Our mission in Suriname started on November 14, 2010. The official language of Suriname is Dutch, however, the Creole language “Saran Tongo,” is also widely spoken. The population of Suriname is about 520,000; almost half of the population lives in the capital city, Paramaribo. This country has a very multicultural society with people of many different religions: Muslims, Hindus, Protestants, and Catholics. The climate is tropical and hot all year round. Suriname is a former Dutch colony. It gained its independent from the Netherlands peacefully in 1975. With only 165,000 square kilometers, it is the smallest sovereign country in South America.

The mission that we are working in was originally founded by the Redemptorist fathers who cultivated a strong devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Catholics here also have a great devotion to Blessed Peter Donders, who worked in Suriname for 27 years in a leper colony. The National Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul is the largest wooden structure in the Western Hemisphere.