Before coming to the Mission of the Lake House of Prayer I was the pastor of Mabatini Parish here in Mwanza. I spent 12 years as the founding pastor that were full of blessing for me. Since I have come to the House of Prayer groups and individuals have come for retreat  or just to say hello.

Yesterday 24 leaders came from Mabatini Parish’s only outstation, Nyambiti for a day of prayer and reflection. The day focuses of silence, reflection and prayer. I have been in the process of forming this kind retreat since arriving here. This particular retreat had a unique flavor.

I usually open it up for discussion after the people have spent some time reflecting and praying over reflection questions that help them see God’s Presence in their lives and how they are responding. Other groups are mainly silent when asked to talk about what they discovered in their reflection.

This group from Mabatini spoke up so much we didn’t have time to look at other subjects I had prepared to talk about. The people were very open and sensitive to the questions and shared from their hearts. What happen? Where is the difference? What made this group unique?

I think it was because we lived 12 years together and we trusted each other.

The rumble of trucks bringing in rocks and sand began ringing out their construction sounds a few days ago here at the House of Prayer. We have begun the second phase of our infrastructure development of constructing a resident guest wing of 6 self-contained rooms.

When completed we will have 12 guests rooms for our overnight retreatants. I would like to keep our occupancy at this level in order to maintain the personal touch we offer at the House of  Prayer. After over a year of welcoming guests for retreats  we have discovered that  keeping it simple and small creates a personal environment that enhances our guests stay.

A few days ago we completed our first small group Contemplative Retreat for Diocesan Priests. It went very well, much more than our most  positive expectations. The four priests responded immediately to the directions of the retreat and dug into the Silence and Solitude.

What made the retreat for them? They mentioned the attention to the little things, food, the rooms, the area, walks to the Lake, our chapel. They enjoyed the freedom to rest and renew their relationship with the Lord. I met with them for an hour everyday for Spiritual Direction. They seized the opportunity to look at their lives and ministries in the clear light of the retreat’s tranquility.

The morning they left at breakfast they sang Judy and I a song of thanks. It was a great blessing to see the remarkable change just in three days. The Spirit was working in powerful way in these men’s hearts. And it was their openness to try something totally new to them that gifted them with a blessed retreat.

Usually the local diocesan priests take a group preached retreat together for five days each year, as do many religious congregations. But this year it will be different. The bishop came over to see me before the new year and asked if I would be willing to give a short 3 day retreat based on the model of individual retreats we give at the House of Prayer. I agreed.

Now, what does that mean? What kind of retreats do we have here? What was the bishop looking for that is different than the annual priest retreats? Well, it means a Directed Contemplative Retreat which includes, Silence, Prayerful Reflection, meeting with a Spiritual Director once a day and Contemplative REST of body, mind and spirit.

The retreat will be different in the way we are asking the priests to ‘retreat’ from their over-busy lives and to REST enough to LISTEN to God’s STILL small voice deep within.

I think the bishop is looking for an opportunity for his priests to encounter Jesus Christ in a deeply personal way. I hope we can provide the SPACE for such an encounter; the rest is up to them and the SPIRIT.

I began working on the development of the House of Prayer in September 2014 with Eucharist underneath an ancient tree; from there with the Bishop we purchased an adjoining lot with an uncompleted house. I completed the house and moved in where we continue our daily Eucharist and Meditation.

In mid 2016 we completed a new home which we call the Rock House where I now live (Judy lives in the old house which is the house for overnight women guests). Our overnight men guests stay with me and all our guests eat and pray at the Rock House.

From mid 2016 to the end of 2017 we have received close to 100 guests for individual retreats; we have also led many small group retreats in Swahili and English. The experience of this time has given us confidence that we can proceed to the next step, the construction of a women’s wing (6 self-contained rooms).

Our request for funding has been approved through Maryknoll. I have signed the contract with the Contractor and am now going through the remaining steps in preparation for the start  of the building. I hope we can start later on this month.

