Faith

Father Alex Okello, a recipient of annual scholarships from our Society of St. Peter Apostle, is pictured with family members in Jinja, Uganda.

Propagation of the Faith

Learning from the Missions: Commitment to God's Plan Must be Total

Friday, April 4, 2025Faith

Every man called by God to serve in the priesthood has his own vocation story. For men in the missions, it is often one of struggle -- many cannot financially afford to say "Yes!" when God calls them.
Our Society of St. Peter Apostle becomes a lifeline of hope for these men.
Founded in 1889, The Society of St. Peter Apostle gives scholarships to men in the missions that hear the call but cannot explore their vocation because of poverty. Many diocesan mission priests who visit our office tell us that without their yearly seminary scholarship of $700 from this brother society to the Propagation of the Faith, they would not have been ordained.
Father Alex Okello of the Diocese of Jinja, Uganda shared his story when he visited us. Father is a pastor and the Diocesan Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies. He knew from the time he was a young boy that God was calling him to be a priest. With this goal, he excelled in school and passed three written tests that qualified him for an interview to determine if he could take an entrance exam to the minor seminary, his only sure way forward.
When he received his acceptance notification to the school, he proudly showed the paper to his father. Alex explained that he needed to physically present himself to the school's secretary and he would be on his way to his dream!
Sadly, his father shook his head. He did not have the fifty cents needed for his son to take a bus to the school; Alex's dream would have to wait.
Father Alex told us, "But didn't God give me two good feet? So, I set out to walk there, never having been to the city. Some kind people gave me directions and I made it! It took only minutes for the secretary to accept me and give me the list of all that I would need for the term -- books, paper, pencils, shoes ... SHOES! Thanks be to God! I will finally get a pair of shoes!"
Yes, Alex had walked twenty-five miles, knowing he had to make the return trip -- barefoot! Nothing less than his "Yes!" to God was at stake.
Please prayerfully consider a gift to The Society of St. Peter Apostle so that more determined young men like Father Alex can serve God in His holy priesthood. Annual support is $700 per seminarian or $60 a month. We thank you, on behalf of mission seminarians, for your generous support.
May we all have Fr. Alex's total commitment to the path God lays before us!

- Maureen Crowley Heil is Director of Programs and Development for the Pontifical Mission Societies, Boston.