No sombreros in church

By Fr. Lionel Walsh, S.F.M.
June 2007

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In the year 1958 I left Canada to begin a new life as a priest missionary in the Dominican Republic. Much of what I had learned in 29 years of life in my native land would serve me well in my new home. Not so useful, though, would be my knowledge of English, for now I would have to learn to speak Spanish.

Fr. Lionel Walsh with some of his young students. Dominican Republic

Learning a new language takes time and you have to be patient with yourself. At the beginning you don’t always succeed in getting across to your listener exactly what you want to say. One day I was giving a short instruction to Pedro, a 15 year old who lived somewhere back in the hills and who wished to be baptized.

At the end of my brief explanation, it seemed to me that I hadn’t done too badly. The boy should now understand that through Baptism he would become a member of the Church—that much at least. To test my pupil and the effectiveness of my instruction, I said, “Pedro, you are now an unbaptized person and you wish to become a Christian, tell me what you must do in order to enter the Church of Christ.” I waited hopefully. There was a slight pause and then came the answer. “Padre,” he replied, “to enter the Church I must take off my sombrero.”

However, with all its difficulties, learning a new language in another country is an exciting challenge for the missionary. There is a sense of accomplishment as you become more proficient in speaking and as your new language opens doors for you, giving access to the riches of another culture.

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