It was a beautiful afternoon. The sun was out in all its glory and the skies were a beautiful shade of blue. 

Everything seemed to be in harmony as we took our seats in the beautifully decorated Holy Family Cathedral at Michael’s Mount, in St John’s, Antigua, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the priestly ordination of our beloved parish priest, Fr Arnold Francis.

Approximately 50 of us from the parish of Mary Immaculate Queen of the Universe, of Bourg Mulatresse in Lower Santa Cruz, travelled to Antigua to celebrate this milestone in the pastoral life of our parish priest together with his siblings, relatives, close friends and former parishioners.

Bishop Reece with a young participant

Fr Arnold Francis in Antigua

It was, indeed, a most beautiful ceremony.  Fr Francis looked radiant as he walked in procession into the cathedral, accompanied by the Most Rev Donald Reece, Bishop of St John’s-Basseterre, the concelebrants, his two brothers (deacons) and the altar servers.

It was a joy to listen to Fr Francis’ close friend, Fr William John-Lewis of Dominica who delivered a moving appreciation on behalf of the celebrant. The icing on the cake came when Fr John-Lewis burst into a melodious song as the culmination of his presentation.

It was now Fr Francis’ turn to reply and one could hear the emotion in his voice, as he thanked all those who journeyed with him throughout his priestly life.

He requested their prayerful support so that he might continue to serve the Lord faithfully. At this point, he requested the “Trini Posse” to stand and as we did so, the entire Cathedral burst into loud applause as they showed their appreciation for us who had come to celebrate with them on this joyous occasion of the 25th anniversary of their “son of the soil”.

Adriana Gomez then made a presentation to the Cathedral on our behalf, again to loud applause, after which Fr Arnold Francis gave the final blessing and we all made our way out of the Cathedral with the choir singing beautifully in the background.

Finally, we were served a sumptuous dinner which was followed by a number of speeches all in high praise of the guest-of-honour. The Governor General of Antigua, Sir James Carlisle, Fr Francis’ brother Rev Deacon John Francis, as well as other acquaintances, spoke in glowing terms of their friend and “brother”, Fr Arnold, as he is called in Antigua.

It was truly a memorable occasion. The atmosphere was one of love and camaraderie. We want to express our sincerest thanks to our hosts in Antigua.

To Fr Arnold Francis, we wish God’s blessings. May you continue to serve the people of God, here in Bourg Mulatresse, for many more years to come.  We love you.

PARISH NEWS: 25 years a priest