Nicaragua

Matagalpa, Nicaragua, which is 6 hours by truck south of Comayagua, Honduras, looks like our next destination. With an invitation from the Bishop of Matagalpa, the friars decided they will settle there as their second Central American mission. Fr. Bernard, the Servant of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, knowing we were looking for another opportunity to live in a foreign mission, asked us if we'd like to help them out to start this new mission. Daniel would do the construction management of the new friary.
In mid-May Daniel flew to Honduras and then drove to Matagalpa with two of the friars to check out the place. If God continues to lead us in this direction, we will pack up and leave New York at the end of July. We'll go to Texas for time with family for a month and a half. About mid-September, we'll fly to Honduras to stay for a month while the friars move things over to Nicaragua and we visit with friends and Daniel works on plans for the new friary. And soon after the feast of St. Francis on October 4th, we will move to Matagalpa with the friars. Wow! That is a lot of moving. God help us. :)

Daniel traveled with Fr. John Anthony and Br. Antonio. Here they are in front of the Cathedral of Matagalpa. It has recently been redone and is beautiful inside.

A typical street in the town of Matagalpa. There are very few tall buildings and the streets are cobblestone.

The town square by the Cathedral.

Self photo of Daniel.
This is a chapel up in a mountain village. Daniel and the friars accompanied the bishop to this village three hours away in a truck. The community there like most mountain villages has a priest for Mass only once or twice a year. So when the bishop comes, it is a very exciting event. Before the Mass members of the community sang songs and recited poems written especially for that day and the Bishop's coming. The Sacrament of Confirmation was given by the Bishop and after the Mass, the priest baptized while people take their pictures with the Bishop.
The meal afterwards.
The Bishop and Fr. John Anthony. Daniel said that the Bishop's truck and the Priest's truck were the only two vehicles there. Everyone else came on horseback or walked. So the "parking lot" was a long line of horses ties to trees.
When Daniel and the friars headed down to Nicaragua from Honduras, they did not know what to expect from their trip, except to see the town of Matagalpa and talk with the Bishop. Much to their delight, the Bishop had a piece of land in mind on which to build the new friary. Here they are having a look at it with the Bishop and an architect and engineer both of whom have done projects for the Bishop before.

A friend of the Bishop had been wanting to give this land to him, but the Bishop didn't quite know what to use it for until he thought the Friars might like it. It is about 5 minutes by truck from the Cathedral and is above a cliff that overlooks the town.

Being without a tape measurer, Daniel and the friars improvised using a length of rope from the Friars' truck and a borrowed 1 meter measuring tape. Here Fr. John Anthony is holding an end of rope.