by Mathias Hariyadi

Organised as part the Year of Consecrated Life, a four-day gathering brought together 168 priests from seven dioceses to follow the path laid by the first foreign priests who evangelised Java almost a century ago. “The Church must support the consecrated in order to help them in their parish work,” one of the participants said.

Jakarta (AsiaNews) – About 168 priests from the seven dioceses that make up the ecclesiastic community of Java (Unio) gathered in Muntilan, central Java, to mark the Year of Consecrated Life and promote their mission as messengers of Christ in their parishes.

The meeting, which was held from 7 to 11 September, included spiritual exercises. It was organised especially for diocesan priests who, unlike the members of religious congregations, have little chance of revitalising their vocation through community events.

The highlight came when participants followed the path laid out by Fr Frans van Lith (1863-1926), from the Netherland, and Fr Johannes Baptist Prenthaler, from Austria, the first two Jesuits who brought the Gospel to Muntilan, Sendangsono, and Kalibawang, in the early 20th century.

The two are very well known in the local Church as the first evangelisers in Java’s mountainous regions.

The communal event was very useful to help priests become more involved in their daily work,” said Fr Ngarlan, from the Diocese of Purwokerto.

"Training men religious is paramount and all Unio committees must pay attention to this issue and work together to organise more events of this kind."

During the retreat, bishops recommended some actions to their priests, like writing the story of each diocese for pastoral purposes.

For Fr Ngarlan, "The most important thing it is that all the fathers be spiritually supported to uphold their priestly life and strengthen their commitment to serve the Church and the Catholic faithful.”

• indonesia
• java
• retreat
• diocesan
• priests