1343 Downunder - ordinations in Australia, Samoa, Fiji
austraLasia 1343

Downunder - ordinations in Australia, Samoa, Fiji

MELBOURNE: 1st December 2005 -- December-January 'Downunder', and that also includes the South Pacific, is the time for the Salesian celebration of ordinations and professions.  This time around there are ordinations at various stages and in several parts of the province, as widespread geographically as it is.  In Suva, Fiji, four men will be ordained to preparatory ministries: Bro Taisali Leuluai to ministry of lector and Bros. Isaia Bourne, Falani Felise and Aleki Piula to ministry of Acolyte.
    In Melbourne, at St Jude's Scoresby on 4th December, Bro Brian Ahern will be ordained to the Diaconate.  In Perth, on the other side of the Australian continent, Deacon Will Matthew will be ordained to the priesthood at St. Mary's Cathedral.  Meanwhile in Samoa, Deacons Mika Luamanuvae and Sefo Mulipola will be ordained priests at St. John Bosco's Sinamoga on 7th January 2006.
    These are particularly important events for the province which, like many parts of the world with a secular mindset, has struggled to find and nurture vocations in recent years.  Recently, the Province Vocation Team (which includes FMA as well as SDB) attended a national vocations conference where the former Master General of the Dominicans, Fr Timothy Radcliffe, was one of the main presenters.  The Conference put forward a raft of beliefs concerning vocation work, that may also be helpful to others who read austraLasia, so we list them here:
Vocation promotion is the responsibility of every member of a province - it is always rightfully undertaken for the sake of the mission, never for reasons of survival - we need to create a vocation culture and to fulfil this task the whole Church must work together in unity - we need to create happy, prayerful communities where members feel they belong and learn not only to love but also to like each other - don't be afraid to 'pop the question' to those young people who seem to possess the right qualities for Religious Life - follow up inquiries - develop and deepen our relationship with God - be examples of commitment.
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