How It Began

  “Just so I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God
over one sinner who repents.” Luke 15: 10

A Series of Divine Appointments

Rosaries for Africa is the result of a series of divine appointments that occurred throughout my journey in Christ. Having left the church during my college years, I had been serving as an evangelical pastor. In the 1980’s, I began to lead short term mission trips to Nigeria. Our ministry took us to many different parts of the country to equip and encourage local pastors as well as host and train several African pastors in the United States. The African people and their joy amid so much hardship greatly impacted my life. Hence a life-long love and bond with the African people was created.

Fast forward to 2009. My wife, Leslie, and I decided, after years of reflection and prayer, to return to the Catholic Church. As I reached out to the local parish in our neighborhood, my first contact was with a Nigerian priest.  To my surprise, he was from one of the areas I visited during a mission trip.  This was clearly a divine appointment and we immediately connected!

In returning to the Church, I was surprised to learn of the amazing growth of Catholicism in Africa. According to recent statistics, Africa added more than 8 million Catholics in 2019, the largest area of growth in the world. Upon launching our lay apostolate in 2020, Encounter Jesus Discipleship Ministries, our prayer was, “Lord, please lead us into the fields of labor where the harvest is plentiful.” Africa is unmistakably one of the great harvest fields in the world today.

Rosaries For Africa is Born

The Holy Spirit had more divine appointments in store for me. I happened to meet a woman from Tennessee who makes rosaries with a team of ladies. At the same time, I began, through social media, a relationship with a priest from the country of Malawi in East Africa. Father Edmond Nyoka, along with one other priest, serves a parish that includes 72 Catholic churches in an extremely impoverished area. The parishioners’ homes are small shed like structures, and their parish is primarily supported with food donations that they grow. Through our conversations, I discovered they have a tremendous need for rosaries. As a result, “Rosaries for Africa” was born!

How You Can Help

By God’s grace, this ministry is growing! It has now expanded to another priest in Malawi as well as a diocese in Nigeria. Although the rosaries are donated as a gift, our costs include brochures on how to say the rosary, as well as the packaging and shipping. A shipment of 500 rosaries and brochures, costs approximately $450 dollars. If you are interested in helping our brothers and sisters in Africa, please reach out to us at 1doanep@gmail.com or contact us directly by calling 317.679.7631.

Our Mission is to lead Catholics to encounter
Jesus Christ and equip them to become disciples.