Dear brothers and sisters,
I was asked to write the pastor’s word for this weekend’s bulletin. I do this with joy and much gratitude. Thanks to the invitation of Fr. Bill, I have been coming to St. Thomas the Apostle parish since 2012. I have made friends here and I have shared my faith, my knowledge of the Scriptures, and my joy with you. I witnessed your faith, your commitment, and your kindness. I have also been humbled by your generosity. Despite the fact that you have always been generous with your yearly campaigns (which is seen above all in your beautifully restored church), you have always had a soft spot in your heart for the poorest of this world. I worked over twenty years in Africa. Year after year, I brought the needs of the poorest to your attention. The amount of good that has been done in all these years because of your kind and generous hearts can be measured by the number of lives that have been saved from destitution and despair. It can be measured by the number of children and teenagers to whom you offered hope and the means to get an education, food, and clothing. Many, because of your help, have become good Christians and honest citizens, providing for themselves and for their families. As St. Mother Theresa of Calcutta said, “If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one. ”
I arrived in Ann Arbor from Kenya. There I talked to Fr. Provincial and he shared with me that the biggest problem he is facing nowadays is the formation of new priests. Many good young men want to join the seminary, but he is not able to receive all of them. He is forced to make them wait, sometimes for years, simply because he does not have enough funds to support them. He told me that the total expenses for one seminarian during the first three years (philosophy studies) is $3,500 per year and during the final four years (theology studies) is $6,000 per year. Here, in the United States, one seminarian costs more than $60,000 per year. Dear brothers and sisters, if any of you—or a group of friends—would like to help in the education of a seminarian, please do so. You may do it with just one donation or you can split that amount and contribute every month. These days, Africa prepares priests not only for her local church but also increasingly for other continents. I see more and more priests from Africa serving in different countries of Europe. The African bishops say, “For the last 200 hundred years we received missionaries from Europe; now we try to repay that effort with our own priests, as a sign of our gratitude. Solidarity within the Church is important.”
—Fr. Chris
Support Fr. Chris and His Mission!
Fr. Chris’ ministry houses and supports street children in Nairobi, Kenya. Please prayerfully consider helping with these costs:
- $800/year for elementary school
- $1,200/year for high school
- $2,000/year for college
How to give:
- Online (find Fr. Chris in the dropdown menu)
- Second collection on August 2-3
- Check (“Fr. Chris” in memo)