Christmas in Peru

Portrait of Sr. Patricia Lowery

Dec. 10 – Christmas seemed near as we sang Carols at recreation tonight – sitting on the porch enjoying the cool of the summer breeze and dreaming of a White Christmas!

Dec. 15 – Christmas shopping is one of our chief activities these days. It is a little hard this year because we are not too familiar with the stores, but we feel that the time spent in getting around the shopping district is time well spent, for besides practicing our Spanish, we are mastering the difficult task of learning the names of the streets, which seem to change at every corner without any apparent warning!

Sr. Rose Sharon in Santa Rosa Parish, Lima, Peru

Before leaving we decorated the Fathers’ dinning room table with a small tree, red candles, and little snowmen carrying candy and nuts on their backs. The Fathers enjoyed it and were very grateful for this touch of Christmas here in a country where Christmas is not celebrated nearly so much as in the States.

We stopped off to see the crib set-up in the patio of the Japanese school where a Solemn High Mass is to be celebrated out-of-doors tonight. The crib is simple and with a native touch, but not as elaborate as the real Peruvian crib, which is set in the background of a typical town with chickens, dogs, cats, cows, burros, horses, llamas, and every imaginable kind of animal visiting the Christ Child. We noticed in all the cribs there were small cans of growing wheat, and after inquiring about it we were told that it was a custom to plant wheat on December 8^th and present it to the Christ Child in the crib asking a special blessing for the crops of the coming year.

Around supper time the Brothers of Mary came over, as is their custom each year, and caroled in the patio. They gave the Sisters a huge basket of fruit and candy, and a “junior” size one for we two.

The next thing now, would be Midnight Mass – the most important event of the day. Midnight Mass was followed by two Masses, which we attended with the Sisters; we sang carols around the Infant in the patio, and then to the refectory for a snack. Santa had been to the Community Room – we could see at first glance. We enjoyed opening all the lovely gifts we had received from Mother Mary Ivo and the Sisters. Then off to our cell where we had our own Maryknoll Christmas! We read some of our mail and opened our packages for the Mothers and Sister Angelica. Mother Mary Joseph’s “surprise” package was fun and we looked forward to the time when we would be using the wonderful new brushes and other useful things sent by Mother Mary Columba. Of course, we played Santa for each other, so the dawn was just about beginning to break before we cleared a space on our beds for ourselves!

Looking for extra Christmas cheer?
Check out more Christmas stories from the Archives:

Christmas Experiences (2024)

Christmas Vigil (2023)

Maryknoll’s Christmas Carols (2023)

A Missioner’s Christmas (2022)

The First Christmas (2021)

The Message of Christmas (2020)

A Sweet Maryknoll Christmas (2020)

Christmas in the Big City (2019)

Christmas 1942 (2018)

Maryknoll Christmas Around the World (2017)

Early Christmas Wishes (2017)

Spreading Christmas Joy! (2016)

Let’s Get Creative 4: Christmas Greetings and Sisters Creativity (2015)

Celebrating Christmas (2015)

A Maryknoll Christmas Reflection by Bishop James E. Walsh (2015)

Merry Christmas! (2014)

Sr. Rose Sharon in Lima, Peru

Sr. Patricia Lowery in Santa Rosa Parish, Lima, Peru