A New Chapel for a Village in Peru

The Parish of the Sacred Heart in Peru includes 34 rural communities, scattered along the banks of the Rio Mayo. The village of Los Angeles is one of the biggest in the parish, with around 700 residents; it is 70 percent Catholic. It takes the parish priest about 75 minutes to get from the parish center to the village, and the roads are unmade. As part of this trip, he even uses a raft.

The village once had its own chapel. But it was built of mud and very small, with a reed-thatched roof. Over the years, it has decayed: there are holes in the roof and cracks in the walls, from an earthquake in 2021. It is in danger of imminent collapse.

For the faithful, the journey to the parish church is too far; they wanted to build a simple new chapel. This is a very lively community, with its own youth choir. People confess and receive Communion as often as they can. They pray the Rosary every day. And they have a great love for Our Lady of Fatima, to whom their original chapel was dedicated. 

To fulfill their dream of a new chapel, the faithful began to fundraise and organize events. But since they are very poor, it was not enough. And so their priest turned to ACN. Thanks to the generosity of our benefactors, we were able to give them $18,317. 

The men of the village helped with construction, and the women provided for them. So a new chapel has been completed and consecrated, and there is great rejoicing! The faithful keep their chapel spotless, and offerings in the collection plate go toward things like candles and the cost of electricity. It is important to them that the very “heart” of their community is beautiful and well-maintained.

Our heartfelt thanks to all who donated!

Code: 234-01-19