Despre “Reflectiile (consideratiile) unui strãin” ( Misiunea Magadan ). Despre “Reflections from an outsider” ( Mission to Magadan )

Despre “Reflections from an outsider” ( Mission to Magadan )

Despre “Reflectiile (consideratiile) unui strãin” ( Misiunea Magadan )

Mai întâi sã vedem care sunt aceste Reflectii :

“Reflections From An Outsider         

Writing on the gulags is not an easy task. Historians have already written extensively on the subject. Records have been dug out in an attempted to establish precise numbers, dates and circumstances as to how many people lived and died in this oppression. The repressed, for their part, have produced very important accounts that are incredibly detailed and ripe with emotion. Could I add to their story? Could I write anything that would give a deeper or stronger insight to their pain and suffering? I had to come to Magadan to find out the answer.

Coming to Magadan and meeting those that are unknown and forgotten by the authorities of their country, as well as visiting the Butuguchag (a former prison camp) meant for me, as a journalist from “secours catholique” (caritas France) two different things:

First, I wrote down the testimonies of the repressed and I immediately became aware that their past is still part of our present.

Secondly, I wanted to investigate the effects Father Michael and his parish were having on these individuals. I wanted to find out how fellowship and the word of the Lord has changed the lives of the repressed. They have now been free for 50 years. How have they chosen to live their lives after all they have been through?

Father Michael’s parish, the Nativity of Jesus, hosts daily prayer meetings that bring a sense of fellowship to those in the community. The meetings also bring attention, compassion, and spiritual guidance to the elderly and suffering. The parish also sets out long term goals. “For the coming years, the challenge will be to maintain these contacts, whereas, time passing by, the repressed are losing mobility and independence,” says Father Michael. Therefore the current goal is to go to their homes.

When you see the smiles of the repressed and their delight during the monthly meetings or the concerts the parish puts on, you realize the incredible gift of life the parish is giving these people who have suffered so much. The word of the Lord is telling them they are worthy of love and attention and they are loved. For someone who has been called an enemy of the country, the preaching are truly a heartfelt gift.

My trip to Magadan so deeply touched me that I will recall them often and for many years. It was a real lesson of life, strength, courage and of the humanity that these men and women give us. People who evil tried to destroy are still standing in their dignity and their beauty. The visit to Butiguchag camp, where prisoners used to work and to die, in infernal conditions, digging tin mines or processing uranium, was doubtlessly a very strong moment of my report. The mass which was celebrated by Father Michael and Father Milosh in the Butuguchag cemetery was particularly moving.

Seeing the tears on the wrinkled faces of the elderly, the laughs, and the joyous moments was truly an uplifting moment, and at the same time very difficult. Even in recollection it is still moving for me to read the notes taken during the interviews. To listen again to the voices singing in the church still resonate in my head. It is important to listen and remember, so that they won’t be forgotten as time passes.

Stéphane Fernandez

Rédacteur en chef adjoint de Messages du Secours catholique / Caritas France. »

Sursa : Mission to Magadan

Cred cã sursa exactã este Newsletter-ul Misiunii Magadan.