Protecting language, culture & hope

I am Fr Joel, a Guyanese Jesuit serving among the Wapichan people in Guyana’s interior. Together with the Patamona and Macushi, these indigenous communities are the beating heart of the Pakaraima Mountains.

For generations, their language and culture have been under threat. Once discouraged in schools, Wapichan is now at risk of disappearing. Yet language carries memory, prayer, and wisdom; to lose it would be to lose a worldview.

With Jesuit Missions, we launched a bilingual education programme in 2017. Today, 24 teachers are training to bring Wapichan language and culture to 300 children. In villages like Maruranau and Sawariwau, children now sing, dance, and speak their mother tongue proudly. Some for the very first time.

A community leader told me: “When I speak in Wapichan, my soul is touched.” Mine was too. To see a culture once fading now taking root again fills me with hope.

Across the world, Jesuit Missions supports vulnerable communities, from Myanmar to South Sudan, facing climate change, violence, and loss of identity.

Would you consider making a regular gift?

• £10 a month gives 6 children schoolbooks to learn Wapichan.
• £25 a month supports leadership training for young people in Myanmar.
• £100 a year equips farmers in South Sudan with climate‑resilient skills.

Your gift ensures this life‑changing work continues.

Whatever you can give today, thank you.

Fr Joel Thompson, SJ

St Ignatius Mission, Central Rupununi, Guyana

Or, give a one-off gift below: