The formation of SMA students for the priesthood has spiritual academic and practical aspects. Students undertake academic studies to develop their minds so that they have the theological knowledge and understanding that will allow them to proclaim the Gospel as Missionaries. Spiritual training and Prayer deepen faith and give a solid foundation that will sustain them in their priestly lives. Practical instruction and experience are also needed to develop abilities that will allow them to be effective spiritual leaders in the communities and places where they work and live and also to manage and organize their lives and work.
To this end SMA Students receive practical pastoral and life skills training throughout their formation. They do this through involvement in parish pastoral work, by being responsible for activities, liturgies and the smooth day-to-day running of the communities where they live. They participate in courses such as cooking, carpentry and mechanics. They also participate and are given responsibility for SMA Community projects aimed at producing food or raising funds that contribute to the costs of running the SMA House where the live.
Below we have a report about one such project, written by an SMA Student in the House of Formation in Kabwe, Zambia. Clearly, he enjoyed his work and has learned much from it.
My experience with Poultry
My name is Chama Raphael. I am the third born in a family of five, one of whom is deceased. I come from the ecclesiastical province of Ndola Archdiocese and I am a seminarian with the Society of African Missions (SMA) doing my philosophical studies at Mpima Seminary in Kabwe.
I joined the SMA on the 1st September 2021, and my journey ever since has been a good one. I have had different learning experiences each year. Here, I would like to talk about the experience I have had with our poultry this year. We raise chickens in our House as a way of supplementing our diet and also to reduce our running costs.
Involvement with laying chickens, broilers and village chickens is not just something that has become my daily routine, it has become part of me. It has made me appreciate and realize how important nature is in my life. Watching each batch of poultry grow in a healthy environment is always a joyous experience: even the way they peck my hand when feeding them each day is an extraordinary feeling. It always saddens me to see them in stress due to any disease that they may suffer during the process of growth and, worst of all is losing them because of sickness. This makes me feel like I am not fulfilling my responsibilities well.
I recall the very first batch I cared for. I kept checking on them repeatedly to make sure they were well and to see and gather the fresh eggs they laid. I came to appreciate that I was producing fresh and healthy eggs, free from the chemicals present in the those produced by commercial, industrial scale poultry companies.
Caring for chickens has been a valuable experience. It has given me skills which helped me to develop time management in my daily schedule. I have learned how to organize and plan the different aspects of the project in order to achieve the best results. The most joyous part in caring for a batch of chickens is when no life is lost during the process. This gives me a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment and the knowledge that my job has been well done.
Chalma Raphael
From September, when students return after the summer break, another student will be given responsibility for this project. Hopefully he too will, in addition to making a practical contribution to the SMA Community, also feel fulfilled and learn life skills that will help him to be a better, more organized and self-sustaining missionary.