I was blessed to be in Honduras again for just over two weeks, August 2-20, 2012. The trip began on the north coast in the new missionary Diocese of La Ceiba, where Bishop Michael Lenihan is working hard to shepherd this newly formed local church. I was privileged to accompany Bishop Michael on several occasions, including (above) a visit to Maria Regina High School. While in La Ceiba I helped out with Masses (including a Sunday morning televised Mass) led Holy Hours and was a guest on three different programs on the Catholic Radio Station. One of the principal purposes of the visit was to meet with the community of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Barrio El Sauce to prepare for a Pan de Vida Eucharistic Youth Retreat scheduled for early 2013.
While on the north coast I also helped lead retreats for two groups of lay missionaries. In a guest house on one of the rivers near La Ceiba, I spent two days with the mostly American lay volunteers from the Finca del Nino (Farm of the Child) in Trujillo (pictured above and below). It was a much needed time of spiritual refreshment for these hard working young people serving orphaned and underprivileged children in a remote area of Honduras.
Immediately following the two day retreat with the Finca volunteers I travelled by ferry to the island of Utila for three days with the mostly Honduran Missioners of Christ from Comayagua (above and below) for a time of rest, retreat and recreation after a busy summer of hosting visitng teams from the US.
Before we left La Ceiba, Bishop Michael, and Father Francisco and Father Rene (from the Cathedral Parish of San Isidro) hosted us for a farewell breakfast that included traditional Honduran and Garifuna (a north coast ethnic group of African descent) folk dances (below).
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