NZ Catholic Newspaper

Ordination to priesthood postponed

Rowena Orejana — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 23:39:10 +0000

The decision to postpone the ordination to the priesthood of Deacon Trung Nguyen hit him hard, but the love that poured from the people of the Palmerston North diocese, as well as from his own family, has kept his faith strong.

“When I heard about it, I felt sad. I had been waiting for a long, long time for that day,” he said. “I think, it’s human nature (to feel sad). But for the safety of the people and all things considered, like travelling, I think it’s a good decision to postpone the ordination.”

Deacon Nguyen was supposed to be ordained as a priest at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit on April 18. But Wellington Cardinal John Dew and Palmerston North Vicar-general Msgr Brian Walsh talked to him about it and they agreed it was best to postpone.

“We will decide when to have the ordination when the lockdown is finished,” Deacon Nguyen said. “I still believe, in God’s plan, that day will come.”

He said, with the virus still around, it doesn’t seem possible for his family to fly here to witness his ordination.

“It’s funny because I have three brothers following the vocation as well, one in the States, one in Colombia and one in India. Through this event, they are also always encouraging me and we kind-of journeyed together, which means I am not alone,” he said.

One of his brothers is a diocesan seminarian in Washington, DC, another in a religious order in Colombia, and still another in the Rosminian order in India.

He said the people in Palmerston North diocese also sent him messages and emails, most telling him to “hang on in there”.

But he is most grateful to Bishop Owen Dolan, his first spiritual director in New Zealand. He said Bishop Dolan called him (Deacon Nguyen) as soon as he (Bishop Dolan) heard the news.

“He said to me, I come from Vietnam where, all through the history of the faith in Vietnam, we have been through challenges and persecution,” Deacon Nguyen said.

He added that Bishop Dolan pointed out that his (Deacon Nguyen’s) vocation journey was filled with challenges as well, first with having to learn a new culture and now, with this virus.

“In the end, he said to me that your vocation will flourish like the faith in Vietnam. Because the challenges and the struggles made the faith in Vietnam so strong. I reflect on it as well. The difficult times make my vocation stronger. The desire to be priest is more, compared to the past,” he said.

Deacon Nguyen said he is with Msgr Walsh and Msgr David Bell for the duration of the lockdown.

“It’s a good time to learn from these wise men. They have a lot of experiences in their pastoral ministry, so now it’s time for me to learn from them. Actually, it’s a good time,” he said.

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Diocese needs dollars to train seminarians

Rowena Orejana — Sun, 18 May 2014 22:01:18 +0000

by ROWENA OREJANA
PALMERSTON NORTH — Palmerston North diocese has launched the Seminary Appeal 2014 to fund the tertiary studies of its five seminarians.
The increase in the number of seminarians from one three years ago to five this year, coupled with the higher cost of education, caused a dent in the funds of the Seminary Trust. Two of the seminarians
are now on pastoral placement and may become deacons next year.
Bishop Charles Drennan said the diocese faces the same challenge as every family with a member undertaking tertiary level studies.
“Tertiary level studies in New Zealand have become expensive. The fees for Holy Cross Seminary and Good Shepherd College are significant budget items,” he said.
“As the case in the more recent history in New Zealand, we are getting a number of seminarians for whom English is not their mother tongue. And so there is the cost of language schools.”
In a bulletin posted in parish newsletters, the cost of language
school fees, immigration, English language fees and board
was placed at $40,000 a student a year. At the same time, Holy
Cross Seminary fees and Good Shepherd College fees are about
$55,000 a student a year.
The same bulletin stated that although the diocese is praying
for more seminarians, it is using the capital of the Seminary Trust
to fund their studies.
“Based on the current level of support and income, unless our Seminary Appeal is supported by a much larger range of parishioners, the trust will be fully depleted within three or four years,” it stated.
Palmerston North’s seminarians are Nathaniel Brazil, Vui Hoang, Bryan Buenger, Simone Masanga and Trung Nguyen.
Bishop Drennan said last year’s fund drive had a very good response. “Because we publicised the seminary appeal well and we were very transparent about the cost involved, we had a tremendous response. And indeed, as well as donations, we also had letters from parishioners, expressing their good wishes and prayers for seminarians.”
The bishop said there are parishioners who had been very generous in their support of the seminarians.
“The challenge, if you like, is to encourage a wider range of parishioners to contribute. And so we are looking for young professionals and people new to the workforce to step up and make their contribution,” he said. “I’m also very hopeful given the blessing of international priests in our diocese, I’m very hopeful
that our Indian and Filipino communities will also get behind this appeal.”
The Seminary Appeal 2014 seeks parishioners’ prayers, increased financial support and bequests to the Seminary Trust to rebuild it’s capital.

