit,…

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Bolivia. Socavon, Life is a Joyful Dance.

The pilgrimage to the shrine of the Virgin of Socavon, in Bolivia, is a process of conversion and a desire for intimacy with God. The celebration of the Oruro Carnival is an expression of popular religiosity that intertwines Christian feeling with that of all the Andean people. It expresses the relationship of closeness and respect…

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Colombia. Afro Centre. A Place of Sharing.

In Tumaco, Colombia, a decade ago, the Afro Youth Centre was established to enable young people to work for social transformation using art, culture, group work and a communitarian experience of faith. Tumaco is located in the extreme southwest of Colombia, in the Pacific region bordering Ecuador, far from the political and economic centres of…

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Mexico. Towards a New Phase of Militarization.

Three years after the establishment of the Guardia Nacional, created for the ‘prevention and fight against crime’, it has not produced the desired results. Violence on the increase.  Journalists the first in the firing line. Under the presidency of López Obrador, the Guardia Nacional project eventually came into being. The new body was formed by…

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Mexico. The Monarch Butterfly.

When we talk about the monarch butterfly, we touch on legend, mythology and the history of the species. The pre-Columbian cultures considered the monarch butterfly sacred. Her image can be found in figures, vessels, ornaments and jewels. Butterflies were also used as tribute and offerings, and bread and sweets were even baked in their form.…

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Peru. The Maloca, a Large Communal House.

Maloca means communal house, it represents the unity of the Asheninka community, an indigenous people living in the central forest of the Ucayali department in the Atalaya province of eastern Peru. The maloca is a large communal house inhabited by the indigenous of the Amazon. It is a traditional social unit which has cosmogonic and…

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Guatemala. Devotion to Saint Simón.

He never existed, yet his faithful are many. Saint Simón is the fusion between the unrecognised Spanish saint and an indigenous god. He is the primary saint in Guatemala, and you can see effigies of him everywhere, he is represented in the image of a man of means with a moustache, dressed in black, wearing…

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Latin America 2022. The Coming Back of the Left.

After the victory of the left in Honduras and Chile, now attention is centred on Colombia and Brazil. On February 6, 2022, the presidential and legislative elections will take place in Costa Rica, a country of five million people, which shows the greatest political-institutional development among those in the Latin American region. The President, two…

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Brazil. The Tree of the Land of the Free People.

To be a people and to make theology with the people.  Living the experience of God the Liberator in the sequela of the Jesus of the Gospel.  The experience of a woman theologian on a journey towards “feeling oneself as belonging to a people and understanding the people”. The territory where I live is on…

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Bolivia. Chakana, the Andean cosmic bridge.

Andean Chakana is the symbol of the principle of relations with people and nature. It is the cosmic bridge between three communities: human, natural and supernatural. The Quechua term Chakana is composed of two words; Chaka means bridge and na is literally a syllable or a consonant but, in the Andean world, evokes a sense…

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Advocacy

Myanmar. Paul Sein Twa. Preserving Ancestral Territory.

“What we would like to achieve when we talk about peace. Peace means self-determination. Peace means biological conservation. Peace means revitalization of our culture and…

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Baobab

Inca. The Island of the Sun.

At that time Viracocha, the creator God, looked down upon the earth. He saw it was bare, shrouded in impenetrable darkness, for daylight did not yet…

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Youth & Mission

Celebrating African youth.

“Young Africans are playing an active role in bringing social change in the continent. They are contributing daily to the benefit of their communities and nations…

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