austraLasia

?

Shortcut

PrevPrev Article

NextNext Article

Larger Font Smaller Font Up Down Go comment Print Attachment
Views 738 Comment 0

20181206_AUL.jpg


Missionary journey via Ireland to Australia-Pacific from Dalat: 

interview with Cl. Peter Anh Vu Nguyen, SDB


By Our Own Correspondent


Melbourne, Australia, 3 December 2018 -- Another new missionary has arrived in our Region. Vietnamese Salesian and practical trainee, Peter Anh Vu Nguyen, spent one year following his new missionary course, in Ireland (Maynooth) studying English. Now he has already reached Australia, where he became a member of the Brunswick community in Melbourne.


How did you discover your missionary vocation in Vietnam?


As a young Salesian, I still have limitations, but I have received so many graces from God and support from my Salesian brothers and sisters that I confident in speaking up to share some experiences from the very bottom of my heart. I hope that through my sharing, I can grow in the Holy Spirit and others too can be inspired and set out on or continue their journey of faith with joy and new inspiration.


After joining the aspirantate in the DaLat (Vietnam) community, the dream of becoming a missionary came to me. Unfortunately, a simple thought that missionary life is not easy and might be too hard for me wiped that dream away soon after it appeared. However, as it is a call from God, it was still implanted deep in my heart like a seed buried deep underground waiting for the right time to sprout, even though I tried to get rid of it. I kept carrying that seed with me year after year until I took my first vows and moved to the post-novitiate where I learnt from my spiritual director how to discern my Salesian and missionary vocation. As a result of his help, my deep inner peace found that missionary dream sprouting once more as I discovered and decided to live out the Salesian missionary vocation. It was a long journey of discernment and formation for me aftwerwards. Eventually, I received the Salesian Missionary Cross from the Rector Major at the Basilica of Mary Help of Christian in Turin, on 24 September 2017. My missionary destination was Samoa, a country which is part of the Australia-Pacific Province.


How did you spend first year out of your homeland?


I was very happy and blessed to be part of the missionary course to prepare myself for a missionary journey. We are proud that our Congregation has so many Salesians who courageously offer themselves as missionaries ad gentes – ad vitam (= leaving their homeland for unknown lands where they will meet and work with those whose language and culture they do not know).


Nevertheless, it is where they meet and encounter Jesus in those other cultures among people who in Him will become familiar and then very close to them. The vocation of living for foreign people in Jesus really supports my Salesian vocation, since I have found my place among the Pilgrim Church of God.


How was your English course in Maynooth - Ireland?


Before going to my promised land, I had a great chance to learn English and experience my first period of missionary life in Maynooth, Ireland, for the past 11 months. During this time, I felt privileged to see, touch and draw on first-hand experiences of living abroad in the Salesian community of Maynooth. At first, it was challenging for me living there in the early months due to my as yet brief contact with English, which caused many miscommunications and misunderstandings between me and other confreres. However, later I have found it so helpful and beneficial both for my improvement in English skills and my growth in my Salesian vocation. Living in an English-speaking environment helped improve my English skills whether I was in English classes or not. Also my pronunciation mistakes were not just for correction from other Salesian confreres, but also for laughs and gags in our community. It also helps strengthen the family spirit and boosted the aspect of community life in my own Salesian vocation. Thanks to this beautiful period of life, I made great progress in English even though there are still many things to work on for on-going improvement to master this language.


What did you learn as a Salesian missionary in Europe?


Life in Maynooth brought me many benefits in terms of observing many differences between Western and Eastern philosophy, the latter which I brought with me and the former from the society where I was living in. Every day, like a child, I opened my mind and heart to s learn new things around me. There were so many differences between my homeland and the local culture where I was, and sometimes I felt contradicitions with what I was saying or thinking. However, there were also many similarities in terms of promoting the ultimate values of humanity and the Christian faith. I learned a lot about adapting myself to a culture totally new to me. The missionary dream came true for me already during my stay in Ireland.


And what about Project Europe in Ireland?


When I lived in Ireland, I took part in retreats and recollections in which I had time to reflect on my own vocation and the Salesian life here as well. Like other European countries, Ireland used to be a great home of many missionaries going out to sow the seeds of faith over the world, but now it finds itself in a very difficult state with a lack of vocations. Meanwhile, the average age of Salesians here kept increasing up every year. It is an overwhelming hardship for senior confreres to attract young vocations in such a secularised society. In spite of having so many challenges, Salesians here are still constantly making attempts to “set out for the deep” by gathering small groups of young people to pray and have Mass together, hoping that God will stir up in their souls a desire to bring His salvation throughout the world. To witness such efforts by senior confreres inspired me so much that I made a promise that I will renew myself always and never stop trying my best to work in the field like them when my harvest comes.


Your message to young members of the Salesian Family in the EAO region?


To all my brothers and sisters who are young like me, I would like to send to you a message that you should never be afraid of anything when putting your hand to new initiatives to proclaim the Word of God.


