31 Oct 2024
A recent article on the Aleteia website shone the spotlight on Fr Albert Boudaud MSC, Papua New Guinea’s oldest missionary. Aleteia’s Camille Dalmas writes a touching piece on Fr Albert, now aged 84, and his missionary journey, following an encounter during Pope Francis’ visit to Port Moresby in September of this year.
Fr Albert Boudaud MSC (Image from Camille Dalmas’ article on www.aleteia.org)
The article explains how Fr Albert began his ministry in Papua New Guinea in 1968, at the age of 28. Originally from the Vendée, he joined the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in Issoudun and was ordained in 1967.
Following his initial pastoral year in Paris, Fr Albert embarked on what was an epic voyage to Papua New Guinea, “a place where his congregation were pioneers”. The journey took 45 days, taking him “across the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, and finally to the Pacific via the Panama Canal… Then came the Marquesas, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and Sydney. And from there, he traveled to Port Moresby.”
“He remembers sailing the Pacific Ocean for nine days without seeing anything but water,” writes Dalmas.
Making Papua New Guinea his home, Fr Albert moved throughout local villages, learning as many of the country’s 800 different languages as he could. “I came voluntarily, I integrated myself, I made it my country by living close to the people,” he says in the Aleteia piece.
To fit in, he also had to chew areca nut, the natural drug — also known as betel nut — that turns the teeth of so many Papua New Guineans red (and causes mouth cancer). “When the situation was a bit difficult, we’d chew together and that made it possible to get things done.”
Shoes and sandals wore out during these years of mission, when he wasn’t simply going barefoot over muddy terrain. He took the Gospel and the Eucharist on “patrols” to remote villages. He remembers being bitten by snakes before chasing them away with a stick.
He also has baptized people everywhere. “It’s our most important job,” he insists. He spent several days in each village, celebrating Mass and conferring the sacraments.
Fr Albert is now retired after many years of faithful service. To read his full story, please click here to visit the Aleteia website.