Name: Brother Paul Mensah, CSC

Position: District Administration
Location: Ghana, West Africa
Date of Birth: 1959

Brother Mensah is a skilled businessman who has followed God's call to use his gifts to serve the needs of priests and other religious workers. Through responsible management of the Church's finances, he contributes to the existence and mission of Holy Cross in Ghana.

Here is his story . . .

There comes a time in our lives when moving into the future is best served by looking into the past. Looking into the past presupposes a journey. I look at my personal journey as two-fold; my outward journey and my inner journey.

The Process of My Vocation and the Choice of Academic Field
I came to know Holy Cross through a friend who was a student of St. Theresa's Minor Seminary at Amisano, Ghana where Holy Cross Brothers were teaching and administering. I was in secondary school when my friend, Philip Danquah sent me brochure about the brothers. I became interested in the work they were doing and corresponded with the vocation directors-Brothers Joseph Tsiquaye and James Kozak-over a three-year period with occasional visits until I completed secondary school.

In 1983, I took my first vows in Holy Cross in Sekondi, Ghana. I made my final vows on December 29, 1990 with Brothers Michael Amakyi and Daniel Dardoe in Sekondi.

After the novitiate, I pursued philosophy and theology at the major seminary in Cape Coast. From then on, I changed to the study of business based on the needs of the community. In 1992, I graduated in Accounting and Finance from St. Edward's University in Austin, Texas.

Using Business Skills in Ministry
Since my return to Ghana in 1992, I have been involved in a variety of ministries. I completed my national service at the University of Cape Coast for two years in administration and teaching management information systems. I was very much involved in the computerization of the planning unit and the finance office of the university.

From 1995 to 1997, I worked in the various formation programs of the District. I have been the director of the temporary professed members and the assistant director in the candidacy program. Since 1993, I have been part of our leadership team and responsible for the finances of the District.

In 1997, I began working with Catholic Mission Press, a diocesan printing press. This was the first Catholic printing press in Ghana, but had been neglected. Today, I am trying to rejuvenate the press-making it an income-generating project for the Archdiocese of Cape Coast.

The need for financial responsibility and accountability led me to organize workshops on accounting and financial management for priests and others who work on church finances, and I facilitated a similar workshop in Nigeria in 1997. I serve and consult on different committees and boards at the national level for the church. I serve on the board of Quality Insurance Company, an insurance company of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Ghana. I also serve on a finance committee of the Bishops' Conference at the National Catholic Secretariat. At the moment, I serve as the Executive Secretary of the Conference of Major superiors of Religious Men in Ghana.

What I Am Is God's Gift to Me; What I Become Is My Gift to God
I joined Holy Cross not knowing where this would lead. My desire was to respond to a call to be of service to God and humanity. The challenges and the commitment that are entailed in living the religious life in community, prayer, and mission have provided me the opportunity for growth as a person. It is the personal growth and the rich experiences I have gained in Holy Cross that have helped me in my various ministries.

Through the mix of various opportunities and a variety of ministries, I get a feeling of purposeful living, with the meaning that my life has been given to me as a gift.

Joining these men as a brother of Holy Cross is the choice that has made all the difference in my life. In the words of St. Augustine "what I am is God's gift to me; what I become is my gift to God." That is what Yahweh asks of me: to act justly, to love tenderly, and to walk humbly with my God.

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