Two students at Heart of Life
Melbourne, Australia, 31 July 2017 -- "To be honest, we are very happy to be sent here to study at ‘Heart of Life’. This center offers us a program for the formation of spiritual directors and spiritual direction. ‘Siloam’ is a program for the formation of competent, experienced spiritual directors. The program can be taken over one year full-time or two years part-time. There is generally a limit of eight participants in each program.
Both of us we, Frs. Joseph Đăng and Joseph Khánh feel very happy, cheerful and good in the international formation experience within the multi cultural community. We are coming from different countries: East Timor, Viet Nam, India, Tanzania and Australia. Although with a lot of differences in age, in culture, job… but we have the same goal – becoming a spiritual director.
For us, spiritual direction is concerned with helping a person directly with his or her relationship with God. Actually, the program at Heart of Life (Siloam program) helps us to improve so much in spiritual life. This course also helps us to understand more about the role of a spiritual director, who does not work as a therapist or a counselor. The spiritual director does not give directees advice or suggestion, but listen to them with heart and accompany them on the journey to God.
The Heart of Life program: At the beginning of the course we are invited to plan ‘a project of life’, the project of a spiritual director that we will follow during the course. Every week, we have chances to practice spiritual direction and write a report (verbatim) to our supervisors and they help us to do better. Each month, we have an encounter with our spiritual director.
Here in Australia-Pacific (AUL) province, the confreres in generally are very hospitable, sociable and cheerful. Some of them work very hard in schools and oratories. Australian Church is very open, irrespective of skin color or ethnicity. Specifically, the seminarians of Melbourne archdiocese come from many countries.
Vietnamese Salesians in Australia are very enthusiastic and creative within the provincial community as well as in Australian Church. They are also very active in the Vietnamese Catholic communities. And the youngsters here are very open, confident and straightforward speaking. These are the main things we have learned during six months living in Australia.
Yes, we think, that more confreres from the EAO region or from our Vietnam-Mongolia province should take ‘Siloam program’. It is very good for us to discover ‘who I am’, so we will welcome, respect, listen others and accompany with them on the journey of faith.
The Heart of Life (http://heartoflife.melbourne) spirituality center based in Melbourne - SVD University campus, Australia offers a variety of programs. The most relevant is one year residential course of spiritual directors. Two Salesians from Vietnam are the first non-Australia based SDB participants in this experience.
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