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Visit Report 2007

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Visit to Todos os Santos in Nacala

[Source: Richard Ennals, All Saints Hampton]

Todod Santos Church
Church of Todos os Santos

A work trip to Mozambique provided the opportunity for my wife Bobbie and me to visit the church of Todos os Santos in Nacala, twinned with our parish of All Saints in Hampton.

“All Saints International”, combining Hampton and Nacala, would have a balanced congregation, over all ages. In fact Hampton has an ageing congregation, with few young people, whereas in Nacala they envy us for the wisdom and experience that come with age. The local life expectancy is just over 40, and older people would find it hard to reach the church anyway – transport and roads not being what we are used to. The church was finished only two years ago, with a new school, opened in January, supported by ALMA funding. All Saints had contributed to the cost of the wall around the church compound, which protects the church and the school from mudslides that occur after torrential rain. There are plans for further building.

Father Matthew
Father Mateus Ntiko, with the compound wall in the background

I was in Mozambique to chair a session in Maputo on “Active Age”, at a conference on “Bridging the Digital Divide” - funded by the European Union and hosted by the Government of Mozambique. The visit to Nacala represented an opportunity to explore a potential practical project. Having taken two flights to reach Maputo from London, three more flights and a two and a half hour car journey were required to reach Nacala on the coast in the north of Mozambique. Arrangements were made with assistance from Margaret Davies of ALMA, and coordinated by Todos os Santos church elder Paul Chintinguiza, together with the new minister Father Mateus (Matthew).

During our visit on a Tuesday morning, Todos os Santos was full of children, with pre-school classes, and 15 members of the church choir. Bobbie and I were joined by members of the Mothers Union and visited the school, which has 440 pupils (including 47 AIDS orphans) who study in shifts.

Church Choir
Church Choir of Todos os Santos

We took a book of pictures of All Saints Hampton, and returned with 100 digital photos, a video of the visit, and warm memories. Within days the first links were established with UK schools, taking advantage of email and software that translates between English and Portuguese. Packages of educational supplies are on the way. The two branches of the Mothers Union are now in contact and a set of MU badges are on the way, as requested.