As I walked with my confreres from the parish to our community after Mass, it struck me that we were like the two disciples on their way to Emmaus. Like the two disciples, my confreres and I have had the same experience but whilst their experience was the death of Jesus, ours was growing up in a continent that has been stricken by poverty.

We thank God that we have taken the vow of evangelical poverty. However, we did sincerely ask ourselves: “How poor are our Religious in Africa compared with the local people?”

Let’s make a short journey into the lives of the Religious and missionaries in our African context. First and foremost in many African villages, it is only the mission house or the convent that has iron sheets for its roofing. The only borehole in the village is in this house and it is normally in this house that three square meals can be afforded. It’s the only house with electricity (solar panels) and if you’re looking for the lone car, it is the Religious’ house we can point at. These are clear indications that while the Religious take the vows, it is Church members who live the vows. Although the lives of the Religious are modest, most of the people in Africa live in abject poverty. In the Constitutions of my congregation, we are asked to be in solidarity with the poor and this is not just idealism.

As I spoke with my confreres, we came to see that it is no wonder that many of us who are Religious from Africa but are living in the first world countries never have financial peace. Firstly the Religious in your village, while being modest are not modest according to the people’s standard. Our folks at the village back in Africa are mostly tempted to think we are well-to-do and should be able to support any of their demands. Despite some demands at times being genuine, we are not able to support them and it is then that we are branded with all kinds of names. Can I be in Australia with a good insurance cover whilst my mother and father slowly die of poor healthcare without any assistance from me? Can I have peace when my whole village suffers cholera because there is no potable water? Can I have a good sleep whilst my unemployed friends in Africa keep asking me for assistance when I can’t help?

We can point to the Biblical background of the life of poverty but does the vow of poverty really fit some continents? I am not saying people shouldn’t live modestly. All I am implying is that there are some whose lives have been poor from the day of their birth. Can we collectively think about this?