From September 23 to November 15, 2007, I had my Canonical Visit, together with the General Councilors Fr. Brian Crawford and Fr. Guido Miglietta, to the Province of Peru, my seventh Canonical Visit. It was very emotional for me personally to return to the Province where I had lived for 15 years. I had the opportunity to revisit places, see old friends and collaborators, but most of all confreres. I repeated to them: “You are children of missionaries - thinking of the first 5 missionary founders of the mission, led by Fr. Marco Libardoni - and that you ought to live joyful this status as children, being an example for the whole Congregation.” The spiritual sons of St. Joseph Marello arrived in Peru in 1948. The first five confreres, rich only in their trust in Divine Providence, worked with enthusiasm, attention and faith, in the faraway and very poor areas of the Andes, giving their lives to serve to the noble people of Peru. One example among many: the heroic and sacrificial life of Bishop Marcos Libardoni, “Taita Marcos” of the poor “campesinos” of the Prelature of Huari. One of the more emotional moments of this Canonical Visit was the General Council Meeting that we held - Fr. Brian, Fr. Guido, and I - in the Chapel of the Miracle in the village of Ranquish. We began with a reflection: what sign did God wish to give us Oblates of St. Joseph with this miracle which took place through the intercession of our Holy Founder? He wanted to give us a clear sign of preference for the poor quechwa campesinos....We said: Divine Providence is speaking to us here and showing us a path to follow. Here the sons of Marello dedicate themselves with passion to Evangelization and the service of Human Promotion toward a people who continue to suffer.

Religious communities.
Here are the religious communities of the Province:
- Rectory of Barranco (section of metropolitan Lima) – Provincial House, Pre-Seminary “San José Marello”, Parish “San José Obrero” (population 25,000 and 3 chapels), Medical Clinic “San José”. The parish of “Maria Missionera” is also dependent on this rectory (population 15,000 and 1 chapel)
- Rectory of Apolo (section of metropolitan Lima) – here there are four fields of work: the Theologate Seminary “Casa de San José” (3 priests, 1 deacon, 2 brothers, 2 clerics as assistants) with 18 students of theology; the official center for Vocation Orientation; the Parish “Divino Maestro” (population 40,000 and 3 chapels) and the School “San José Marello”(kindergarten and elementary, with 240 students
- Rectory of Chosica (city near Lima) – with two houses of formation, the Novitiate “San José Marello” with 11 novices and the Philosophy Seminary “Marellianum” with 54 seminarians.
- Rectory of Lima Parada-Manzanilla (section of metropolitan Lima) – with four works, the Parish “Sagrada Famiglia” (population 13,000), the Shrine “San José el Justo”, which functions like a parish (population 10,000), the School “San José Obrero “ (from elementary to middle school with 520 students); the Parish “Nuestra Señora del Buen Consejo” (population 35,000).
- Rectory of Chimbote (along the coast of the Pacific Ocean, Diocese of Chimbote) – with four works: the Parish “San Carlos Borromeo” (population 5,000), but it is the central Church of the city and very busy; the School “Antonio Raimondi” (elementary and middle school, with 510 students; the Parish “Santo Toribio de Mongrovejo” (population 20,000 and 3 chapels) and the School “Niño Dios” (elementary and middle school, with 1,200 students).
- Rectory of Huaraz (in the Andes, Diocese of Huaraz) – here we have 4 works: the Minor Seminary “Apostolic School San José Marello” (19 seminarians); the Parish “Nuestra Señora del Sagrato Corazón de Jesús” (population 20,000, it is both a city and a rural parish with 30 chapels); the School “Superior Technical Institute San José” (620 students in these specialties: secretarial, executive, computer skills, accounting); the School “Ceogne San José Obrero” (170 students in various specialities).
- Pro-Rectory of Pomabamba (in the Andes, Prelature of Huari) –Various works: the Parish “San Juan Bautista” (population 18,000 and 52 chapels in as many villages); the School “Taller San José” (25 “campesino” students, who are boarders and go to middle school and the carpentry and woodcraft shop); the School “Taller Simona” (12 female “campesina” students who are boarders and go to the middle school and sewing and embroidery shop); “Hogar Piccola Simona” (a house that accepts 25 “campesina” girls and prepares them for social and work life); the School “San José” (recently established with 55 students in middle school)); pharmacy and medical clinic for the “campesinos”.
- Pro-Rectory of Cabana (in the Andes, Prelature of Huari) - with the parish “Santiago Apóstol” (population 7,000 and 16 chapels in as many villages). This is the parish where the first 5 missionaries began in Peru.
- Pro-Rectory of Cajabamba (in the Andes, Diocese ofi Cajamarca) –with the parish “San Nicolás de Tolentino” (population 72,000 with as many as 180 chapels in as many villages) and of the School “San José Marello” (newly established with 60 students who frequent middle school).

Seminaries
There are three: the Theological Seminary "Casa de San José" in Lima, the minor seminary "Escuela Apostólica San Jose Marello" in Huaraz and the Philosophy Studentate "Marellianum" in Chosica: this is our center of study, approved by the Conference of Peruvian Bishops. It was a joy for me to assign the Ministries of Lector and Acolyte to our professed clerics.

Ministry of the youth and Vocational Ministry
At Province Symposium of Youth Ministry, held in Chimbote on October 13 - 14, there were many participants from almost all of our parishes and many of our schools. The province already for several years has focused much attention on vocations dedicating confreres exclusively for this work.

Josephite-Marellian Laity
I had the great joy to meet and speak to their groups, although small, but very willing. I saw that they want to organize at the province level.

Education Ministry
The ten schools are one of the characteristics of this Province: kindergartens, elementary, middle and high schools and technical and craft shops. Almost all of them are in poor areas, they educate children at the margins of the cities, from families immigrating from the Sierra or at the service of the campesinos of the Andes.

Parishes
Our 11 parishes are located in poor areas of the cities, in farming areas in the Andes and in areas which are difficult to access. The largest parish is the Andean one in Cajabamba, which has 75,000 inhabitants and 180 chapels in as many villages scattered over a vast territory.

Social Works
From the beginning of the Oblate presence in Peru our confreres have been noted for their concrete help to the poor: in the area of culture, in teaching job skills, in the use of the computer, in the aspect of health and in daily feeding of the needy. At the "Policlinico San José", the Parish of Barranco (Lima) in 200, 35,000 people were assisted, according to the various medical areas. The doctors and nurses number 70.
In the social works being done in the Parish of Pomabamba (Prelature of Huari), the confreres have given privilege of place to educating the “campesinos”, who live in the scattered villages of the Andes, giving them the possibility of seeing the future with eyes of hope. There is the “Taller San José” which in a boarding school style has 25 boys - among them is Alfredo, the boy who experienced the miracle attributed to St. Joseph Marello -, who go to middle school and learn to work with wood. In another part of the little city there is the “Taller Simona” where 22 girls live - among whom is Isilia, the girl who experienced the miracle attributed to St. Joseph Marello - who attend middle school and learn to sew and embroider. There is also the “Hogar Piccola Simona”, a house of welcome for 25 girls who go to elementary and middle school.

The Oblate of St. Joseph Sisters
They have two communities: one in Lima, at the Shrine of “San José el Justo”, made up 4 professed (of which one is an Italian), almost all of them are studying and help in the various ministries of the Shrine which functions as a Parish; the other community is located in Huachipa, near Lima, where there are 5 sisters, 2 postulants e 3 aspirants. Two other Peruvian sisters are in Italy and one is in Brazil.