The First Assembly of Native Peoples in Angoteros, Peru, organized by the Consolata Missionaries (IMC), highlighted the urgent need for the Church to engage deeply with the indigenous peoples of the Amazon. Inspired by the spirit of ‘monifue’—good living—the assembly called for a Church that not only accompanies but also learns from the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of these communities.
Born in Brazil, Rafael Gemelli Vigolo graduated in mechanical engineering before he decided to follow God’s call. A former missionary in Peru and in the far reaches of the Brazilian Amazon, the Comboni priest arrived in Macau two and a half years ago, shortly before the Covid-19 pandemic forced the Special Administrative Region to isolate itself from the rest of the world. Currently the Vicar of Saint Francis Xavier parish in Mong Ha, Father Vigolo found in Macau a way of living and celebrating the Catholic faith, which is very different from what he was used to in Latin America. The Brazilian missionary found himself surrounded with a vibrant community but also with very specific issues. One of the most challenging, he emphasizes, is the spiritual accompaniment of the younger generations after the end of their catechetical formation. Father Rafael Vigolo spoke with O Clarim….