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“Where there is despair, hope” – The blind teenager in El Salvador

“Where there is despair, hope” asks today’s line of the Franciscan Peace Prayer. The blind teenager whom Maria Fernandez met on mission had such dispair that when they met, he cried, “I just want to die.” May this story from Maria’s time in El Salvador (2002-2005) remind us how we can accompany people through their darkest times. Even…

Mission Monday: A Quinceañera at the Franciscan burn center

Bolivian children recovering severe burns are sometimes brought to the Franciscan Social Center in Cochabamba to heal. Missioner Nora Pfeiffer, who lives at the center, shares with us this “Mission Monday” a recent special birthday celebration. The 15th birthday girl and the cake made by Nora Here in Bolivia, a girl’s 15th birthday is particularly…

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