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Walking Together in Peace with Creation: A Celebration of 70 Years in Honduras
Luningning Alvarado
Luningning Alvarado, is a lay missionary from the Philippines with the Quebec Foreign Mission Society. Her missionary vocation, deeply rooted in justice, peace, and the integrity of creation, first flourished in the Brazilian Amazon. Today, she brings that same passion to Tegucigalpa, Honduras—a country grappling with the impacts of climate change, poverty, inequality, and migration. As the Society marks 70 years of missionary presence in Honduras, Luningning dedicates her extensive formation in ecology to sharing God's creative love, animating local churches, and sowing seeds of hope for a peaceful future.
“Let's walk together, sowing hope.”
This theme guides our celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Society’s missionary presence in Honduras. I am profoundly grateful to God for calling me to be here and to celebrate this milestone alongside my fellow missionaries.
Having served in Honduras for nearly two years, I have been blessed to witness the beautiful stories of how our missionary priests and lay missionaries, both past and present, have inspired the Honduran people to nurture hope and strengthen their faith. By God’s grace, we now enjoy the fruits of that hope—joy, deep faith, and love—sown courageously by the Society's missionaries and tenderly cultivated by the Honduran people who have welcomed us with open hearts since June 27, 1955.
And as we reap these blessings, our call remains: to continue sowing hope, together.
Today, I sow hope with the community at the Parish Reina de la Paz, where I collaborate with the Terciarias Capuchinas nuns on projects for the elderly and children.
With our elders, we maintain a vibrant community space. They gather three times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) to embroider, create art, and share their life stories. When I join them, I facilitate opening prayers, lead gentle hand exercises, help thread needles, prepare snacks, or simply share in conversation. Their laughter during a game of Bingo, sparked even by small candy prizes, is a gift! I also enjoy harvesting guavas for them from our trees.
With our children, we work to reinforce their school learning—writing, reading, and math—while integrating essential lessons on values, art, and spiritual formation. And oh, how we love to play together! We also provide formation for their parents every two months.
On Earth Day (April 22), we put our care for our common home into action by cleaning a local street, following lessons on proper waste disposal. In 2024, the children planted herbs; in 2025, we will plant fruit vines. Before planting, we paused to smell the herbs and learn their names. Each child now nurtures their plant in recycled containers—plastic bottles and milk cartons—at our "Loduteca," watering them diligently. Their excitement is growing right along with their plants, and they look forward to taking them home at the year's end.
During prayer, I help them connect with the wonder of God’s creation: the beauty within their own bodies and the natural world that surrounds us. This practice cultivates a deep gratitude to our Creator and gently teaches us how to live at peace with creation—the very theme of this year’s Season of Creation. The challenge is ever-present: How can we, God’s creatures, live in true peace with all of creation?
“Soil, water, mountains: everything is, as it were, a caress of God.” (Laudato Si’ #84)
“The world sings of an infinite Love: how can we fail to care for it?” (Laudate Deum #65)
These words from Pope Francis are the anchor of my mission. For me, peace with creation means:
• Sensing the sacredness of God’s presence in all things.
• Feeling His unconditional love within and around us.
• Letting that love compel us to cherish creation, listen to the Earth’s cries, and act justly.
My heart is filled with gratitude to see our Local Group in Honduras finding small, tangible ways to live at peace with creation: through recycling, planting flowers for bees and butterflies, learning hydroponics, and displaying inspirational messages from Laudato Si', Sr. Ilia Delio, OSF, and Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ.
Countless such actions have unfolded since the Society’s arrival here seventy years ago. With God’s endless love and grace, we will continue to harvest hope and peace alongside the resilient Honduran people—for these very gifts are the living proof of His love.
Having served in Honduras for nearly two years, I have been blessed to witness the beautiful stories of how our missionary priests and lay missionaries, both past and present, have inspired the Honduran people to nurture hope and strengthen their faith. By God’s grace, we now enjoy the fruits of that hope—joy, deep faith, and love—sown courageously by the Society's missionaries and tenderly cultivated by the Honduran people who have welcomed us with open hearts since June 27, 1955.
And as we reap these blessings, our call remains: to continue sowing hope, together.
Today, I sow hope with the community at the Parish Reina de la Paz, where I collaborate with the Terciarias Capuchinas nuns on projects for the elderly and children.
With our elders, we maintain a vibrant community space. They gather three times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) to embroider, create art, and share their life stories. When I join them, I facilitate opening prayers, lead gentle hand exercises, help thread needles, prepare snacks, or simply share in conversation. Their laughter during a game of Bingo, sparked even by small candy prizes, is a gift! I also enjoy harvesting guavas for them from our trees.
With our children, we work to reinforce their school learning—writing, reading, and math—while integrating essential lessons on values, art, and spiritual formation. And oh, how we love to play together! We also provide formation for their parents every two months.
On Earth Day (April 22), we put our care for our common home into action by cleaning a local street, following lessons on proper waste disposal. In 2024, the children planted herbs; in 2025, we will plant fruit vines. Before planting, we paused to smell the herbs and learn their names. Each child now nurtures their plant in recycled containers—plastic bottles and milk cartons—at our "Loduteca," watering them diligently. Their excitement is growing right along with their plants, and they look forward to taking them home at the year's end.
During prayer, I help them connect with the wonder of God’s creation: the beauty within their own bodies and the natural world that surrounds us. This practice cultivates a deep gratitude to our Creator and gently teaches us how to live at peace with creation—the very theme of this year’s Season of Creation. The challenge is ever-present: How can we, God’s creatures, live in true peace with all of creation?
“Soil, water, mountains: everything is, as it were, a caress of God.” (Laudato Si’ #84)
“The world sings of an infinite Love: how can we fail to care for it?” (Laudate Deum #65)
These words from Pope Francis are the anchor of my mission. For me, peace with creation means:
• Sensing the sacredness of God’s presence in all things.
• Feeling His unconditional love within and around us.
• Letting that love compel us to cherish creation, listen to the Earth’s cries, and act justly.
My heart is filled with gratitude to see our Local Group in Honduras finding small, tangible ways to live at peace with creation: through recycling, planting flowers for bees and butterflies, learning hydroponics, and displaying inspirational messages from Laudato Si', Sr. Ilia Delio, OSF, and Fr. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ.
Countless such actions have unfolded since the Society’s arrival here seventy years ago. With God’s endless love and grace, we will continue to harvest hope and peace alongside the resilient Honduran people—for these very gifts are the living proof of His love.
