I began to reminisce about priests I had admired during my seventy-six years. One in particular stands out and seems just right for “My Favorite Priest” recognition which I am sure will surprise him when he reads it. His name is Father A. J. Bosack.

My first encounter with him was over a decade ago and prior to my coming to Africa. I was assigned to speak at his parish for the retirement fund for religious. We introduced ourselves by phone and he told me that he had arranged for me to stay overnight with a family in the parish. I thought that this was very kind as his parish was rural and was a distance from my convent and I would be speaking at the evening and morning Masses during a snowy December.

When I arrived at the church and met him. I was impressed with his simplicity and genuine caring. The church had an Advent Wreath and the children had prepared a Judah tree. The faith of the children and adults was vibrant and I felt that his example was much louder than words. His charity reached out and excluded none. His sense of humor was contagious. His sense of reverence was also contagious.

I have learned that he is eighty-two years old, he has been a priest for over fifty years, and at his present parish since 1962. Although retired, he still says daily Mass. As one person said he is dearly loved. His demeanor portrays peace and an abiding awareness of the presence of God. He keeps a spiritual-based perspective on people and events around him. His attitude is one of service freely given. One of his elderly women widowed parishioners insisted on living alone and driving her car. She would sometimes become confused and forget how to reach her home. The police of their little village would phone him and he would go and escort her home. Eventually, when she had to go to a nursing home, he would visit and minister to her.

Lay people were inspired by his example and actively participated in church programs. They taught religious education classes on Sunday mornings between the 8:30 and 10:30 A.M. Masses from preschool through high school. Classes were distributed throughout the meeting rooms of the church basement and the basement, living and dining rooms of the rectory. He utilized this time to hear confessions of the children who were brought to the church class by class to await their turns.

He was also very considerate. The church was an old wooden structure painted white and resembled pictures of early churches seen on calendars. He arranged for an elevator to be installed so the old and/or infirm need not try to climb the steep flight of stairs leading into the church.

With the help of my brother who supplied film and developing, I took photos of the children and teachers in their classes, and families as they left church after Mass. He would post these photos in the church vestibule and you could see his joy as well as that of families given their photos. They often asked father to pose with them so they had lasting reminders of their association with him and St. Joseph’s Parish.

I would also see him each year when he came for retreat to Niagara University, N.Y. where I was teaching classes in nursing and gerontology. He always seemed serene and had a twinkle in his eye. He pleasantly surprised me when he came with some of his parishioners to my retirement dinner at Niagara University after forty-one years on the faculty.

Since 1995, I have been nursing at Timau Catholic Mission Dispensary and assisting Sister Joanne Gangloff to feed, clothe, finance medical care, and educate the “poorest of the poor.” Often the children are orphaned when their parents die of AIDS or abandon them because of despair due to lack of income after years of prolonged drought and consequent famine.

The grandparent(s) caring for the children is (are) very needy and all may sleep on a mud floor of their hut or rented room. We give them mattresses and blankets. Two hundred and thirty-six are sponsored by the CFCA (Christian Foundation of Children and Aged) from Kansas City, USA and at present, we have as many waiting for sponsors, and we help them through private donations from family and friends. The latter group includes “My Favorite Priest,” Father A. B. Bosack and some of his parish.  

You are invited to contribute to this series by sending in an account of a priest whom you admire. Articles should not exceed 800 words. The best of these will be printed. Send to
“My Favorite Priest”
c/o Homiletic & Pastoral Review
50 S. Franklin Turnpike
Suite 1
Ramsey, N.J. 07446
If you have a good photo of the priest, please send that also. Enclose a stamped self-addressed envelope, if you wish to have your article returned
...Sister Mary E. Balthasar, O.S.F., works in Timau, Kenya, East Africa. — Editor

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