The little with God is much, the much without God is nothing, no one is extremely poor until the point that he can´t give anything, we give from our very poverty, our land is the world, charity is the soul of the mission…these are all phrases that people from Tapauá know and have frequently heard during the Fifth Missionary Fair, celebrated on October the 23rd, the day before the World Mission Day.
Since 2006, when a group of Christian leaders from Tapauá hosted the Mission from Labrea for a Missionary Encounter, Saint Rita´s Parish from Tapauá started to flourish and to increase the missional dimension and generosity of the parish, with the main purpose of helping the needy.
One cannot believe it without seeing it. Many families in Tapauá are poor, some in the very depths of misery, and frequently they ask for help for their many needs. But it is also noticeable and unmistakable the generosity that the poorest people demonstrate.
In the parish council meeting they proposed to send the funds from the annual fair to the recollect mission in Kamabay-Sierra Leone. It was approved unanimously. Many tapauenses found curious the name “Sierra Leone” so they started to ask about its location. All kinds of information were given to them.
The commission in charge organized an “alborada” in the middle of the night, promoted especially by the young, who congregated in main streets in cars, motorcycles, trucks, and bicycles…At six in the morning the church’s plaza was crowed expecting the “solidarity coffee” which was prepared by a numerous group of volunteers. All the traditional foods and drinks were rapidly sold until the point that they had to announce through the communal radio that everything had already been sold.
The most crowed act was at night, in the plaza. A great stage with the national slogan of the missionary campaign, “Missao e Partilha” (Mission and Participation), took place in the plaza. A lot of tables were placed there so that families could sit, share the food and take part.
Meanwhile, the committee in charge cooked typical dishes to be sold throughout the day during the Fair, which ended at midnight. The traditional auction of roasted chicken, pound cakes, caramel custards and puddings, kept alive the generosity of those who are more fortunate.
The students from the Centro Esperanza also wanted to collaborate with the mission of Sierra Leone, so they had a small street market where they sold home-made crafts.
After the religious opening ceremony of the missionary fair Julio Cesar Hernandez, Augustinian Recollect, and Sister Dora, oblate religious, presented a slide show of the previous fairs and another one about the recollect mission in Kamabai, Sierra Leone.
Different groups of evangelical music joined together with students from the guitar and electrical piano classes from the Centro Esperanza, directed by the oblate Ximena, and various bands and singers from the leading committee and pastoral groups. This gave to the Fair a “ecumenical tone”.
The joy was completed when, at the end of the day, they realized how valid the efforts were, and that the generosity in Tapauá is full of goodness showing that the missionary spirit has not gone to sleep there. They reached their goal of 2,906 reals, which is equivalent to €1.240. This is approximately the salary of six months of a normal worker in Tapauá.
A shout of joy was heard when they announced the results to the communities, and a shout from those suffering in dire need too.
Tapauá from the Amazon looked-on with love to Kamabai in Sierra Leone.
