hi all!
i wanted to post some pics of the ordination Mass i went to today with my host mom and their family's church... we left the house at close to 7 a.m. and boarded charter busses that drove us the hour and a half to caete, the town right outside of serra da piedade... then, we climbed a winding road uphill for about an hour and when we finally got to the top i found out that serra da piedade is actually a beautiful stadium-like area carved into the mountain's peak... that's where the archdiocese celebrates special occasion Masses... Mass on top of a mountain--it couldn't have been more picture perfect...
the awesome thing was that when we trekked up the hill in the morning, the whole place was stuck in a cloud... it was gray everywhere, you couldn't see more than 10 feet in front of you and it was windy and cold... but we began praying before Mass, and in prayer we asked the clouds to lift so we could celebrate Mass in the light... and what do you know?! the clouds lifted, the sun shone bright and the winds slowed down... it was truly awesome!
there were 9 priests ordained today! it was a very moving service and i am so excited that i was able to go to this celebration in brasil... i wrote down some notes in my journal during Mass, and what struck me about going to Mass in brasil, is that it is different and still beautifully the same... you can go anywhere in the world--even caete, minas gerais, brasil!!!--and the Mass is still the same. <3
here's some pics from the Ordination Mass
TONS of people
i've never before seen anything like the serra da piedade, especially since i was born and grew up in lubbock... it's plains as far as the eye can see... here in brazil, everything is as mountainous as anything i've seen in books or movies... truly breathtaking.
kind of hard not to be in awe of our Creator, you know?
awesome stations of the cross overlooking the scenery...
anyway, wanted to ask for your continued prayers as i travel to são pãolo in the morning... my host sister is taking me to the airport at 4:15 a.m. to catch a shuttle to the other airport, where i'll catch my flight at 6:45 a.m... yay me! on the other hand, that leaves me all day to get to know heidi, the MKLM lay missionary who is hosting me at the MKLM community over these next 10 days. Hopefully, we'll get to go to Mass in the evening as i'm sure i'm going to want to nap when i arrive in sp.
my schedule is set and i'll be doing some things with the lay missionaries, the sisters and the priest in the MKLM community this week, and some things i'm doing on my own... yikes! super scared to not have my bip's with me to lean on as my portuguese is not fluent yet, but i am sure that it will just be more to learn from.
please pray for my safety this coming week as we will be visiting prisons and favelas in the MKLM's area... also, pray that i'm able to see past my own prejudices and circumstances and be able to see people who need to know Christ's love.
finally, pray that the Holy Spirit guides my decisions over these next few weeks, months and years... things are changing fast and i just want to do what God is leading me to do.
thank you all for your thoughts and prayers, i'll post an update from sp when i can!
peace and love,
crystal
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