Mission Office

Father Thomas Assenga is a missionary to our diocese of St. Cloud, Minnesota. Maybe you have met Fr. Thomas at mass one Sunday at the St. Mary's Cathedral in downtown St. Cloud.

Fr. Thomas comes from the country of Zanzibar. Zanzibar is one country in Africa.   Can you find the Islands of Zanzibar on a map of Africa?   The Islands are located off the coast of Tanzania in the Indian Ocean.

Learn more about life on the Island of Zanzibar. 

The children in Zanzibar don't speak English.   They speak a language called Swahili.   Karibu means welcome in Swahili.

What do you think life is like in Zanzibar. Do you think it is like Minnesota? What are schools like in Zanzibar? What do the children eat?   For breakfast the children typically drink a corn porridge.   For lunch and supper, they eat Ugali (a doughy food made from corn flour that looks like mashed potatoes).   The Ugali is often eaten together with cooked spinach greens.   If the children are lucky, they might get a few beans to eat as well.   If they are really lucky, they might get fish once a week.

How different life in Zanzibar must be in comparison to the way you live. Most people in Zanzibar are not Christians.   They are called Muslims.   What do you know about Muslims?   Did you know that Christians and Muslims all believe and pray to the same God?   Jesus asked us to love our neighbors.   We are asked to love everyone no matter what religion, race, or gender.

What can we learned from our friends from Zanzibar like Fr. Thomas?   Maybe today you could say a prayer.   Pray for your friends in Zanzibar today.   Do something nice for someone else today.   Invite a speaker to your school or parish in conjunction with doing a mission project to help the Diocese of Zanzibar's Catholic School - the Cheju Wisdom Center.   Know that you have friends on the other side of the world.   Although they may live very differently or follow a different religion, they are kids just like you!

For more information about our diocesan direct connections and on-going global relationship with the diocese of Zanzibar of East Africa...

• Learn more about Fr. Thomas from Zanzibar in mission to the St. Cloud Diocese
• Invite Fr. Thomas Assenga and others to come to give an exciting presentation to your parish, school, or group about Zanzibar and our diocesan connections with the people of Zanzibar.
• Visit the Diocese of Zanzibar's own web site.

To learn more about
our other mission connections;
return to the Mission Education for Youth Home Page