As you know, that last November another 6 post-novices from DaLat community (Vietnam) have applied for the 150th Salesian missionary expedition. They are willing to take the challenge of going beyond and living out their faith in a foreign land no matter what awaits them. “Don’t be afraid and don’t hesitate to become a spiritual person to discerning God's call.” We, as Salesians, are living in a global Congregation. "Congregation" means a big house in which we share the same charism whether we live in our own birth countries or abroad.


So, why don’t you just prepare yourselves to live in another land where you can communicate with others in a second language, such as English. English is really a useful and popular language which is like a bridge connecting cultures.




20181206_AUL1.jpg


20181206_AUL2.jpg


20181206_AUL3.jpg


20181206_AUL4.jpg


Attach

Drag and drop your files here, or Click attach files button.

Maximum File Size : 0MB (Allowed extentsions : *.*)

0 file(s) attached ( / )

  1. 5017(IV)_Los Palos and Dili are the first destination of Australia Cagliero Volunteers

    By Ms. Laureen Hichaaba Cagliero Project Director Dili, Timor Leste, 20 February 2019 -- Less than one year after the invitation from the TLS Viceprovince Superior Fr. Apolinario Neto during their extraordinary visitation (ITM, March 2018)...
    Date2019.02.21 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views897 file
    Read More
  2. 4989(II)_World Youth Day - Panama 2019 from AUL

    By Fr Will Matthews, SDB Provincial Australia-Pacific Panama, 23 January 2019 -- World Youth Day 2019 in Panama is rather lower scale than the previous world events if just numbers are taken into account. Moreover the distance from the EAO ...
    Date2019.01.25 CategoryAUL Reply1 Views998 file
    Read More
  3. 4959(I)_Christmas message from Australia-Pacific Salesians

    By Fr William Mathews, SDB Provincial of Australia-Pacific Melbourne, Australia, 24 December 2018 -- Dear Salesian family members and friends of Don Bosco! Christmas is a time of pure wonder; a time of expectation of something good to come,...
    Date2018.12.24 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views714 file
    Read More
  4. 4941_"We live in a global Congregation"

    Missionary journey via Ireland to Australia-Pacific from Dalat: interview with Cl. Peter Anh Vu Nguyen, SDB By Our Own Correspondent Melbourne, Australia, 3 December 2018 -- Another new missionary has arrived in our Region. Vietnamese Sales...
    Date2018.12.06 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views738 file
    Read More
  5. 4938(III)_Blessing of Australia-Pacific Province's Don Bosco Camp and Centre in Safety Beach

    By Michael Gartland Safety Beach, Victoria, Australia, 2 December 2018 -- Years of planning and construction finally came to a head on Sunday the 2nd of December 2018 as the Don Bosco Camp and Centre in Safety Beach, south of the city of Me...
    Date2018.12.03 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views934 file
    Read More
  6. 4936(I)_Ordination to the Diaconate in Melbourne

    By Fr Bernie Graham, SDB Melbourne, Australia -- On Saturday 1 December Matthew Kitichai (Jack) Saisawang was ordained to the Diaconate by Archbishop Tim Costelloe sdb, Archbishop of Perth, Australia, at St Joseph’s Church, Collingwood in M...
    Date2018.12.02 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views942 file
    Read More
  7. 4899(I)_Cagliero 10 Year Celebration

    By Lauren Hichaaba and Michael Gartland Melbourne, Australia -- On Saturday the 27th of October, the Cagliero Project celebrated 10 years of international volunteer placements. Over 40 people gathered to participate in mass held at St. John...
    Date2018.11.02 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views1124 file
    Read More
  8. 4858(II)_What does it mean to embrace a missionary call

    Fruits of the first Salesian Missionary Month (Australia-Pacific) By Ms. Lauren Hichabaa Melbourne, Australia, 14 Septmeber 2018 -- We have come to the end of our Australia Pacific Province Salesian Missions Month. The missionary animation ...
    Date2018.09.22 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views1403 file
    Read More
  9. 4855(II)_“As a young man I gave my heart to India. I do not intend on taking it back.”

    Fr Brian Kevin Diamond, great missionary for India passed away By Fr Frank Freeman, SDB Melbourne, Australia, 18 September 2018 -- Thus, spoke Fr Brian Kevin Diamond, who passed to his eternal reward on Sunday 1st September at Don Bosco Ala...
    Date2018.09.19 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views1235 file
    Read More
  10. 4851(II)_Ministries of Acolyte and Lector

    By Fr Bernie Graham, SDB Melbourne, Australia, 14, September 2018 -- During the celebration of the Eucharist, on the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross, at the conclusion of the annual Visitation to the community of Don Bosco House, Melbourn...
    Date2018.09.15 CategoryAUL Reply0 Views1325 file
    Read More
List
Board Pagination Prev 1 ... 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 ... 26 Next
/ 26