Arthur was born on April 271 1925 in St. Louis, Missouri, son of Louis Wille and Clara E. Nuernberg.  He is the third son of a family of five children.  Two of his brothers and one sister died at early ages, and his remaining sister, Rose Marie, together with her husband Paul Hansell are the happy parents of a family of seven children.

Arthur attended Holy Family School in St. Louis until the 5th grade.  At that time in his life his family moved to Watsonville, California.  There he attended Moreland Notre Dame Academy run by the Sisters of Notre Dame who helped him greatly in his missionary vocation.  He entered Maryknoll Junior Seminary at Los Altos, California, in September 1939, and passed through the Maryknoll education process with ease.  He obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy in 1950 and his Master of Religious Education in 1951.  He was ordained a priest at Maryknoll Seminary, New York, on June 9th, 1951.

After ordination Father Wile was assigned to the Maryknol1 Mission in the Prefecture of Musoma, Tanganyika, Africa.  At the time of his arrival this mission territory consisted of two long-established missions that had been built by the White Fathers and three recently opened missions that Maryknol1ers had opened since their arrival in 1946.  At that time the entire Catholic population was under 10,000.  There were no local priests or Sisters.  He was privileged to see and help the Church grow into the present Diocese of Musoma now under the 2nd local African Ordinary, Bishop Justin Samba.  The Catholic population has grown to more than 250,000.  There are 21 diocesan priests in some 22 parishes.  Early in the mission the Maryknollers established a minor seminary for the training of African priests.  There is a diocesan community of Sisters, the Immaculate Heart Sisters of Africa with a large number of members.

Father Wille's first assignment was to assist in opening and building the Komuge Mission among the Wasumbiti people in 1952. He worked there until 1955 when he was assigned to open a new mission among the Wazanaki people at Zanaki.  At this time he had the good fortune of engaging Julius K. Nyerere to teach him his local language of Kizanaki.  Julius who later led Tanganyika into independence and became the Father of the Country Tanzania and its first President, had an important influence on Father Wille.  In addition to teaching him the language, Ju1ius made up for him an Eng1ish-Kizanaki grammar, translated two catechisms and two explanations of the catechisms for catechists, as well as translating the Sunday Bible Readings of Mass into Kizanaki.

Father Wille built the mission for the Wazanaki at a place called Magarombe, Busegwe. He lived and worked there for ten years in the very large Zanaki Mission in which a number of other ethnic groups lived.  Those ten years were spent in pre-evangelization, teaching religion in government primary and middle schools, opening catechumenates and outstations and seeing the fruits of this apostolate blossom with many conversions.  Four new missions grew out of the Zanaki Parish, and others still need to be developed.

In 1965 he returned to the Komuge Mission and constructed and managed the Komuge Catechist Training Center.  He ran five two-year courses for 20 catechists and their wives.  Then the program was turned over to two diocesan priests.  Father Wille returned to the Komuge mission in 1982 and helped the Immaculate Heart Sisters of Africa get land in Kiabebe Village for their postulancy and farm.  He guided the Sisters in building up an 800 acre farm wherein they located the sisters' Postulancy/Novitiate and a modern Health Center with an out patient dispensary and four wards.

Over the years Father Wille has served several times on various Maryknoll Regional Councils.  For a time he was Vicar General of the Diocese of Musoma.  At various times he served as a consultor to the Bishop John Rudin. In recent years he has served as advisor and spiritual director of the Immaculate Heart Sisters of Africa.  At present he is teaching in Komuge Catechists Training Center and assisting in Komuge Parish. All who know Fr. Art describe him as "Forever Young".

Arthur's Reflections             Arthur's Ministry

Art may be contacted by Email at:  ArtWille@Hotmail.com

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