(ANS – Chennai) – Fr. Rajkumar Fernando and Fr. John Louis Mariapragasam of the Madras Province (INM) left for Canada on September 15 to take up ministry in the archdiocese of Edmonton. They will be part of the Eastern U.S. Province (SUE), which includes the Salesian communities in Canada.

The Rector Major requested that INM help out the Salesian parishes in Edmonton; the archdiocese is badly in need of priests. Fr. Rajkumar will be placed at St. Andrew’s Parish in Edmonton and Fr. John Louis at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Sherwood Park; each of them will spend three years of service there.

In the evening of September 14 at the provincial house in Chennai (Madras), the two priests were given a warm send-off by the confreres of the province in the presence of relatives and friends who had come to see them off. Speaking at the farewell Eucharistic celebration, Fr. Jayapalan Raphael, the provincial, recalled the words of Don Bosco to his first missionaries, “Seek souls and not money, honours, or dignity. Take special care of the sick, of the young, of the old, and of the poor, and you will win the blessings of God and the good will of people.” He wished them God-speed and a fruitful apostolate. The two missionaries thanked the provincial and the province and promised to give their best to the mission they will be assigned to.

Starting September 18 they will undergo a month-long inculturation programme organized by the archdiocese for international priests. The course is designed to encourage and strengthen the ministry of priests whose native culture is not that of Canada. The goal of the programme is to provide priests with an opportunity to learn more about the Church and culture of western Canada, while also affirming their own cultural heritage.

Fr. Tom Dunne, their new provincial, said, “The province of St. Philip is grateful to the province of Madras for their generous gift of two Salesians for the needs of our people.”

Canadian society is a mosaic of many languages and cultures. According to statistics, 83% of the population is Christian. Catholics account for more than half of all the Christians in the country. There are 71 dioceses, including the Military Ordinariate and eight eparchies belonging to Eastern Catholics.

Published 27/09/2013