Chapel of Saint Jude the Apostle inaugurated in Kimbau, DRC
Vatican News
"Yesterday we celebrated Christmas here in Kimbau, where we have a Diocesan hospital full of patients in need of prayer. Exactly a year ago, we had hopes the rain would never again spoil the Christmas Eve Mass and the Mass the following morning. Christmas falls during the rainy season. However, the prayers of the poor reached the ears of the Father."
This is how Chiara Castellani, a 67-year-old Italian lay missionary doctor, begins her Christmas chronicle. She has been serving for over 30 years at the Catholic hospital in Kimbau, in the Diocese of Kenge, Democratic Republic of Congo. With the help of Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, support from the then Apostolic Nuncio in Kinshasa, Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, and the approval of Bishop Jean-Pierre Kwambamba Masi of Kenge, Chiara managed to build the Chapel of Saint Jude the Apostle for her patients and the Christians in this remote area of Africa in time for Christmas.
"On Sunday evening, the roof of our Saint Jude chapel was finally completed. We lacked light to illuminate the Christmas night, but God gave us an almost full moon and a sunny Sunday. Sister Moon guided the path of the faithful and even the sick to the chapel, Brother Sun, thanks to which we charged two batteries with the hospital's solar panels. With two 12V lamps, we illuminated the inside of the chapel. Certainly, many things are still missing. The batteries and solar panels to light the church do not belong to us; we left the hospital in the dark. The floor is still not in and we kneel on the sand. There are no pews, but we use tree trunks or people bring chairs from home. But the sick were present in great numbers because there's a lot of malaria and flu going around during the rainy season, and this year we also have a measles epidemic. We took all the chairs from the hospital and benches from the nursing school, but they were not enough! Many people stood. For the young ones, it wasn't a problem; they danced all night. But for the elderly and the sick, we need benches! The ceiling is also missing because when the sun is high, the chapel becomes an oven, but this is less urgent."
Initially, Chiara explains, there were difficulties in finding funds for the construction of a church. It would have been easier to raise money for a social project. She herself adds, "I would have been of this opinion if I hadn't been to Kimbau: 'For the Congolese patient, prayer is part of the treatment plan. As a doctor and a believer, I'm discovering that prayer strengthens the immune system!'".
Chiara is a Fidei Donum of the Diocese of Verona. She lost her right arm in an accident on African roads but hasn't lost her passion for helping the poorest:
"When I arrived in Kimbau almost 33 years ago, we were overwhelmed by religious sects. Catholics were very few. To see Saint Jude's chapel so full for two days that people couldn't enter gives us hope to continue growing as a local Church and continue to respond to this need to pray. But to pray by singing and dancing as God deserves. Yesterday, the president of the parish committee said that if the number of believers continues to grow, the chapel risks becoming too small. But for now, we squeeze in. The chapel fills up even on weekdays: the challenge of responding to the sick's need to pray seems to have been met. And if the faithful are many, we can count on the funds from the offerings to continue the remaining work."
Chiara recalls the free contribution of many local people that made the construction of the Chapel possible. This year's Christmas was joyful for the sick in Kimbau, despite the many problems that persist. But now there's an extra hope, that of not being forgotten for living in poverty in a remote place in the African continent.
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