Apart from my priestly work, I also serve as a mortuary attendant.

The first place I learned this ministry of mortuary attendant was at Kkottongnae in Uganda. Whenever someone dies in our facility there, we bathe the deceased, dress the body in white cloth, and the clinician injects the body for preservation because burial is not done immediately. We must first officially register the death with the government.

Here in Haiti, however, the situation is very different. Because of the country’s poverty and the lack of proper equipment, when someone dies, we clean the body, dress it in white cloth, and store it in a refrigerator. We then prepare the necessary documents and usually bury the person within two days.

We have only one refrigerator. There was a day when three people died, and we had no option but to place them together in the same refrigerator. It was a nightmare for me, the worst sight I have ever experienced. That experience made me decide that before I finish my mission in Haiti, I must help build a better morgue.

During funeral Masses, we do not bring the body into the church because it would begin to melt and decay. Instead, the Mass is celebrated without the body. After the Mass, we immediately move the body from the refrigerator into the casket, perform a short funeral rite, and proceed directly to the burial.

We construct the caskets ourselves, which is why they look very simple.

For those who desire to join our congregation, please understand clearly. This is the kind of mission we do. We take care of the living and the dead. We bathe the living, and we also give them their final bath after death.

More than ten Nigerians have come to join our congregation, but they ran away after witnessing the reality of our mission. That is why I am taking time to explain everything clearly before accepting the next batch of Nigerians.

This mission is not romantic. It is real, demanding, and sacrificial.

Written by Prince Chidi Philip