Mass Stipends for 18 Priests in Peru

Having Holy Mass celebrated on behalf of someone we love is perhaps the most beautiful, and sometimes indeed the only thing, we can do, especially for someone who has died. Our offering of a Mass stipend to the priest, is in no sense a “payment” for this spiritual good, but rather a gesture of loving gratitude and of support for the priest in his ministry. For many priests in poor countries, like Peru, such offerings are often their only means of support, even survival.

Not surprisingly, during the pandemic, such Mass offerings were more greatly needed than ever before. As a result of the lockdowns, many priests in these countries were deprived even of the meager Sunday collections they would otherwise have received and which they were already sharing with those still poorer than themselves.

Benefactors may request individual Masses, a Triduum or novena of Masses, or a Gregorian series of Masses, when a priest agrees to celebrate Holy Mass every day for 30 days in unbroken succession for the eternal repose of a departed soul. In many Western countries, it is difficult to find a priest who can commit to celebrating Holy Mass for 30 consecutive days, but in many poorer countries, priests are still happy to perform this service for the dead.

Among the many priests who depend on your Mass Offerings are the 18 members of the Institute of the Incarnate Word working in Peru, such as in the village of Chipaya in the Diocese of Oruro, high in the Andes at an altitude of around 13,000 feet. The climate is harsh and theirs is a difficult mission, but while the people are poor, they are happy to share what little they have with their priests.

The Provincial Superior, Father Raúl Harriague, has asked our help for his priests in the Diocese of Oruro and in other dioceses of the country. There are 18 of them altogether, and we are proposing to send them 720 individual Mass intentions and a further 18 Gregorian Masses (30 consecutive days each), along with a total contribution of $12,300 for their support.

Father Raúl has written to thank us: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank you once again for the help you have already given us in the past and to promise you our prayers, both for you in your work and for your benefactors also.”

Aid to the Church in Need commits to investing your funds where they will have the greatest impact for the Church we serve. Funds donated to Aid to the Church in Need’s projects will be used towards the greatest need in our programs to help keep the Faith alive.

Code: 234-04-99