In his 30 years as a priest, Father Cyprian Tatah has had a wide range of experiences. He has preached in villages, studied in Rome, served as chancellor of the Diocese of Kumbo, been assigned to the U.S. Virgin Islands, and now, he is a parochial vicar of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes.

Father Cyprian is originally from Roberta-Kikaikom, a village within the town of Kumbo in Cameroon. Faith was part of his life from a young age. His father was a catechist who would lead services when a priest wasn’t available to celebrate Mass.

Father Cyprian says his father used to take him to doctrine classes, so he learned about the Catholic faith at a young age. He then attended a Catholic primary school before being admitted to the minor seminary in 1979, when he was just 11 years old.

After his ordination in 1993, he served in a parish for one year before becoming the bishop’s secretary for the next five. He says it was a significant period for the Church in Africa because Pope John Paul II had just issued the apostolic exhortation Ecclesia in Africa, following a Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops. The assembly’s purpose was to help the Church in Africa better embrace its evangelizing mission.

After serving the bishop, Father Cyprian returned to parish ministry, but then went to the Pontifical Urban University in Rome where he received a licentiate in biblical theology. His future assignments included both parish ministry and administrative positions. He was a member of the diocesan pastoral formation team, a seminary teacher, canon of the cathedral, and Catholic education secretary. He also served the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda in several capacities including as a member of the Provincial Commission for Catechesis and Pastoral Affairs, his final assignment before leaving for the Virgin Islands and now Maine.