Supply Heat for a Parish House in Macedonia
Thursday, December 17, 2009

Project Code: 450-01-19

Most of the 20,000 or so Catholics who live in the Republic of Macedonia, formerly part of the old Yugoslavia, belong to the Byzantine rite. Their priests are for the most part married, as is usual in the Eastern Churches. Father Dimitar Tasev of Gevgelija, a town not far from the frontier with Greece, is likewise a family man. The youngest of his three children was born only this September. His little son is handicapped, having come into the world with Down’s syndrome.

His family lives in a small house with three rooms, a kitchen and a small bathroom. The two bedrooms, where the parents and the three children sleep, have no heating. In winter, the entire family sleeps in the living room, the only warm room. With a little plumbing to put radiators in the other rooms, the whole house could then be heated using little more than the wood that is already being used. But this plumbing is something Father Tasev cannot afford.

Very often the married priests of the Eastern rite live in great poverty, since they have to provide not only for themselves but also for their families. They do not receive a penny of support from the state but depend entirely on what the ordinary faithful provide for their ministry. In Macedonia, which even before independence was an economically backward region with very little industry or natural resources, the people are inevitably poor and cannot give much. When the priest's wife is able to work, the situation is a little better, but with a new baby and a handicapped child, Father Tasev's wife cannot do this.

Father Tasev himself works around the clock for his parishioners. His parish includes two additional churches, one of which is nearly 20 miles away. This means that he is constantly on the road, administering the Sacraments, visiting the sick, celebrating the Liturgy, among other parish activities. Initially he did not even have a car. He turned to us and ACN helped him to obtain one, so that he could more easily fulfill his duties in the parish. For 50 years the people here had no priest, so their need for pastoral support is all the greater. When Father Tasev was first assigned to the parish in 2004, the people were overjoyed. He also ministers to the Holy Eucharist Sisters, who have their convent next to the parish church in Gevgelija.

This time Father Tasev is asking our help for himself and his family, so that his children do not have to freeze in winter. We have already promised him $5,800, and he has written back to us gratefully, "I thank you with all my heart for the generous help you continue to give us whenever we are in need." We are sure there are many kindhearted people among you who would like to help us give this hard-working priest the little "Christmas present" of heating in his house, so that his children do not have to freeze. Will you help provide heat for this poor parish priest and his family in Macedonia?

Progress: 21% Raised: $ 1240     Goal: $ 5800

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