You, all of us at St Canice’s, are part of something so big at our Railaco secondary school. Through their Jesuit education, and as part of our involvement, students at Nossef gain not only an enriching understanding of knowledge that comes from textbooks, but also from life experiences, like adapting to a culture, embracing failure, living a balanced life, and relating with people from different ages and backgrounds.
RAILACO
‘Upholding Fullness of Life on Earth’ in Railaco
‘Upholding Fullness of Life on Earth’ in Railaco sounds grand at first. But it’s anything but. This is one pillar in the Apostolic priorities of our sister parish in Railaco. Elaborating on tis, the parish priest, Fr EJ Gerilla SJ, tells us that ‘Some poverty in parts of the parish is beyond imagination’.
Feeding children and providing a mobile medical clinic is part of the parish response to this. Education at the parish secondary school NOSSEF raises the bar to get rural kids a real chance in life, both academically and formed to be ‘men and women for others’.
Back to Railaco after 3 years
Fr Bong is still negotiating impossible roads to take the mobile medical clinic to communities without medical services from the government. At a far distant village, we parked under a tree, and Fr Bong consulted with 80 mothers and babies in an old tin shed, also used as a church. Across the way, the government clinic stands shuttered—no medicines for the people! Our continuing support is crucial.
Special Liturgy St Ignatius Feast Day 31 July
The captivating aspect about our St Canice special liturgies in the past is that they have been well-choreographed, unique local expressions of this cultural aspiration – quality music and congregational singing, indigenous tribute, local educational involvement – and as one with our near neighbours at the Railaco Jesuit Mission in East Timor.
NOSSEF 20th Anniversary Video
Fr. Hyoe Murayama SJ Director of NOSSEF shares a special video marking the 20th anniversary of the Secondary School in our sister parish of Railaco. It highlights the St Canice’s connection, and the foundational role that so many of our parishioners, past and present, have played. Thank you.
2021 End of Year Report Railaco Jesuit Mission
The Jesuits and the people of Railaco are most grateful for the continuing support of St Canice parishioners, but perhaps more importantly in the knowing that we continue to stand in solidarity with them in such challenging times.
My “Best” Christmas and New Year Celebrations – Philip Heng SJ
Fr Phillip Heng SJ, a Singaporean Jesuit, has recently arrived in Timor from Singapore to join the Jesuit Mission.He celebrated Mass at Christmas in one of the Railaco villages and has written a description of his experience. The story illustrates how important our sister parish relationship is in helping these people to obtain an education that will enable them to improve the quality of their life and improve the living standard of their nation.
Your donations make this possible.
‘Update from Nossef Railaco’ 2021
To our Friends and Benefactors,
This past year 2021 was also marked with the pandemic. Timor-Leste also faced the destructive power of natural disasters such as heavy rains and flash floods. Since October there have been fewer or sometimes no cases of COVID-19 in the Timor-Leste daily report, but attention still needs to be paid. Our academic year 2021 ended peacefully in Railaco, and we’d like to express our gratitude to all our collaborators and supporters who have helped our teachers and students in this difficult time in various ways through scholarships, teacher salary grants, generous donations of supplies, and prayer messages.
Since mid-September, NOSSEF Secondary School has resumed its regular campus activities. The students express their joy of studying together.
Meet NOSSEF Railaco Student, Julieta
Julieta, 18, is a Grade 10 student at NOSSEF Secondary School Her story combines the commendable traits of kindness, deep faith and action. It’s an example of how a good Catholic education can lift poor children living in desperate rural circumstances and provide them with opportunity in life.
2-min Video – Joyfully building our Railaco relationship
Joyfully building
our sister parish relationship
with Railaco Jesuit Mission
We promote a culture here at St Canice’s to support the marginalised not only in our own back yard but also in our sister parish in Railaco East Timor. For the past seventeen years, our community has been contributing generously to the health, nutrition, and educational needs of our near neighbours at the Railaco Jesuit Mission in Railaco.
This 2-minute video provides a snapshot of the wonderful works of the Mission.