Russia. Last November 11, with God’s help, the Papal Nuncio in Moscow, Archbishop Antonio Mennini, consecrated the parochial church of St. Michael the Archangel. Present were the Provincial Superior of Santiago, Manuel Tamargo, the former Provincial of Castilla, Miguel Angel Velasco and the Econome of Santiago, Basilio Montañana; others who attended were Claretians from the three communities of Siberia (Krasnoyarsk, Atchinsk and Bratsk) and many priests of Saint Petersburg, Kazan and Nizhni Nóvgorod, in addition to numerous faithful from Murmansk and surroundings. It is the first Catholic Church ever built in the Arctic Circle.
Although the community of Murmansk belongs to the Province of Santiago, it is made up of Fr. Juan E. Sarmiento (pastor), from the Province of Argentina, and Bro. Josef Biberacher, from the Province of Deutschland.” Thanks to their tenacity and their enthusiasm, they have made this Claretian church a reality in this far away northern land.