(Please visit our 2025 Collaborative Lenten Gift page for Part 1 and Part 2 of this important story!)
The Connections Between the St. John-St. Paul Collaborative in Wellesley, the St. John-Paul II Community in Bamenda, and BUILD THE FAITH
At our Lenten Gift Lecture earlier this month, Monica Lacouture and Fernando Dangond shared the story of BUILD THE FAITH, which was inspired by the unwavering faith in God exhibited by their daughter, Christina Dangond Lacouture, who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at the tender age of 6. We learned about the tremendous impact of Christina’s faith, and how it continues to bear fruit around the world, through church-building projects like the one we are supporting in Bamenda, Cameroon through our Lenten Gift. Fr. Gabriel and Fr. Lesley then spoke about the Catholic Church in Cameroon and what every day life is like in the midst of the ongoing crisis.
Fr. Lesley set the stage, describing how the Church has been structured in Cameroon, from the large Archdioceses down to the “small Christian communities” to the individual – what they call their “pastoral plan.” Over the past 9 years, with the turmoil and bloodshed of the crisis, churches have been burned, Christians have been lost, and the pastoral plan could no longer function. He explained that, since the crisis exploded in 2016, the Catholic Church has been the only real sign of hope to people who have been close to giving up. He described the difficulties faced by priests who must travel long, dangerous distances to bring the sacraments to far-flung communities who don’t even have church buildings.
Fr. Gabriel told us about the small community of faith where they both served as pastor. He described the daily difficulties of people just trying to live their lives, struggling to find work, educate their children, and practice their faith. And then he shared the story of what he said can only be described as a miracle.
When Fr. Gabriel arrived in the St. John-Paul II community in Bamenda, the people had no place to worship together and were hanging on by a thread. He told himself, “We must have a church here.”
The people asked him, “Father, how can we have a church here? We have no land, we have nothing.”
He answered, “We just pray. God will show us a way.”
Fr. Gabriel told them to look for anything – any building, any place someone offers to start their church. A family came to him and said, “Father, we have a piece of land, and a chicken coop…”
So they cleared out the chickens, cleaned up the building, and started their church. Even this seemed like a small miracle, despite the fact that half of the large and growing congregation had to remain outside during Mass.
They continued to dream of and pray for the proper church they would build someday – even if it took 30-40-50 years – where the whole community would be able to worship in together.
When Fr. Gabriel told them that his bishop was sending him to the United States to further his education at Boston College, it felt like their dream would never become a reality. The people asked him, “What are we going to do?”
Once again, Fr. Gabriel told them, “Just pray.”
About two weeks after his arrival at the St. John-St. Paul Collaborative in the late summer of 2023, Fr. Gabriel found himself chatting with a few parishioners after daily Mass. One of them mentioned that they were involved with an organization called “BUILD THE FAITH.” When asked what the organization did, she replied, “We make rosaries and we build churches for communities in need.”
At first he thought to himself, “How can they make simple rosaries and have enough income to build a church? And then he thought, “Speak out! Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew, ask and you will receive. OK, let me ask!”
Over the following months, Fr. Gabriel had several conversations with Monica and Fernando of BUILD THE FAITH, describing the St. John-Paul II community in Bamenda and their dream of a church. They encouraged him to submit a proposal. He spoke with his bishop about the miracle that was in process, asking that he and the community keep praying!
After some time, Monica called to say that the committee had met and the proposal was approved – a new church, with a capacity of around 800, would be built for the St. John-Paul II community in Bamenda. Their dream of building a proper church in perhaps 30-50 years could now be a reality in a matter of just a few years – a miracle!
Since 2017, BUILD THE FAITH has completed projects in Colombia, Argentina, Nicaragua, Ghana, Mexico, and El Salvador. They do one project at a time, raising the funds needed to complete the work through rosary sales and other fundraiser, modeling Christina’s profound faith and her constant prayer, “Jesus, I trust in you.”
The total cost for the church structure in Bamenda is around $180,000. The project began last summer, and the community has been hard at work clearing the land and building the foundation using the initial funds from BUILD THE FAITH. They have reached the halfway point in construction, and BUILD THE FAITH is working to raise the remaining $100,000.
Our Lenten Gift, through your generosity, will help BUILD THE FAITH make this dream a reality for the people of the Saint-John Paul II community in Bamenda. $100,000 is an unprecedented goal for our Lenten Gift Collection, but we are inspired by Christina’s faith and profound trust in Jesus. We too are confident that God is calling us to respond to Lent’s clarion call to love extravagantly. We have each experienced the grace of the ministerial presence of Fr. Lesley and Fr. Gabriel. In a time when so much can seem out of our control, we know that God is faithful. Giving back, in such a tangible way, will bring Christ to our sisters and brothers in faith across the globe.
Special second collection Next Weekend, April 5-6
Cash or checks (made payable to your parish with “2025 Lenten Gift” in the memo) may be placed in the special Second Collection. Checks may also be mailed/dropped at either parish office.
Donations may be made online at any time by visiting the Collaborative Lenten Gift page on our website: sjspwellesley.org/2025-collaborative-lenten-gift
On behalf of the Collaborative Service Commission, we ask that you prayerfully consider being as generous as your means will allow.