St. Anselm of Canterbury Episcopal Church13091 Galway Street November 23, 2004 Dear Parish Family: Greeting and Blessed Advent!!! I am writing this letter from Mediator Cathedral in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. I will be leaving here in a few days and returning home over the Thanksgiving weekend. My trip to Brazil has been wonderful. It has been a short three-week sabbatical but very interesting and fun nonetheless. I have met many new and wonderful people and have shared in the life of the Church in this part of the world. Just last night I had dinner with all the Brazilian bishops (ten in total including the Presiding Bishop) who were here in Santa Maria in Southwest Brazil for an annual retreat. We had dinner at small tavern in an area that had a significant Italian migration back in the thirties. The meal was Italian, with excellent wine and it felt more like we were in a rural village in Italy than in Brazil. The feel of the place and the Italian food were far more authentic than anything I have ever experienced in the U.S. One of the things I have come to realize on this trip is that Europeans and other immigrants came to Brazil and South America from the Ukraine, Italy, Poland, Germany, Japan (Sao Paulo has over one million people of Japanese descent) and other places. These immigrants not only immigrated to the U.S.A. back in the day when many came from Europe, but they also immigrated to South America. This country is definitely a country of immigrants and very racially diverse. Brazil also has the largest Black population of any country in the world, including African countries. They can boast a genuine mosaic here. When I arrived in Brazil I first visited the Diocese of Curitiba in the state of Parana, and stayed at the home of the diocesan bishop, the Rt. Rev. Naudal Gomes who has visited us at St. Anselm's. While there I attended a simultaneous clergy and diocesan youth retreat that St. Anselm's funded through our Kelly Evangelism Fund. They were very grateful and I was impressed with the work they are doing. Curitiba is also a very beautiful and modern city with excellent public transportation. The state of Parana where Curitiba is located is very concerned with environmental issues. Brazil is a third world country that often feels like a first world country (until you come across a slum on the outskirts of a city). I have seen some very disheartening looking slums (favelas) here where people live in deplorable conditions. The Church in Brazil leans strongly toward social justice ministries and although it is very limited in resources it does plenty of outreach that goes toward helping the needy. Last weekend I was in Montevideo, Uruguay a very European city. Most of the population is White, although it is also racially mixed. Most people look very European especially the older people. Older people in Uruguay look as if they are from another era, a sort of pre World War II era. I took many pictures including pictures of school children that wear uniforms consisting of white lab coats with big blue bow ties. American kids would never wear anything like that in this day and age but in Uruguay tradition is strong. These kids also had a radiant sparkle in their eyes I rarely see in our kids back home. As I took their pictures they got more and more excited by the camera and didn't want me to stop shooting. I hope I captured something of their spirit. Holy Trinity Church is the Anglican Cathedral in Montevideo. While visiting there at their Sunday Eucharist I had the opportunity to be a concelebrant along with the diocesan clergy and Bishop Miguel Tamayo who is the Bishop of the diocese of Uruguay. Montevideo is also a beautiful city. I really enjoyed Montevideo. I stayed at the home of a priest in a high-rise condo overlooking the ocean. To get there from Brazil I had to travel on bus with my good friend the Rev. Carmen Etel 11 hours going and 11 hours coming. Rev. Carmen was leading a retreat for women in Montevideo and I got to tag along. Some of you may remember her. Before returning to Brazil she did supply work for our Latino ministry at St. Anselm's. In closing, I will be flying home Friday (the 26th) and will be at Church for the First Sunday in Advent. It will be great to be back. I have really enjoyed this trip and before I leave I am still looking forward to spending some time with Bishop Juval Neves of the diocese of the Southwest of Brazil. This aside I am ready to go home, and spend some quiet time during my first week back working on the photography I have done here in Brazil. Then my sabbatical will be complete for this trip, which means I will not be back in the office until the week of December 5th. I heard through Elizabeth that one of the trees fell in the courtyard and she assured me that the parish was quite capable of dealing with the crisis without my presence. Nice to know things can get resolved without me :-). Please keep me in your prayers for safe travel. I trust you will all have a blessed Thanksgiving and as we prepare for the coming Advent season. I pray that we all open our hearts to the gift of the birth of Christ and continue to work toward making real his Kingdom on Earth. From Mediator Cathedral in Santa Maria, Brazil I remain. Faithfully in Christ, Wilfredo Benitez+The Rev. Wilfredo Benitez, Rector See previous Logs |
