Projects in Need
A Vehicle for Religious Sisters in Pakistan
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The Sisters of the Holy Family of Bordeaux first came to Pakistan almost 50 years ago. Today, this congregation, founded in France in the 19th century, has 32 religious sisters working in almost all the Pakistani dioceses. They help the priests in the parishes, support the vulnerable and needy, and work in education, healthcare, and pastoral support. The Holy Family Sisters also work in the parish of the Sacred Heart in the diocese of Faisalabad. They minister to seven villages ...
Rebuilding a Parish House in Venezuela
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Venezuela is regularly affected by tropical storms and other natural disasters, and the country was particularly hard hit by the passage of Hurricane Julia in October 2022, which caused extensive damage. Tens of people died, and countless houses were destroyed. In the parish of Tarmas in northern Venezuela, the rainfall was so heavy that the ground could no longer absorb it, leading to devastating landslides. There are 14,500 people here; many families lost their homes. Fortunately, the parish’s beautiful 200-year-old ...
Support for the Prison Apostolate in Ecuador
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Violence is on the rise in Latin America. In Ecuador, the number of killings increased by more than 80 percent between 2021 and 2022. And in the Ecuadorian port city of Guayaquil, which has close to three million inhabitants, the rate of violent crime is particularly high, mostly affecting young men between the ages of 15 and 27. They are recruited by criminal gangs, often when they are already in prison. If they can see no alternative life, they ...
Two Motorcycles for a Pre-Seminary in the Congo
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The propedeutic, or pre-seminary, in the Diocese of Kasongo is on the eastern side of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the population has a Muslim majority, unlike in other parts of the country. The seminary was founded in 1936 and soon took in candidates from other dioceses. They would study there for two years, preparing for their entry into the major seminary. There is space for 60 young men altogether. But the seminary is facing a major problem: it ...
Help for the Training of Novices in the Central African Republic and Cameroon
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Even as a child, Jean Thierry Ebogo had nurtured a secret dream – to be like Jesus, and to do so by becoming a priest. In 2003, he finally entered the Carmelite monastery of Nkoabang in Cameroon. He longed to follow the “Little Way” of Saint Therese of Lisieux, the way of holiness and perfect childlike trust in God’s mercy. This is why he added “of the Child Jesus and of the Passion” to his chosen religious name. But not ...
Mass Stipends for Priests in Peru
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The apostolic vicariate of Yurimaguas in Peru is largely covered by the rainforest and is home to a number of indigenous tribal groups. The people are very poor, and the roofs of their huts are made of palm leaves. Most of their small riverside settlements can only be reached by water. There are no roads to speak of, and medical care and education are mostly provided by missionaries. Roughly 270,000 Catholics live here, scattered across an area larger than that ...
Support for a Catholic Publication in Bosnia and Herzegovina
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The Croatian publication Catholic Weekly began in 1922 and recently celebrated its centennial, but in those 100 years, it was not continuously published. It was banned by communists in 1945 and only revived in 2002. But today, the newspaper represents an important voice in the Catholic Church; it is read widely, and by many faith groups. Miroslav Cahar, the director of the Catholic Media Center in the Archdiocese of Vrhbosna, where the newspaper is published, says, “Much has happened recently. There were ...
Mass Stipends for Priests in the Congo
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The Diocese of Lolo is in a primarily rural part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There are no major urban centers, and most of the population is poor, with around 95 percent living on subsistence farming, livestock, and fishing. Given the lack of urban centers, transporting their produce is difficult, and in any case, there are no large markets where people can sell the food they produce. Then there is climate change, which makes life still more difficult. ...
A New Village Chapel for a Parish in India
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The Parish of the Immaculate Conception in northeast India lies close to the border with Bangladesh. It includes 31 villages and serves a population of about 5,000 Catholics, most of them relatively young. But the parish is large in area, and many of the villages are fairly inaccessible. The priests sometimes have to walk up to five miles just to reach the faithful. One such village is Twicholong. There have been Catholics here since 1969 – at first, just a ...
Support for Missionary Sisters in Cuba
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The Missionaries of Jesus, Word and Victim are religious sisters whose special vocation is to work in poor, remote, and difficult regions with few or no priests. Their congregation was founded in Peru in 1961 and is now present in seven different countries in Latin America, including Cuba. As part of their ministry, the sisters pray with the faithful, comfort the sick and dying, baptize children, conduct funerals and liturgies, and give catechetical instruction. They also offer practical help to the ...