Thanks and a promise of continued prayers go out to our brother Tage Danielson, OFM Cap., whose ministry is in full swing in the Custody of St. Michael the Archangel of Papua New Guinea. He filled us in on his year's work with the PNG Postulants concluded, and he reports on his blessed Christmas there:
November 28 was the final day of the Postulancy year at Padre Pio Friary in Madang. After morning Mass, we gathered outside the friary, near the Mary statue, for a group house photo.
From left to right: Br. Lucas Tamshong, Kulex Peter, Samuel Kawagle, Tage, Emel Willie and Simon Tindini
Kulex and Emel are approved for the Novitiate, which is in the Philippines.They should be arriving there in February. Samuel and Simon are invited to return to Padre Pio Friary in February for year two of Postulancy.
It was a great year for me working with these men. They were prayerful, hardworking, and sincere in wanting to learn more about our Capuchin Franciscan life and our Catholic faith. Besides that, they were a lot of fun! They were all kind and generous with me in helping me get accustomed to living in Papua New Guinea. They taught me many things about the life and culture here. I am blessed by them.
The new Postulancy year will begin in mid-February.
We have a lot of good men in formation in the Custody. Please keep praying for them and for new vocations.
On Christmas morning, we had Mass in Padre Pio Friary and our chapel was filled with local people from the village. It was a joyful celebration. Some of the children dressed up in their best clothes for the occasion and I told them afterwards they looked great. Afterwards, Br. Lucas and I offered our Christmas gift to all: delicious mangoes from our trees.
Later that morning, I went out for Mass at an outstation called Hululan. I had not been to this church in a long time. The church was packed and people could be seen standing just outside the church. The choir was festive and people were happy on Christmas morning. After Mass I greeted the people and took a picture with the Church leader and some children.
For lunch, Padre Pio Friary and St. Fidelis Friary went to a nearby convent for lunch with the sisters. They prepared a tasty and spicy Indian lunch.
For dinner, all of us who had gathered for lunch, plus teaching sisters at St. Fidelis, went to St. Fidelis Friary to enjoy a festive meal of ham, fish, rice, potatoes, vegetables and dessert. It was a great evening of friars, sisters, and the friary cook Jeffrey, all gathered to thank the Father for the gift of his Son, and to be together as a Madang Franciscan family. You can see it was a lot of eating, but for Christmas it is good to go all out, and also go all in on the spices.
One year ago, in January 2023, we commissioned
our Br. Tage to serve in our mission
to the Capuchin Custody of St. Michael the Archangel
of Papua New Guinea.
You can still see that moment of commissioning
in our archived article.