Société des Missions Africaines –Province d'Irlande

A Kilcogan (Irlande), retour à Dieu, le 1er mars 1947, du père Pierre Rogers, à l'âge de 38 ans.

Le père Rogers était né à Belfast, dans le diocèse de Down & Connor, en 1909. Il fit ses études dans les maisons de la Société, en Irlande; il fit le serment en 1932 et fut ordonné prêtre le 21 décembre 1935. En 1936, il partait pour le Liberia, d'où il revenait malade en 1942. En 1946, il avait pu prendre le poste de directeur spirituel au noviciat de Kilcogan.

Father Peter Paul ROGERS (1909 - 1947)

Peter Rogers was born in Belfast (the family address was in Strathedene Terrace, Halliday Road) in the parish of St. Patrick's, in the diocese of Down and Connor, on l November 1909. He died at Kilcolgan, Co Galway, on 1 March 1947.

Peter studied at the Holy Family school in Belfast and at St. Joseph's college, Wilton, Cork (1927 1930), before joining the Society's novitiate and house of philosophy, at Kilcolgan. He studied theology at Dromantine, Co Down, between 1932 1936. He was admitted to membership of the Society on 19 June 1932 and was ordained a priest by Bishop Edward Mulhern of Dromore diocese, at St. Colman's cathedral, Newry, on 21 December 1935. He was one of a group of twenty-one ordained on that day.

After ordination Peter was appointed to the vicariate of Liberia, in West Africa. This vicariate had been erected a year before (formerly it was a prefecture) under the leadership of Bishop John Collins. Liberia was an impoverished Black Republic, with few roads and virtually no educational and medical facilities, and a population of less than two million scattered over a territory of some 32,000 square miles. Moreover it was situated near the equator, in the Gulf of Guinea, the original 'whiteman's grave'. Liberia was to take a heavy toll on the resources of the Irish Province. Several members died there while many more were invalided home. Nonetheless the seeds of Catholicism were effectively sown and were in time to bear abundant fruit.

Peter arrived in Liberia at a time when Bishop Collins, who had successfully pioneered the Church on the Kru Coast, was seeking to establish a stronger Catholic presence in the region of Monrovia, Liberia's capital. Three attempts, by Holy Ghost and Montfortain missionaries, to establish a Catholic presence there during the 19th and early 20th centuries had failed. The S.M.A., under Stephen Kyne (first prefect apostolic of Liberia) had made a new attempt in 1906, but the mission had to be closed shortly afterwards. Monrovia was re-opened by Mgr. Jean Ogé in 1921, but had made little progress. Peter was one of those appointed by Bishop Collins to inject new life into Monrovia district. When he took up his post, in October 1936, there was a Catholic community of 600 members and 120 catechumens, mostly immigrants from the Kru Coast. There were two secondary stations, Kekru and Kakatown, and a number of places which the missionaries hoped might be developed into secondary stations, including Krootown, Bassatown, Firestone Plantation, Whiteplains and New Georgia. Today Monrovia is the seat of an archdiocese.

In 1939 Peter was transferred to the Kru Coast, to the mission of Sasstown. The Kru Coast was the cradle of Liberian Catholicism, where in the first and second decade of the century firm roots were laid down. 'Old-Sasstown', where Peter was stationed, had almost 2,000 Catholics and some 20 outstations. Peter spent the last two years of his tour of duty in the district of Sannequellie (Saniquellie), in the interior about 150 miles north-east of Monrovia. Sanequellie mission had been pioneered in the early 1930's and had less than 100 Catholic members. In 1942 Peter's health gave cause for concern and the doctor at Firestone ordered his repatriation. He returned to Ireland in October. His departure was a serious blow to the Church in Liberia. Bishop Collins described him as 'an excellent missionary' and his departure as 'a great loss to the mission'.

After returning to Ireland Peter was attached to the Provincial house at Blackrock Road where it was hoped he might regain his strength. From 1946 he was spiritual director at the novitiate, in Kilcolgan. However, like many of his colleagues invalided home from Liberia, he was never to recover and died aged only 38 years. He was survived by his mother and three brothers. One of his brothers was a member of the Jesuit order (Brother John). His funeral Mass, held in Wilton, was celebrated by a classmate, Dave Mulcahy, with two of his fellow-missionaries from Liberia as deacon and sub-deacon, namely Louis Kinnane and John J. Mullins. Bishop Thomas Hughes, of the Ondo-Ilorin vicariate, presided.

He is buried in Wilton cemetery.