Mission Magazine Autumn 2023

32
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“The thing that I find in the areas that we work,
that people appreciate most, is that there’s priests
there full-time to not only to offer Eucharist, but to
be present,” said Father Terry Kersch on the fifth
episode of Frontiers of Faith, the weekly podcast of The Pontifical
Mission Societies. “They appreciate having a priest for births, deaths,
weddings, the entire cycle of life.”
According to this Basilian priest, in most mission territories in Latin
America, where he served in the 90s, people are used to seeing a
priest “once every six months,” so one of the things that moved him
the most during his years as a missionary in Colombia and Mexico
was the constant request that the religious community send a priest
there to stay.
“We work in communities where people cannot sustain a priest,
much less a community of priests and religious sisters, hence the need
for the mission appeals,” Father Kersch said.
For regular stories on missionaries and how, through your prayers
and generosity, you are helping them spread the joy of the Gospel,
join Msgr. Kieran Harrington and Katie Ruvalcaba in the weekly
podcast of The Pontifical Mission Societies, premiering each Friday
in most podcast platforms.
Journey with them as they talk with missionaries from Asia, Africa,
Latin America about the modern-day impact of mission work in these
regions. Gain new perspectives on faith, cultural encounters, and
spiritual transformation as they share their experiences and wisdom.