SW News: Comboni missionary Fr Christian Carlassare, who was shot at in South Sudan, prayed for peace in the African nation while visiting the Marian shrine of Madonna dell’Angelo in Piovene Rocchette, Italy, on Sunday, July 25. The bishop-elect of Rumbek diocese suffered gunshot wounds on April 25 and he is undergoing rehabilitation and treatment in Italy.

Fr Carlassare invoked the intercession of Our Lady for a change from a past of violence and poverty in South Sudan. He also recalled the Holy Father’s gesture of kissing the feet of South Sudan leaders when he met them in Rome in 2019. "I know it is a long path and a demanding mission, but this is the only path to life and the mission of the Church, said the priest.

The missionary priest also renewed his vow to offer some of the bullets with which he was shot to the Holy Virgin. “I have always felt the protection of our Mother Mary and now, even more, after all that has happened,” he said.

Fr Carlassare had arrived in South Sudan in early April after being appointed bishop the previous month. At the time of the attack, he was not yet consecrated. Having survived the attack, he was rushed to hospital for treatment and was later taken to Nairobi in Kenya. The priest had to undergo six surgeries and he started walking with the aid of crutches just a few weeks ago.