ACN supporting priests in India

In many of the poorest parts of the world, the local people do not have the means to support the priests who minister to them on a daily basis. This is the case in many parts of India. Aid to the Church in Need provides support to these priests through Mass stipends gifted by our benefactors.

By ACN Staff

Priests from the Diocese of Tezpur. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)

The offering of a Mass stipend as a gift to a priest for celebrating Mass is one of the Church’s most ancient traditions. For many priests in the poorest and most deprived parts of the world Mass stipends from Aid to the Church in Need’s benefactors is their only source of income and upkeep.  The communities these priests serve barely have enough means to support themselves. By gifting Mass stipends, Aid to the Church in Need’s benefactors play a vital part in the Church’s mission to spread the Gospel and provide the sacraments to the faithful.

Tezpur Diocese. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)

This is the case for the 113 priests of the Diocese of Tezpur in Assam State, northeast India. The area is well known for its tea production but despite this many of the people of the area live in extreme poverty. Around 84 million people live in Assam State. Of these, approximately 195,000 are Catholics. The Catholic population is divided amongst the various indigenous ethnic groups of the area. There are very few employment opportunities in the region, with most people who are not unemployed either working on tea plantations or working on small farms. Education levels are not high, with a significant proportion of the population being illiterate. As a result of the poverty there is very low standards of housing and sanitation. For this reason, illness and disease are rife amongst the population. Electricity, running water and public transport are luxuries out of the reach of most of the people in Assam.

Holy Mass in Tezpur Diocese. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)

It is under these most difficult of conditions that the priests of the Diocese of Tezpur minister to the faithful and spread the Gospel. Bishop Michael Akasius Toppo of the Diocese of Tezpur has appealed to Aid to the Church in Need for aid to help the priests of his diocese minister to the faithful. In his request the bishop wrote:

We are endeavouring to bring the redeeming message of Christ to the people of all tribes and tongues, but we need a helping hand. We are confident that your precious support for our priests, and hence also for their Catholic communities, will be a great incentive. I am sending you this request for Mass stipends, confident of your generous support. Our priests will be forever grateful to you and will remember you and all our kind benefactors at the altar of the Lord.

The work carried out by the priests of the Diocese of Tezpur is invaluable. The priests of the diocese are not only involved in ministering to the faithful but are also are the forefront of providing charitable relief to the poorest people and the priests also take a lead in providing education to countless people. Aid to the Church in Need is hoping to provide Mass stipends of €300,000 to the priests in Tezpur Diocese. If you wish to help us provide for the priest in places like Tezpur, please consider having a Mass celebrated with Aid to the Church in Need.