On July 4th we received a call in the morning informing us that in the chapel of San Jose, the pipe had clogged and all the black water was leaking into the chapel. They sent us photos and videos showing how the chapel was filling up with water from the bathroom drain.
The community of San José Chapel has suffered a lot, firstly because of poverty, secondly because the land has not been regularized, and thirdly because of the lack of evangelization.
Approximately 10 years ago a chapel was established in this community. Unfortunately, six years ago, the owner of the land where the chapel was located evicted the community. For several weeks, they were celebrating mass in the park. Despite the discomfort, the large number of people who stood in the sun to listen to the mass showed their enthusiasm and joy. Finally, a person with a large piece of land lent them his house to have a temporary chapel. They have been celebrating on that land for more than four years.
They built a temporary chapel made of wood, but with no foundation, no cement and no floor; it is a chapel directly on the ground. When it rains, the place floods and there is a lot of mud. Due to the lack of security, there is no tabernacle, so the consecration must be done at every mass, making sure that all the hosts are consumed.
Finally, the owners of the land have decided to donate the land to the Oblates of Mary Immaculate. This is great news, but there are many things that need to be done, especially with the drainage, roof, floor and walls. We hope you will pray for our St. Joseph’s community, which has had many, many challenges to get to this point, where they will finally have their own chapel.
We hope that very soon the construction will begin, we will be able to fix the drainage and we will have a dignified place where the people of this community, who have suffered so much, can celebrate Sunday mass on Fridays. We ask for your prayers and support so that this dream becomes a reality for this community.
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