As we continue to grow the challenge will be to remain in the Contemplative mode of providing Silence, Solitude and Simplicity. We have enough experience from welcoming our guests that this Contemplative Vision is welcomed and needed. Now to be Contemplative in the midst of the busyness of construction.

A few days ago five women came up for a day of silent retreat from my former parish Mabatini. Three of the women were leaders in the parish during my stay there; one was a parish counselor whom the people called “Mama Mshauri” (Mother Counselor).

We gave them the Yellow House (the women’s house) for the day and following my first suggestion of taking mid-morning naps before driving into prayer, they refreshed their tried bodies.  They took to the silence naturally, savoring the tranquility as they renewed their relationship  with the Divine.

At the evening mass they attended before they departed I called them my sisters. In Tanzania it is easy to get a sense of being connected to a group; especially when one goes through a lot with people that at the end the people become one’s sisters.

Last night and this morning I celebrated Eucharist with the local Christian community here at Ibanda. I enjoyed very much being with the Christians again after many months. What touched me was the people’s overflowing, natural Joy of being together in the Presence of God. Most of the people in the full Church are struggling mightily day to day just for the basics of food, adequate shelter, security and psychological well-being.

At the end of Mass I asked the choirs to sing and everyone to greet each other with blessings of the New Year. Well, the flow of Joy was something to behold. Many danced, including me as we went all around the church blessing each other, smiles of a deep Joy on our faces.

I am still amazed and touched by these ‘poor’ people’s capacity for such a profound Joy in the midst of their daily struggles. Indeed these are the ‘anuwin’, the ‘poor in material poverty and spirit whom Jesus had a special affection for. They have no choice but to depend on God, the alternative is a slow death without hope. These are the ones we are invited to learn from as we seek to be Present to the Presence in a world full of pain.

Two days ago three young men were ordained to the transitional Deaconate. One of the Deacons came to the House of Prayer for a five day directed retreat to prepare for this  important step.

During his retreat the young seminarian(at that time) joined us for a daily “taamuli” (contemplative meditation). After meditating with us for the five days he reported his desire to teach others taamuli. He was touched that this kind of prayer is not taught in the Diocese. He understood its potential to help people in their prayer life and just life in general.

Perhaps the time is ripe for the rich Contemplative Tradition of the Church to make its valuable contribution to the quality of faith life of the Christians. This is our hope.

Mwanza Arch-Diocese has around 60 Religious Sisters Congregations. These women work in parishes, hospitals, schools, amongst the poor of the poor, government programs and more. One may say they are the backbone of the church’s myriad of services to the local population. Most live in very simple situations struggling to make ends meet, not poverty but simplicity without much support in terms of on-going education, seminars and retreats.

Since we opened the House of Prayer most of our overnight guests have been Sisters. So in an effort to reach out to the needs of our Sisters around us we have started a series of day retreats in which we invite 10 congregations (five from each congregation) to join us for small group retreat. We had our first one last Sunday of which we welcomed 24 Sisters many whom came to the House of  Prayer for the first time.

I’m pleased and grateful to report the retreat went very well. The day was structured to fit our Vision with Silence, Reflection and Contemplative Prayer. Many of the Sisters were exposed to Centering Prayer for the first time and enjoyed the experience. Their spirit of openness and joy blessed us abundantly. We are thankful that a grace-filled space was provided for these women to bask in the Love of the Lord.

We’ve started a garden a couple of weeks ago and yesterday harvested our first  spinach crop. We are hoping to sell the spinach at a rock bottom price to our neighbors. A small effort to contribute to a healthy diet for a people who are malnourished. The regular price at the market is 200 Shillings, we are selling one bunch of spinach for 50 Shillings, so I thought we’d have a lot of customers right away for this ‘give  away’. But no, only a few have taken advantage of this ‘sale’. Why? Even the 50 Shillings (which is around 4 cents), people don’t have readily on them.