Arrival in the Diocese of Mityana, Uganda

Asher Kaufman, age 18, set out on June 28 for a yearlong trip to help spread the Children's Rosary in Europe and Africa. He spent the months of July, August and the first two weeks in September in France. He arrived in Uganda on September 15. He grew up helping the Children's Rosary and participating in it. He now is helping to spread the Children's Rosary to more parishes and schools. He is also discerning a vocation to the priesthood and has applied to the seminary through the Archdiocese of Hartford. Please keep both his trip and his vocation in your prayers. He has been sharing dispatches from the trip. 

"Friday, I visited Our Lady of Fatima parish in Mityana, Uganda. This is a parish that is just starting the Children's Rosary, so it was a different but no less important kind of visit than the last one. I was with Br. Henry Bukenya. We arrived in the afternoon and were welcomed very cordially by Fr. Simeon, who invited us to lunch and then took us to where the children of St. Noa infant school and St. Luke Primary school were waiting for us. 

Amazingly, they had been waiting for us since noon, and by the time we arrived and were going to greet them, it was close to 4:00 pm. Nevertheless, with admirable patience, they showed no sign of displeasure. Some children performed a welcome dance that was very intricate and beautiful, and then after an introduction from Fr. Simeon, we knelt down to pray the rosary. I particularly liked this because of course, it was the perfect embodiment of the mission we are trying to spread, that is, prayer of the rosary. Everyone knelt down in the grass in the cool evening breeze and said the prayers reverently and calmly. 

Subsequently, Br. Henry and I each gave addresses to the group, with Br. Henry providing advice and guidelines on how the group ought to function. I transmitted some words of greeting from my mother and gave them my own.

After this, we left with Fr. Simeon to go to an even more remote school, St. Matia Mulumba. St. Matia, or Matthias, was one of the Ugandan martyrs killed by King Mwanga II in the late nineteenth century. The school was very remote, only able to be reached after driving for at least twenty minutes on a dirt road with large ditches caused by rainwater. Once we arrived, the children, who had been waiting even longer than the other students, gave us another welcome dance, and then we all made our way into the church to pray and attend Mass. After Mass, some soccer balls that we had brought were given out, much to the delight of the children. We had given balls to the other school as well, and we found that this was something all the children we visited were very fond of. 

After taking a picture together and taking some time to speak to the children and teachers, we had to leave since it was getting dark. Fr. Simeon kindly offered to lead our car toward the main road to avoid our getting lost or stuck somewhere else, and then we went on our way. 

I must say that there was something about the peacefulness and the calmness of the rosary that we prayed together with the students that I very much appreciated. It was as if any pressure and angst was slowly released like air out of a balloon and replaced by a repose in the presence of God. I was impressed with how a new group such as this took so readily to the charism and spirit of the movement, already praying the Rosary so well and so devoutly. 

Thank you to Fr. Simeon who welcomed us, to Matthew, head of St. Luke school, and to all of the children, teachers, and animators who give of themselves so generously."

To see all of Asher's dispatches from his journey click HERE