Development at "The Mission" on the Outskirts of Torit

One of the first people we ran into on the street in Torit after we arrived last week was Lillian, from Radio Emmanuel, the local Catholic station. After chatting a little, she asked if I would record the homily for the coming Sunday's broadcast, which I was happy to do. So I made the short trip out to the site known as "the mission" on the outskirts of town, where the radio station is located behind the ruins of the cathedral. I lived at this site for the first five months of my previous assignment in Torit.

After completing the recording, I walked around the ample grounds of "the mission," and was surprised to see the amount of construction and development that had taken place in the nine months since my departure. Unused buildings had been renovated and renovated buildings had been improved, such as the one above - now being used by the NGO Shelter for Life.

The shelter where the cathedral parish meets for Sunday Mass (above) had also been improved. It was originally constructed to be the stage or platform where the main events for the celebration of the Diocese of Torit's 25th anniversary in December of 2008 had taken place. Now there is a larger area under permanent roofing with more solid suppports.

The minor seminary of the Diocese of Torit.

I was most encouraged, though, to see the diocese's minor seminary complete and functioning. The building above has dormitories, a dining room and a chapel (below).

Minor Seminary chapel.

A few of the seminarians were around on the Saturday morning I happened to stop by, and I was very happy to recognize a number of their faces from youth retreats we had done in Nimule and Isohe. Please pray for these young men as they continue on their journey of formation toward the priesthood.

Minor seminarians for the Diocese of Torit.