Dear friends, Parish staff, Parishioners, community of Priests, deacons, school community of Saint Andrew and friends outside the Parish,
Four years have passed since reporting to St Andrew as Associate Pastor, as my visa is at sun set, it is my time to say goodbye. My stay at St Andrew Parish had been a blessing to media have a lot to tell to my friends back to Tanzania. It had been a Time of learning a new culture and of making friends, I thank God for these four years I’m so happy to have wonderful and good friends from St Andrew family.
I got to know many of you and as well I have been part of your lives through the sacraments, we shared the liturgy together, i baptized your children and I was part of your children’s First Holy Communion, I was there for the less happy times too such as Anointing of the sick and funerals, these are very special moments that will remain with me forever.
It is customary to thank people in goodbye massages such as this! I couldn’t possibly thank every one who deserve acknowledgement but I can at least try to highlight a few who made my four years in St Andrew the meaning experience that it is; I’m grateful to my Pastor Fr Sergio, we lived a life of brotherly love as one family with a caring heart, Fr Alec who has been with me and back home projects, to me he has been part of my home dioceses family, Fr Emmanuel our younger and humble brother, the Parish staff, the school staff and students, neighbor parishioners families in Particular Maribert and Pat, Marcia and Filipino’s families, Catheline Cervenka and her family Coleen and John and so many!
During my stay at St Andrew Parish as a human being I made some mistakes’ may even offended or upset some of you without meaning to, if this is the case, I apologize.
As I’m about to go back, my diocesan bishop have called me back home, I will be assigned to work in one of the parishes at our home parishes. My home diocese in Tanzania has 38 parishes and 95% of those Parishes are in rural areas, geographically close to lake Victoria and Serengeti national Parks. I m also inviting you to visit our growing diocese to see the capital of our diocese as well as our country Tanzania.
God bless you all
Fr Silvanus
The parish will honor Fr. Silvanus for his service to the parish during the Masses on the weekend of November 25 & 26. This will also be his final weekend of active ministry at Saint Andrew before returning to Tanzania.
