From April 7 to 29, Father David Domingues, Vicar General of the Comboni Missionaries, made a canonical visitation to the North American Province (NAP). His journey began in Los Angeles, where he met with his confreres and members of the various parish councils. After individual meetings, the community gathered for the Eucharist of thanksgiving, followed by a joyful fraternal agape in Covina.
The next stop was Newark, New Jersey, with day trips to New York, on the East Coast, where he celebrated Palm Sunday with the local Christian community at St. Lucy Church. He also participated in the Chrism Mass with the priests of the Archdiocese of Newark. It was a blessing to meet Cardinal Joseph Tobin, who expressed his appreciation for the work of the Comboni Missionaries in his archdiocese. Father David also visited the United Nations, VIVAT International, and the Offices for Justice where several institutions work.
He spent the Easter Triduum in Cincinnati, Ohio where he celebrated Easter Mass at St. Boniface, one of the five parishes in the Our Lady of the Guadalupe family. He then met with the staff of the Provincial House and the pastoral team.
In Chicago, a city he fondly remembers for his theological formation over 25 years ago, Father David met with the formation community. He also attended a joint meeting of the pastoral council and the finance council of the Evanston parish, St. John XXIII, which concluded with a shared meal.
On his way to Canada, Father David made a brief stop in Monroe, Michigan, where he celebrated the Eucharist with the Comboni Auxiliaries, thanking in particular two couples who were celebrating their 50th and 70th wedding anniversaries, to whom he gave the papal blessing as a sign of gratitude and recognition.
The last stop of the visit took him to Kitchener and Waterloo in Canada, where he met with the confreres and Christian communities of the parishes of St. Joseph and St. Ann. He also made a brief visit to the parish of St. Agnes in Waterloo, which will welcome the Comboni Missionaries starting June 25, 2025.
We thank Father David for his encouraging presence and his fraternal visit to the NAP. We assure him of our prayers and communion with the entire Institute, as we continue our journey as “pilgrims of hope.”
