In The Footsteps of Blessed Basil Moreau

My name is Francis Amukasa CSC, a Seminarian of the Congregation of Holy Cross from East Africa Province. I am currently living at Pirgacha Catholic Mission in Bangladesh as I pursue pastoral year of formation. I am happy that my province assigned me to Bangladesh during this period of formation. The experience has been overwhelmingly good. I now feel closer to our blessed founder and his spirituality of divine providence and conformity to Christ.

Blessed Basil Antoine Marie Moreau believed that the work that God had entrusted to Holy Cross extended beyond the borders of France to the rest of the world. Within a few years of founding Holy Cross, Moreau sent his priests, brothers, and sisters from France to Algeria (1840), the United States (1841), Canada (1847), Italy (1850) and East Bengal (1852). At the time when Fr. Moreau sent missionaries to East Bengali geographically; Bangladesh, Pakistan and India were one Country. Later Pakistan attained independence from India and Bangladesh was part of Pakistan until 1971 when East Pakistan attained its independence and became Bangladesh. It is a mission that all other Congregations had refused in the name that nothing good would come from it, but it led to apostolic approbation of Holy Cross Congregation.

The present mission of Holy Cross in Bangladesh is overwhelmingly good. The priests, sisters and brothers mainly engage in parish work and education. The Sacred Heart Province of Priests that I work with have heeded the call of Blessed Basil Moreau of the three societies working together. I see a lot of collaboration with brothers and sisters in teaching catechesis in the village chapels with priests. At the beginning of Bengali mission, Moreau calls for the need to build schools where children can learn reading, writing, arithmetic and also learn how to practice religion.

Holy Cross Missionaries evangelized almost the whole of Bangladesh. Unique to the spirit of Moreau at our parishes, we have schools and hostels for children that are part of the parish community. Most of those children are needy and so the province supports their education. At the parish we have daily Mass animated by children staying in the hostels which is a way that we are using to teach and practice religion. As our constitutions call us to prepare citizens for the kingdom and help them find their deepest longing, I am happy to be part of this big mission that Moreau started among the Bengali people. As our founder always said that Holy Cross is not human work but God’s very own; I feel we are called to be tools like Blessed Basil Moreau to continue the work of building the Kingdom of God.

Pirgacha Parish has thirty-one (31) village churches. On average, we visit each church once in a month. I have come to learn the hospitality that exists among the Christians we work with and their generosity. My ministry is basically accompanying the priest to the village chapel, serving and later visiting the elderly that were not able to walk to the church to Mass. Their faith encourages me. In one encounter with the aged, she felt sorry for receiving the Eucharist without a Eucharistic fasting. When I told her that whenever I got time, I would always be taking to her the Eucharist, all she said was; “when you bring me the Eucharist, you increase in me the Graces of God.” A statement that I keep pondering. At times we have sick calls even in the night, since we exist for the mission, we have always responded to the calls and served the sick. At the end of day, we come back home fulfilled.

Working outside my county and culture would be expected to be hard with lots of homesick. However, it has not been like that for my case reason being, at Pirgacha the Mandi community has been very loving and generous. They are blessed to be farmers with fresh food and fruits like dragon, pineapples and pawpaw of which many anthropologists say that the foods are anthropological. I enjoy these foods especially lots of rice, murgi(chicken) and fresh fish from the fishponds. Whenever I visit new villages, I see the innocence of people and concern by asking secretly: “does he eat our food?” when they see me eat it brings smiles of love and appreciation on their faces. I have been received in all homes with lots of love and served food during home visitation programs. It is generosity that I will always carry with me as I serve the people of God. The biggest challenge has been transitioning to the new culture and learning two new languages of Bengal and Mandi. We give thanks to God for the experience as we continue discerning our call in the Congregation of Holy Cross.

Francis Amukasa CSC