A New Vehicle for Priests in the Central African Republic

“Hail Mary…” The Rosary beads slip gently through the fingers as the jeep bounces over the deep potholes. Every now and then, it threatens to overturn. “…Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death…” The voices rise, pleading more insistently, especially as night begins to fall. Suddenly, the wheels begin to spin; the vehicle is stuck fast in the mud. A daily experience in so many countries around the world, where priests and religious have to travel long journeys on rough and lonely dirt tracks.

“The Rosary is a beautiful prayer when you’re traveling on the road — and not least on roads where only a jeep can get through,” says Bishop Aurelio Gazzera, who has to deal with some particularly awful road conditions as part of his ministry in the Diocese of Bangassou in the Central African Republic. His old vehicle simply couldn’t cope in the end and was constantly breaking down — sometimes just as night was falling, and in the middle of the rainforest, where gangs of armed rebels often hide. He is, therefore, extremely grateful to you all for helping him with a new jeep. Now he has more of a chance of reaching his destination safely.

A breakdown on a lonely road can make priests and religious easy prey for robbers and kidnappers. It’s a situation especially concerning for religious sisters, who in many countries — notably Pakistan — face the additional danger of being sexually assaulted if they find themselves stranded and helpless on the road. In fact, even when using public transportation — in the few cases when it is even available — they face a real risk of being victims of sexual assault and harassment.

So, for religious sisters especially, a reliable vehicle is the best protection.

Sadly, we sometimes get tragic news even then. Last year, for example, the rector of the pre-seminary in the Diocese of Lwena in Angola lost his life when a front wheel came off and his vehicle crashed head-on into a tree. His bishop, Martin Lasarte, was profoundly shaken by this tragedy. He wrote to us: “There is no project, and no money in the world that can replace such an outstanding priest as Father Loureiro. He gave a shining witness of joyful fidelity and total dedication. Needless to say, I can’t ask you for a new rector, but I can at least ask you to help us with the new vehicle that our seminary so urgently needs.” His appeal did not go unheard, and we were able to offer the $38,400 he needed for a new Jeep.

Unfortunately, such all-terrain vehicles are expensive, but in many regions of the world, they are an essential requirement for the Church to minister to the faithful in the first place. In providing priests and religious with a secure means of transport, you are in a certain sense also acting as their Guardian Angels. Can we count on your support for them?

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