On the occasion of Christmas 2024, Abraham and Judith, committed members of the CANA Fraternity in Burkina Faso, share with us their testimony of faith, simplicity and communion.
“Peace and joy, we got married on January 29, 2011. God has blessed us with three daughters. We experienced the CANA week in August 2019 and the CANA retreat in August 2022. Since 2019, we have been journeying in the CANA Fraternity.
In Burkina Faso, Christmas is a great celebration both spiritually and festively. From the end of November and throughout December, activities are organized in the parishes to enable the faithful to better prepare to welcome the Messiah: conferences, recollections and special confessions. Children are also particularly involved in the festivities, so they compete in creativity to build cribs for the baby Jesus who is about to be born. Despite the security situation, a certain effervescence is observed in the run-up to Christmas in the streets, in shopping centers and around places of worship, through the sale of decorative objects, Christmas trees, clothing, etc.
As far as we are concerned, for this 2024 Christmas party, two points were important:
- The first concerns the spiritual aspect of the family’s confession and spiritual disposition during the Advent season, as well as participation in the family Christmas mass at St. Francis of Assisi parish in Karpala.
- The second is sharing the joy of Christmas with our children, our extended family and our neighbors of other faiths.
We talked a lot as a couple in the run-up to this feast, especially about the choice of celebrating at home with our family, the choice of times and place for mass, the gifts to give the children… It brought us joy and helped strengthen our communication.
On Christmas Day, we were overwhelmed by the number of visitors – neighbors, acquaintances, colleagues – who came to wish us a happy holiday and share in our joy. We particularly appreciated the presence of many local children.
There are two specific aspects of this Christmas for us and our children:
- Sobriety, in the sense that we had no material preparations in terms of clothing, hairstyles, shoes…, unlike in other years.
- The family was delighted to welcome a nephew of the Muslim faith, who wanted to spend Christmas and the rest of his 1st quarter vacations with us.
For this New Year, we pray for peace and security in Burkina Faso and other war-torn countries. We also hope that displaced persons and families will be able to return to their places of origin in peace.
For couples and families, we express the wish to grow together, thanks to the Holy Spirit, in the image of the holy family of Nazareth.”
Abraham & Judith