When Father Sahaya Paul Sebastian was a child in India, his mother taught him to cook. “In my culture, the girls learn to cook. Since my parents had four sons only, I had to learn to cook as their oldest son,” said the parochial vicar of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Stowe and Most Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Morrisville.

Now he is using some of his mother’s recipes to cook for fund-raising Indian take-out meals.

Usually the dinners feature chicken curry, fried rice with an Indian potato dish and Indian bread (paratha). Once vegetarian Indian sandwiches were served.

The take-out crew also has served barbecued chicken wings with sides; another meal featured Filipino cuisine. And they plan to offer a Polish menu in the future.

As needs arise, Father Sebastian organizes a meal, usually about once every two months.

Recipes for the Indian food come from the priest’s mother; the others are from friends.

According to Father Jon Schnobrich, pastor of both parishes, it important to have the parochial vicar share his culture with parishioners because “part of the beauty of the Catholic Church is its universality, where it embraces the good, true, and beautiful of every culture in every time.  Being in Vermont, we can sometimes forget how vast and culturally diverse the Church is. It allows you to step inside the shoes of someone else for whom these tastes are their normal, and get a sense of how connected we are all through different foods and flavors.”

Father Sebastian has been organizing the meals for about a year and a half; the first benefitted a young woman who was entering a monastery and needed to pay off student loans first.

The beneficiaries are as diverse as the food — some local causes or families in need, some needs for the parish, others for natural disaster relief like when the earthquake hit Syria, and others close to his heart which are needs of families or institutions back in his home country of India.

“I want to help those in need, and I feel the warmth of helping others every time I do it,” he said. “I was helped by many people throughout my seminary life — to pay for tuition, food, expenses. I want to be generous as well.”

Father Sebastian, the main cook, said people enjoy the spicy, flavorful — but not too hot — curry. “They enjoy the authentic cuisine that many do not make at home. They also know they are supporting good causes. People want to help; we just need to present opportunities to help,” he added.

Diane Marcoux-LaClair is a member of the dinner team at the Morrisville church. “The best part about these cooking sessions are the people who put it on. We are a very efficient team of about 6-8 people who know what to do and we get it done,” she said. “We also have a great time doing it because Father Paul’s joy and laughter are contagious, and we have so much fun working together. His positive attitude rubs off on all of us.”

Father Sebastian feels the joy of his priesthood and the joy of being a helping hand to those in need when he cooks for these fundraisers: “People feel that this joy radiates to all who are part of the effort and who partake of the food. I believe that it helps to build up the parish community. Joy in the Lord is contagious.”

Another volunteer, Claire Lawless, commented, “This door which the Spirit of God opened into our church has offered more graces than I can count and blessed me with friends that I am confident will last a lifetime.”

Most dinners are prepared for about 120 people. The cost is $15 per meal.

Father Sebastian would like to introduce more international meals; his goal is to bring more people to join or return to the Catholic community.

“It’s a wonderful community-building experience for us in the kitchen as well as for the non-Catholics who support Father Paul’s missions,” said volunteer Mary Skelton Altadonna. “It is fun to welcome them into our parish hall to pick up their meals; most have never seen the lovely space before.”

In the future, Father Sebastian would like to have dine-in meals. “That will make the community stronger,” said the priest who has put on one dinner for Our Lady of Fatima Church in Wilmington to help raise funds for stained-glass windows.

So far, the dinners have raised more than $33,000 for charitable causes.

—Originally published in the Summer 2023 issue of Vermont Catholic magazine.