Teachers' Guide
Dear Teachers,
‘I bring you news of great joy, a joy to be shared by the whole people’ (Luke 2:10). Such a beautiful promise of a gift from God!
In our day-to-day life, God’s manifestations come in different ways, sometimes in the most awesome appearance, sometimes in the simplest expression. But for the entire Columban community and for all concerned, the release of Fr Michael Sinnott, after being kidnapped on 11 October 2009, was such an early but the greatest Christmas gift. Yes, too early for us to celebrate Christmas as well as the Advent season as we look into the light of Father Mick’s captivity.
Etuate, known as ‘Etu’, is Columban seminarian from Fiji studying in Quezon City.
A story about Mrs Mery Elgen ‘Chaty’ Harris from Bacong, Negros Oriental, near Dumaguete City, who is married with two children and lives in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, where she works as a registered nurse in the Ballarat Health Service.
Japan is a country of few Christians, particularly Catholics. As far as my little knowledge is concerned, Japan in its refusal to be conquered by the different religious orders, persecuted quite a number of religious missionaries and lay persons including the first Filipino Martyr, Saint Lorenzo Ruiz. On 24 November last year 187 martyrs were beatified in Nagasaki City. Despite the persevering efforts of the religious missionaries to spread Christianity, most Japanese remained firm in their traditional belief, Shinto, which eventually became the national religion until Buddhism was introduced in the pre-war period. Today, although the system has changed, Shinto and Buddhism remain the dominant religions in the country. Temples and shrines are the hottest tourist attractions in the country especially in places rich in Japanese history and tradition. One famous religious tradition is the 
Opportunities to decide how they will spend their lives come in different ways for different people. More than just recognizing these chances is the permanent joy brought about by listening and responding to them according to God’s plan. For Sr Adela V. Paternina TC, her opportunity to decide how she would live the rest of her life came to her 57 years ago, when she chose to enter the Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family, a religious congregation founded at the shrine of Our Lady of Montiel in Benaguacil, Valencia, Spain, by Bishop Luis José María Amigó y Ferrer OFM Cap. Now, as her 78th birthday is approaching, she sees her life as simpler but more real than it was before.