Fr. Andre Delimarta, is one of the first two Indonesian Salesians. At 55 years old, he had been Novice Master, Rector, and Parish Priest in his Vice Province (INA). He is a member of last year’s 153rd missionary expedition destined for Malaysia, but he will receive the missionary cross only this September 24.
“I grew up with Salesians. The loving-kindness, hard work, commitment and spirit of sacrifice of Salesian missionaries like Fr Alfonso Nacher, Fr Jose Carbonell, Deacon Baltasar Pires and Fr Jose Kusy have had a great impact on me. It was they who taught me Don Bosco, introduced me to the Congregation and made me fall in love with their missionary zeal”.
“When I was in initial formation I wanted to be a missionary but my formators prohibited me because they said Don Bosco has to take root in Indonesia. In fact, as one of the first Indonesian Salesians, I had insisted on making Don Bosco’s charism take root in Indonesia as our priority. But when the insistent appeal for missionaries was relayed to our Vice-Province, my missionary vocation was reignited. My love for Don Bosco and for the Congregation made me decide to offer myself as a missionary. If the Congregation needs missionaries, then I want to say: “Here I am! I'll go!”
