Father General makes a visit to Dehonians of Moldova

Father General Fr. Carlos Luis Suarez Codorniú and Fr. Artur Sanecki, general counselor, make a brief visit to Moldova, a country bordering Ukraine where heavy war clashes are taking place. The visit was also a sign of closeness and support to the Dehonian fathers, who have been present for more than 30 years.

by Artur Sanecki, scj

A canonical visitation occurred in the Moldavian Dehonian district from June 9-13, 2022. Fr. Carlos Luis Suarez Codorniù and Fr. Artur Sanecki visited our missions in this country, which now stands close to the tragic war in Ukraine.

The superior general had the opportunity to talk with all the confreres and get to know our parishes and different social works run by them. At the end of the district visit, there was time for a meeting with the entire SCJ district community in our house in Bendery.

On June 12, the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, during a parish feast in Tiraspol, Fr. Carlos and several confreres concelebrated Mass, presided over by the Bishop of Chisinau, Bishop Anton Cosa.

Our six confreres work in the independent part in the east of the country, called Transnistria, which is still part of the Catholic diocese of Chisinau, the capital of Moldova. It is a small part of the country, with a long border with Ukraine.

In all of Transnistria, which now has about 350,000 inhabitants, there are no Catholic priests other than Dehonians. Thanks to their apostolic, social and educational service, the Church in Transnistria was able to be rebuilt after the period of communism. After more than 30 years of presence in the country, one can gratefully see many apostolic and social projects already well developed and recognized in the local society.