In the context of International Women’s Day, the voices of Amazonian women continue to illuminate the path of the Church and of peoples in the defense of life and our Common Home. From Riberalta, in the Bolivian Amazon, Sandra Sossa Rappu shares her experience of faith, service, and commitment to communities.
Sandra works at the Rural Pastoral Institute of Riberalta, belonging to the Apostolic Vicariate of Pando, where she serves as pastoral coordinator and minister of communion. From there, she accompanies the life of the communities, encouraging the mission of the Church in the midst of the Amazonian reality.
For her, being a woman in the Amazon today means taking on an active role in ecclesial and community life. “Being a woman in the Amazon means active participation and being a central figure in the different services and charisms of women,” she says.
The strength of Amazonian women
Sandra describes the strength of Amazonian women as a combination of inner strength and generosity, qualities that are expressed in the daily life of the communities.
“Amazonian women are strong and generous,” she says, highlighting the fundamental role they play in family, social, and church life.
Guardians of our common home
In the Amazon, commitment to the defense of nature and territories is an essential part of community life. In this sense, Sandra emphasizes that women contribute to the protection of the Common Home by being fighters, courageous, dynamic, and exemplary.
Their leadership is expressed in the care of life, in the transmission of values, and in the accompaniment of communities that seek to live in harmony with creation.
A message of hope
On this International Women’s Day, Sandra sends a message of encouragement to all women:
“Let us continue to be fighters, courageous, dynamic, and exemplary.”
Her testimony reflects the silent but transformative strength of so many Amazonian women who, through their faith and commitment, sustain the life of their communities and keep alive the hope of a more just and fraternal future for the Amazon.