We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Fr. Felix Nayak, who served congregations in Chinook, Harlem and Hogeland, will be leaving for India on July 4. He will be doing a new ministry in Brahmapur, a city on the Bay of Bengal on the east side of India. Nayak came to Montana in June, 2012. He's holding a cross with the image of St. Gabriel's Church on the cross. He was honored at a reception after mass in Chinook. This map shows the approximate location of Brahmapur, the city where Fr. Felix Nayak will be serving. The city is known for its silk items, has a population in the core city of 300,000+ and enjoys a temperate climate. Rainfall averages 46 inches a year with most of that coming during the monsoon season, July through October.
The first weekend in July Fr. Felix Nayak celebrated mass with three congregations he served after first arriving in Montana from Orissa, India in June, 2012. He conducted mass at St. Gabriel's in Chinook, St. Thomas the Apostle in Harlem and St. Thomas Aquinas in Hogeland. They were his second good-bye masses as he had said his good-byes last September when he moved to Malta to take on new responsibilities at St. Paul's in Hays, St. Thomas in Lodge Pole and Sacred Heart at the Agency.
In Chinook, after mass, Fr. Felix told the gathering he would be moving to Brahmapur, a city on the east coast of India. He said, "I would like to stay in Montana, but my bishop in India wrote and told me, "I need you here." We are sworn to obedience so I must go back." Brahmapur has a population of about 300,000+, not counting the surrounding areas. Fr. Felix added, "I will miss the peaceful and quiet atmosphere of Montana."
He also noted that there is a lot of unrest in India that is of concern. He explained, "There are certain religious groups that pressure their adherents to attack, even kill, rival religious adherents. There is especially a lot of pressure from the Hindus against Christians, and Catholic priests are often targeted." He asked the congregation to, "Please pray for me in my new ministry and accept my thanks for your kind reception since I have been here."
Father Felix made his influence felt in the communities as well as his congregations. He was one of the proponents of starting an ecumenical Christmas service among the member churches of the Chinook Ministerial Association. Pastor Dennis Findorff, who was President of the Ministerial Association when Nayak arrived, added, "Father Felix came at a time when there was a desire to join together in more ecumenical efforts and he brought a real passion for that goal with his ministry."
The priest once said he was surprised when he learned there were no joint celebrations in the area among all Christians at Christmas. He explained, "In the area where I grew up there were holiday celebrations that included all the Christians in one area. There would be feasts and dancing and sharing time together. I wanted to see some of that same feeling develop here in Montana."
Roger Jergeson, who emceed the reception for Father Felix in Chinook, said, "Please keep Father Felix in your prayers and your Facebook activities." Fr. Felix's Facebook address is http://www.facebook.com/felix.nayak.
The "Journal wishes Fr. Felix a safe journey and a successful ministry in his new place.
