Shillong: On September 28, the Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians (MSMHC), the first indigenous congregation of northeastern India, will close a yearlong celebrations of the 125th birth anniversary of its founder Venerable Stephen Ferrando, a Salesian prelate.

The year was launched on September 28, 2019, by current superior general Philomena Mathew at the bishop’s tomb at Peachlands near Shillong. Throughout the year, the congregation created short video clips in various languages of northeastern India, conducted quiz programs, sand organized short articles and poems about the bishop.

It all began in December 1923, when a ship carrying a group of aspiring missionaries led by a young Salesian priest was safely anchored in the port of Bombay. They were heading to the exotic mission land of Assam.

“You are to go to the Indian missions – Assam. Lead the group of young novices to the mission of Assam. Be ready to report immediately, wrote Salesian Rector Major to Father Stephen Ferrando immediately after his ordination.

Although joy and enthusiasm overwhelmed him at the thought of being frontline missionary, the new priest felt unprepared yet for such a sudden call to the unknown mission.

However, the ex-military officer who was decorated with Silver Medal and prestigious awards for defending his motherland Italy in the World War I would not back off in the face of challenges. The brave soldier in him was awakened and he set for another battle, this time as a Soldier of Christ. Hence on, the journey began, leading the ‘spiritual army’ to win souls for Christ.

In 1934, he was appointed Bishop of Krishnagar and the following year transferred to Shillong to shepherd the people of the entire northeastern India for the next 34 years until retirement in 1969. His main vision as a bishop was to spread the message of Christ throughout northeastern India. So, he chose as his motto, the “Apostle of Christ.”

Stalwart missionary
Life as a missioner in the land of thick forests, rivers, rolling hills and steep valleys was not easy and comfortable. The region lacked proper roads and means of communication. Yet, Bishop Ferrando reached out to people in the remotest villages on foot, walked the rugged roads for miles, encountered wild animals, slept in a hut, endured hunger and thirst, “All for Jesus.”

He loved the people, learnt their language and culture and lived among them. He was the people’s bishop, loved and revered by his flock. “I want my bones to be buried in Khasi – Jaintia Hills,” was his wish and his mortal remains were brought back from Italy and interred in a beautifully decorated tomb at St. Margaret’s Convent, Peachlands, Shillong on December 12, 1987.

People constantly visit his tomb to honor this great missionary to the Northeast and pray for favor through his intercessions. Pope Francis declared him Venerable on March 3, 2016.

His resilience and focus

As a bishop, he faced many trials that tested his faith. In less than a month after he took over the diocese of Shillong, a devastating fire burnt down the cathedral on Good Friday 1936. As the ‘harvest indeed is plentiful but the laborers are few,’ (Mt 9:37) Bishop Ferrando faced acute shortage of personnel as well as financial constraint. Yet he kept the mission alive and cared for the faithful. He remained always optimistic and focused on the mission. Holding on to Jesus in faith, he courageously endured the cross with spirit of sacrifice and joy.

Bishop Ferrando was a man of God rooted in prayer and blessed with a large, brave and compassionate heart. He had a deep and passionate love for Jesus, a filial and tender love for Mary, a personal love for Don Bosco, an ardent love for the missions, a compassionate love for his people. He had special love and devotion to Mary Help of Christians.

Bishop Ferrando left an indelible mark in the life of the church through his missionary endeavors in the Northeast. Besides establishing the local churches, parishes and institutions, he built a new magnificent cathedral in Shillong and named it Mary Help of Christians Shillong built. The annual Eucharistic procession he started in Shillong continues as one of the most important religious gatherings in northeastern India. Thousands of devotees from throughout the region attend the procession.

The most outstanding legacy of Bishop Ferrando is the founding of the Missionary Sisters of Mary Help of Christians (MSMHC), the first indigenous congregation of the Northeast.

A new way to win battle: Birth of the MSMHC

It was 1942. The world was set ablaze by World War II unleashing untold misery even in the remotest corner of Northeast India. Life came to a standstill, and the pulse of life in the church too could hardly be felt without its missionaries who could not attend to the needs of their flock due to restrictions of movements.

Poverty, illiteracy and unhygienic living conditions of the people of the region had always been a great concern of Bishop Ferrando. The ravages of war doubled the misery. The war affected women and children especially those at the periphery of society. Greater danger loomed large in the life of the nascent Church as the budding faith of the people dwindled.

The man who was valiant at World War I as a soldier proved his mettle once again. Unbowed by the storm of rage and the wave of gloom, Bishop Ferrando picked the pieces of life from the remnants of the war and gave wings to shattered dreams with the founding of the MSMHC that took the lead to evangelize, catechize, heal and educate the far flung population of Northeast India. The nuns’ main focus was women and children plagued by poverty, illiteracy and unhygienic living conditions worsened by the war.

MSMHC: Sent to the World on Mission

Began with just six local girls then, the congregation has now grown with more than a thousand members from 70 ethnic groups from India, Myanmar, Nepal, Hawaii and Lesotho.

The MSMHC has taken its dedicated service from the remote corner of the Northeast India to many places in the global map. The congregation makes its presence felt through schools, boarding houses, dispensaries, homes for the aged, rehabilitation center for HIV/AIDS patients, drug addicts and alcoholics, shelter homes, missionary evangelization in different parishes.

They are now found in Italy, Swaziland, Lesotho, South Sudan, South Africa, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Hawaii, Germany, Myanmar and Sri Lanka, besides India.

125th Birth Anniversary

Bishop Ferrando was born on September 28, 1895, in the small town of Rossiglione, Italy. His parents were Augustine Ferrando and Josephine Salvi, Stephen Ferrando grew up in faith, religious and natural settings of Rossiglione. He had close contact with the Salesians at Valdocco and inspired by Don Bosco’s motto “Give me souls, take away the rest,” he became one of the greatest sons of Don Bosco.

The MSMHC nuns have marked the bishop’s 125th birth anniversary in intense spiritual journey through prayers, daily chain adoration, in depth study and personalization of the bishop’s letters, daily walk with him. The superior general sent out daily inspirational thought from the bishop’s letters. The nuns also spent the year in works of charity in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

By walking the path less traveled, Bishop Ferrando worked relentlessly for the people of northeastern India and made a difference for many. Today, hear him speak from above his famous maxim, ‘Always more and always better.”

(Sister Irene Zosiami is a member of the MSMHC congregation.)