How did you discover your vocation to the priesthood?

—As a child, I prepared for my First Communion at a school run by nuns. In one class, one of the nuns asked what we wanted to be when we grew up, and I told her I wanted to be a priest. That desire grew within me, fostered by the fact that I joined a group of altar boys who helped out at Mass.

There, I was impressed by the priests’ availability and willingness to serve. After a while, I asked the parish priest to send me to discern my vocation, and that’s what I did for two years until, in 2010, I began the preparatory program.

What was the reaction of your family and friends when you told them you wanted to be a priest?

—Although, at first, there was a bit of anxiety and opposition among my relatives, in the end they were happy. My family thought I wouldn’t be able to go to my neighborhood anymore, that I would have other friends and other family. But in the end, their joy overcame their fear because it’s a source of pride for the family to give a priest to the Church.

My friends, especially my classmates, had the same feeling of discontent at first, but when they saw my determination to enter the seminary, they finally accepted my choice.

How would you describe the Church in Haiti?

—Haiti was a predominantly Catholic country, so much so that the people’s great Marian devotion led to a miraculous intervention by the Virgin Mary when the smallpox epidemic was ravaging the population. On December 8, 1942, the country’s president authorized church authorities to consecrate Haiti to Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

But between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Protestantism began to grow. With the US occupation of Haiti, the Protestant presence in Haiti became more established, leading to a decline in Catholicism in the country.

Although the presence of Catholicism remains strong in the country, it’s true that our Church is entirely dependent on foreign aid, but with our limited resources, we try to support people where the state is absent.

Despite all the problems and difficulties, the Church in Haiti remains a source of hope, working for a better tomorrow.

What are the challenges facing the Church in your country?

—Due to political instability, the challenges facing the Church are increasingly intense. Almost every day we see the indiscriminate violence of gangs operating with impunity. Acts of murder and banditry are reported every day. Gangs sow terror and despair, and as a result, residents have taken to the streets to escape, sometimes without even knowing where they are going.

Haiti is a truly threatened country, because state institutions have become fragile and leaders are incapable of stabilizing the situation. In the face of this, the Church plays its role, recalling the urgent need for a transformation of mentalities.

The Church in Haiti works to ensure that young people in particular, and Haitians as a whole, do not give in to discouragement, and sustains the hope of the people through its prophetic mission and its interventions in the field of charity.

What do you appreciate most about your training in Rome?

—What I appreciate most about my education is the broad outlook I acquired at university in Rome. I discovered other cultures thanks to our encounters and exchanges with university students from other countries. I’ve been able to make friends and discover a great deal of richness and beauty.