Our Mission in Ecuador | FSSP Apostolate in Guale, Ecuador

Quick Facts

This is the FSSP’s first house in Ecuador.
Guale had no resident priest for more than 35 years.

The apostolate includes Guale and several nearby communities and chapels.
The work began at the invitation of the Bishop of Portoviejo.

Fr. Xavier Proust, FSSP, is priest-in-charge.
Missionaries from FSSP Mexico have assisted with the first weeks of foundation.

The Need for Ministry in Guale, Ecuador

Guale is a rural town in the province of Manabi, in the Archdiocese of Portoviejo. For more than three decades it has been without a resident priest. The parish church remained, but the surrounding hamlets were served only sporadically. Many families drifted from the regular practice of the Faith. Protestant chapels multiplied. Baptisms, catechesis, and Sunday Mass became occasional rather than ordinary.

A diocesan bulletin from 1993 already recorded the same need: Guale consisted of scattered settlements, some an hour and half away on horseback, and “there is a church; what is lacking is the parish priest who would animate and serve the Christian Community.” That description remained largely true until the Fraternity arrived.

The Bishop of Portoviejo, Most Rev. Educardo Castillo Pino, invited the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter to take up this work. After two years of missionary visits, the Fraternity established a permanent apostolate in August 2026.

Years without a resident priest

New FSSP house in Ecuador

The New Apostolate

Fr. Xavier Proust, FSSP, serves as priest-in-charge. Fr. Daniel Heenan, FSSP, and a missionary group from the Fraternity’s apostolate in Guadalajara have helped prepare the church, the rectory, and the first days of public ministry.

The work has begun in earnest:

Restoration of the altar and sacristy
Repair of water systems and basic living conditions in the rectory
Flooring and repairs at the Chapel of St. Vincent Ferrer in the nearby village of Roncador
House-to-house visits inviting the people to Mass and introducing their new resident chaplain
Sunday Mass in Guale and Masses in the outlying communities
Baptisms, First Communions, and the first regular celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass

The early days have already shown both the difficulty and the hope of the work. Some residents greeted the priests with the words, “It’s about time.” Others have not practiced the Faith for years. A few children have returned to Mass on their own. The sacred liturgy is being offered with dignity whether the church is full or nearly empty, because it is offered first to God.