A good spiritual guide is the secret of a happy missionary
S ince I was an English teacher before I joined
the Salesians, I applied to be a missionary in
any English speaking country in Europe or elsewhere.
To my surprise, in 2003, as a dea-
con, the Provincial proposed to
send me to Hungary! I hesitated
but I accepted to work in Hun-
gary for 3 years. Meanwhile, fin-
ishing my theological studies in
Poland, I also tried to study Hun-
garian but I found it so hard and
complex that I would fall asleep
whenever I tried to study it. The
next year, after my priestly ordi-
nation, I went to Hungary as the
first European missionary of
Project Europe!
My first 3 years were
mainly language studies. I at-
tended the Debrecen University intensive language
course for 8 months in Budapest. But the language
and culture just seemed so strange and difficult. I
felt like a little child who could not communicate. I
lost my independence. I suffered psychologically and
spiritually. In fact, I wanted to leave Hungary 3
times. On hindsight, this experience taught me to
understand and accept others in the same way that I
want people to understand and accept me.
After the course I was sent to Péliföldszent-
kereszt where a Salesian was assigned to guide my
introduction to the new language and culture. With
his help I dared to “set out into the deep”! But there
were days when I would get upset and would not
want to teach because the students made fun of my
Hungarian. It was only when I learnt to laugh at my
own mistakes that I felt ‘liberated’ to dare to speak.
Gradually, I found many good friends who helped me
with my preaching and translation. Now I speak and
write in Hungarian with few mistakes. Thanks to the
effort I made in my first years.
Although Hungary was evangelised in the 10th
century, the communist persecution from 1950 to
1990 has almost wiped out Christianity. Yet, we
found it easier to speak about Don Bosco and his
pedagogy as a point of departure
for evangelisation because the
Preventive System is permeated by
the Gospel. The friendly atmos-
phere in our schools and oratories
often becomes the starting point
which stirs up interest of the faith.
Since 2010 I have been working in
our Salesian school for Gypsies in
Kazincbarcika. Many of the young-
sters and teachers were baptised
by their Gypsy parents as children
but do not practice their Christian
faith. A multitude of different rea-
sons make our work complex in
many areas where there is a great
and urgent need not only of new evangelisation but
even of initial proclamation. Thus, I decided to re-
main here for good as missionary. In 2010 I was in-
vited to participate in the orientation course for
new missionaries and I received the missionary cross
in Valdocco.
Looking for a spiritual guide is no easy task
but he is indispensable to every missionary. If I am
still a missionary in Hungary today, it’s because I
have a regular and stable Salesian spiritual director.
He is the person I can speak to any time. At first it
was quite difficult, but with time I took more cour-
age to open my thoughts, desires, and opinions to
him. Now I became more certain about my mission-
ary vocation and I became more spiritually stable in
facing challenges. Thanks to my spiritual guide I am
happy as a missionary in Hungary. I learnt to love
more the youth and, consequently, I came closer to
God !
Fr. Robert Kukuczka
Polish, missionary in Hungary
Salesian Missionary Intention
Western Europe Region - Spain, Portugal, France - (South) Belgium
That during the Year of Faith the confreres of the region of Western Europe,
the most vocationally arid of all 8 Salesian regions in the world,
may continue to build a vocational culture with faith, enthusiasm and patience.
The region of Western Europe is made up of 8 Provinces and about 1450 con-
freres. It is the only one of the eight regions without a Salesian novitiate. There
were three novices during the school year 2012-2013. The highly secularised con-
text, low birth rate and the very high average age of confreres do not promote vo-
cations to the consecrated life in general. We pray that during the Year of Faith and the visit of the rel-
ics of Don Bosco in the region may strengthen the confreres in their life of faith, inspire a renewed en-
thusiasm and passion to build up even today a culture of vocations among young people in our settings.