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Eight new diocesan seminarians this year

Michael Otto — Tue, 08 Apr 2014 00:22:01 +0000

by MICHAEL OTTO
Eight new first year seminarians at Holy Cross Seminary make for a
diverse group, reflecting the increasingly multi-cultural nature of the Church in New Zealand.
But although there might be seven different ethnicities represented, most of them are young, aged in their twenties.
Fadi Boless, 21, was born in Iraq, but his family migrated
to Syria in 2000. In 2012, his family came to New Zealand as
refugees, joining his sister, who had married here.
Mr Boless hopes to be ordained a priest in the Chaldean Catholic rite, but he will also be able to celebrate the Latin rite
normally used in New Zealand.
Last year, he was ordained as a sub-deacon by Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphaël I Sako, when he visited New Zealand.
Mr Boless first felt a calling to priesthood when he was in
Syria, and the kindness his family received there was a factor.
“I felt a call from God, because of other people. They dealt with us like brothers, even though we were strangers. We have been helped by many churches, even Muslim people,” he said.
Settling with his family in south Auckland, he was required to further his English language studies before entering the seminary.
When his training at Holy Cross is finished, he will do two more
years of study in Australia or Iraq to familiarise himself with the Aramaic dialect used in the Chaldean Church.
Another seminarian born overseas is Jacob Panikkamannil,
37, who is studying for Auckland diocese.
Mr Panikkamannil is of the Syro- Malankara rite, which is an eastern
Catholic church in full communion with the Holy See.
Coming to New Zealand from India in 2006 with a degree in botany, Mr Panikkamannil did a graduate diploma in nursing at the University of Auckland and went on to work as a nurse at Auckland Hospital and Starship Children’s Health. He also contributed to the
Nurses Union.
Mr Panikkamannil had been thinking about priesthood for some
time, but a pilgrimage to Europe last year helped deepen his calling.
Although ordination is a “long way away”, he said that if he does his best and God does his best, “we will go from there”.
Two of the first year seminarians come from Vietnam, although they hope to be ordained for different dioceses in New Zealand.
Tang Phan, 28, graduated in information technology from Da Nang City University in Vietnam.
But he was not able to enter the seminary in his own country.
After working as a lecturer and then staying with and helping his uncle who was a priest, Mr Phan jumped at the chance to study for the priesthood in New Zealand, despite knowing little about
the country.
But Mr Phan did know that four other Vietnamese students had come to
this country to study for the priesthood.
Since arriving in New Zealand, Mr Phan has stayed in St Francis of Assisi parish in Christchurch and has studied English.
He had always wanted to be a teacher, but his uncle, the priest, once preached in a homily that Jesus Christ is the best teacher, he said.
Mr Phan hopes to be a good seminarian and a good future priest.
Trung Nguyen, 26, came to New Zealand after completing a degree in philosophy in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
He studied English in Palmerston North for 15 months before entering the seminary.
“Different people have different ways of looking for happiness in their lives. For me, I feel peaceful and happy when I have been in a church,” Mr Nguyen said.
His thoughts of a vocation grew after staying with a priest in Vietnam before going to university.
Mr Nguyen hopes to share the peace and happiness he gets from his faith with others.
Also studying for Palmerston North diocese is Simone Masanga, 22, who was raised in Tonga.
After doing vocations retreats at school, Mr Masanga wanted to enter the Marist seminary, but was told he was too young at that stage.
So he worked at the international airport in Tonga, in the aviation security service.
But after talking about a vocation with a priest in Hastings during a short visit to see his parents in New Zealand, Mr Masanga followed up by contacting Bishop Charles Drennan, and the two kept
in touch. When Mr Masanga moved to New Zealand, he studied English in Napier for six months.
He hopes to work hard and pray hard during his time at the seminary.
From Auckland diocese is Dominic Alcock, 23, who hails from Glendowie, and who worked as a baker.
When he was aged 12 or 13, Mr Alcock told his father he wanted to be a priest.
“Obviously, I was much too young, and I put it off for a long time,” Mr Alcock said.
“Then a year or so ago my great-aunt died. From that I grew in more of a personal relationship with God,” he said.
From this, the desire to become a priest was rekindled.
Mr Alcock hopes to stay true to his vocation, “whatever God has planned for me”.
Also from Auckland diocese is Rewi Pene, 29, who comes from the Whangaroa Harbour region in the Far North.
Before coming to the seminary, Mr Pene studied classical music, choral music and opera and worked as a classical musician.
He also taught itinerant music in schools and helped parishes with liturgical music.
He said a lot of things prompted him to come to the seminary, but primary for him was the work he had done with his own people in the
Far North.
“And a lot of the people in my community are poor. So out of their struggle I felt a call to the priesthood.”
A third seminarian from Auckland diocese is Thomas Park, 26, who is Korean. Mr Park studied social work and commerce at Massey
University on the North Shore before entering the seminary.
Mr Park said he has felt a strong calling to a vocation for
the last six years.
“I hope for success in all my studies here, and then to
be ordained a priest,” he said.

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