Even a hurricane could not keep this priest from making sure people had a place to worship this weekend in Houston.
Fr. David Bergeron is a Catholic priest at the Catholic Charismatic Center in Houston, Texas, one of the areas hit hardest by Hurricane Harvey. The center was not open on Sunday, but that didn’t stop the priest from trying to offer Mass, and some comfort, to residents.
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He had planned to try to pick up wine for Mass, only for laws to still be enforced which make it illegal to buy alcohol before noon on Sunday. Fr. Bergeron appeared willing to stay until noon, however, so as to say Mass for stranded local Catholics. He had spent the night in his truck, but, due to the high waters, he left his truck on the overpass, he explained, and planned to kayak for a few miles.
Fortunately, Fr. Bergeron’s house was “just about” but not quite yet flooded so as to be in as dire a situation as other local residents.
While embarking on such a journey, ABC 13 caught up with the priest. He told the local news station about how he was able to get other supplies for a fellow priest, and wished to help families which were stranded in the storm. He was even able to provide some light-hearted historical context.
Fr. Bergeron is French-Canadian he explained, and surmised that “I guess this is how the Americans were evangelized as well, in a canoe, and this is a kayak,” he explained, also expressing “hope that that can bring a smile to a few people.”
The priest had words of hope and comfort even for those he did not end up reaching, as he is “praying for everyone who is in need.” Parishoners had been texting him to say they saw him on television, prompting to offer a message of how “the Lord is alive and the Lord is always with us as well.”