In front of the imposing Saint Jean-Baptiste church in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, the agitation is in full swing. On this Thursday afternoon, in a happy bazaar, the numerous traders tidy up their stalls which clutter the streets of the district. Some women, their hair covered by a veil, carry bags filled with food or clothing. Town hall employees go from one stand to another to ensure that the mounds of paper or packaging that litter the church square will be removed.
“I feel foreign to the Molenbeek that people talk about on the Internet”
An effervescence that leaves Father Étienne Kangue Essiben unmoved. This priest originally from Cameroon, who became Belgian in 2020, has been responsible for the Molenbeek-center pastoral unit since 2019. He has learned to familiarize himself with this multicultural neighborhood where the Saint Jean-Baptiste church is surrounded by more than 20 mosques of all trends.
Father Étienne Kangue Essiben. / Source: Étienne Kangue Essiben
He also learned to deal with the sad reputation of the municipality of Molenbeek. 15 minutes from downtown Brussels, the popular city of nearly 100,000 inhabitants has sometimes been presented as one of the major centers of radical Islamism in Europe, especially since the Paris attacks in 2015. “I feel foreign to the Molenbeek that people talk about on the Internethe testifies. The image and reputation of the city do not correspond to what I experience. There is strong involvement from the municipality to change things. »
“I live the Gospel with my neighbors”
The various religious leaders were mobilized to raise awareness among the faithful of different religions. Visits to places of worship were organized. The priest maintains close ties with several imams. In February 2023, 400 people gathered at the Jean-Baptiste church in Molenbeek for a Together with Mary meeting, bringing together Christians and Muslims. Defending any naivety, the Belgian-Cameroonian priest refutes the idea of tensions in the relations between the mosaic of communities of foreign origin which make up the commune.
“It’s the people who don’t come here who think it’s tense. When I say outside that I am the priest of Molenbeek, people take two steps back”recognizes, laughing, Father Étienne Kangue Essiben. However, the one who previously officiated in Charleroi for seven years after missions in France and Spain does not lack an example to debunk certain clichés. “The first people who welcomed me into the neighborhood were my Muslim neighbors, says the priest. During Ramadan, they bring me soup every night. »
The Church of Saint John the Baptist in Molenbeek-Saint-Jean / Arnaud Bevilacqua for La Croix
Can a priest walk around Molenbeek without fear? To get a categorical answer, all you have to do is follow Father Étienne through the streets, who greets neighbors or acquaintances and a few parishioners. He also describes his parish as a community “mixed, mostly African”some of whom come from other districts of Brussels, or even further afield, because they are attached to this place. “Our young people embrace their faith, youth ministry is dynamic”supports the missionary priest of the congregation of the Holy Spirit – the Spiritans. But how to be a missionary in Molenbeek? “I bear witness to what I experience on a daily basis, in contact with many Muslimshe asserts with simplicity and conviction. I live the Gospel with my neighbors. »
