Father Johnson Vil, center, celebrates the first Creole Mass Dec. 1 at Holy Spirit Church in Evansville. Submitted photo
By John Rohlf
The Message assistant editor
In order to better serve the needs of the Haitian community in the Diocese of Evansville, Father Johnson Vil was recently assigned chaplain for the Haitian Community in the diocese.
Bishop Joseph M. Siegel said he is “grateful to our local pastors,” who he said brought to the attention of the Diocese of Evansville the pastoral needs of the growing Haitian community, as well as the importance of providing a priest who could speak Creole to serve them. Bishop Siegel said through the assistance of the National Center of Haitian Apostolate in New York, they were able to make contact with Father Vil, who expressed interest in working in the Diocese of Evansville.
“I am very grateful to Most Rev. Max Leroy Mesidor, Archbishop of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, for generously allowing Father Vil to be assigned here as chaplain for the Haitian community,” Bishop Siegel said. “Father Vil is a fine priest who has already made an impact with his ministry to the community and I am thankful for his willingness to serve in Southwest Indiana.”
The first Mass in Creole at Annunciation Parish was held Dec. 1 at Holy Spirit Church in Evansville. There were about seven people in attendance. Since that point, they have had as many as 50 individuals attend the Mass in Creole, according to Annunciation Parish Catechetical Leader Anne Baumgart. The Mass is held at 11 a.m. CST Sundays at Holy Spirit.
The Mass is available to better serve the growing number of Haitians in the diocese. There are an estimated 10,000 Haitians in Evansville alone, Father Vil said.
Chris Wolking, Annunciation Parish Operations Manager, said Father Alex Zenthoefer, diocesan vicar general, has been a big proponent of resources for the Haitian community. Father Zenthoefer said they noticed the Diocese of Evansville has four of the top five cities in the state of Indiana with the largest Haitian population.
“This growth caused us to consider how we might provide for the pastoral care of our brothers and sisters in their native language,” Father Zenthoefer said. “Bishop Siegel was able to make contact with Father Vil, who was excited at the opportunity to care for our Haitian community.”
Wolking thinks Father Johnson Vil’s presence at the beginning of the school day at Holy Spirit School in Evansville is a big deal.
“Our whole Haitian community, the foundation is really the young kids,” Wolking said. “The school kids, the preschool kids. And as that community grows and becomes more vibrant, the kids are really important. Because I think the kids draw the parents in. And we can see that during weekly school Masses.”
Father Johnson Vil said when he arrived in the United States to serve as the Haitian priest, he was excited for many reasons. The reasons include being the first Haitian priest in the community, reuniting with family that already lived in the United States, accomplishing the mission of Jesus Christ and having a second family being here with the Haitians.
“When I was coming here, I didn’t really know what to expect,” Father Johnson Vil said through a translator. “I was anxious. Moving to a different country, not really knowing anybody. When we moved here, it’s like I had two families. A Haitian family and a Holy Spirit and Christ the King family.”
Wolking said there is a “solid community infrastructure” for Haitians in Evansville. He specifically mentioned the Haitian Center of Evansville. With the lack of a Catholic Mass in Creole, many families were going to Protestant Churches, Wolking said.
“Religion is very important for the Haitian families,” Wolking said. “So it was perfect timing for us. And we know the Haitian community is largely Catholic.”
Father Johnson Vil, who has been a Catholic priest for the past 21 years, has reached out to evangelize to the Haitian community in Evansville to encourage them to attend the Creole Mass. He especially thanked Bishop Siegel for inviting him here to be the Haitian priest for the community. Father Vil said he has encountered Haitians who have not attended Mass for four or five years due to the language barrier and not having a Creole Mass in the area.
“Being here is a blessing for those people coming back to church and to rekindle with Jesus,” Father Vil said through a translator.