austraLasia #1944
(Apologies for regular breaks in service over these weeks - I am in
places where wireless links break off after a few minutes, making the
dispatch of austraLasia difficult. The best I can get through is a few
at at a time. Hope you understand jbf)
Jakarta ordinations, September 8
JAKARTA: 12th September 2007 -- Jesuit bishop Julian
Sunarka, of
Purwokerto diocese (southern
Java) ordained two Salesian Indonesian priests on September 8 -
Saturday, 5 pm at Jakarta-Sunter,
Parish of St.John Bosco. They are Fr. Herybertus Agung and
Fr.
Tarsisius Trianto. It is the second priestly ordination in the recently
erected Salesian parish (2004).
The ordination took place in a packed
parish church,
enlivened
by the
zeal of the parish community of about 5000 Catholics with 200
catechumens,
who have prepared for the occasion over the past three months. The
visible sign was an ordination booklet of 128 pages, containing not
only details of and remarks by both ordinands and their families but
also
a rather detailed introduction to the Salesian congregation, Don Bosco
and the Salesian Family in Indonesia, which came into being only in
1985 - but now has
more than 50 local confreres, 6 novices and 10
prenovices distributed
over 4 communities.
Bishop Sunarka, SJ had done his research
on Don Bosco
and the
Salesians and shared,
in his passionate homily, his 50 years long personal
admiration for
the
Saint: "For me Don Bosco is a great educator. He is like the orchardist
looking after the apple trees - he knows the youth, he loves the youth
and cares
about about their growth!' He finished his homily with 'I hope you two
will spread devotion to education in
Indonesia as Saint John Bosco did in his
times'. And he repeated twice his invitation to the Salesians to
develop vocational training center (computers etc) in the diocese of
70.000 catholics with about 37 local diocesan priests and some
religious.
Some 1500 faithful, 30 priests, The
provincial of ITM
and 30
Salesians, 6 Salesian Sisters, 20 Salesian Cooperators, numerous
aspirants
, the SDB regional EAO, many religious and young people took part
in
the event. A special touch to the liturgy was the very close inclusion
of the
parents in all the rites, following their sons closely to the altar,
helping with the vestments. All were in typical Javanese traditional
clothes.
On Sunday 9 September the Thanksgiving
masses were
offered in
their respective places of family residence, at the outskirts of
jakarta
diocese, some 70=90 minutes by car from the formation house. In the St.
Bartholomew parish of Bekasi - Fr. Agungs' home parish - the homily was
interactive - dialogue between parents and homilist, sharing his
vocational story (3 brothers tried the seminary, only the 1st now the
new
priest remained) and SVD parish priest invited local youth to think
about a Salesian vocation as well, with a concrete Come and See program
offered by the SDBs!
With accustomed Indonesian hospitality,
all
participants after
the ordination or first mass were treated with a short academy and
meal, which SDB communities also took part in.
Both new priests are assigned to
formation houses in
Jakarta - Fr.
Agung as catechist to the Postnovitiate in Sunter and Fr. Trianto to
the prenovitiate in Tigaraksa.
_________________
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