Man vows to serve as Divine Word missionary

A young man from Mt Hagen has made his religious profession to serve as a Divine Word Missionary for life.
Frata (Brother in French) Shadrach Ketiga last Sunday made his final vow during the Feast of Ascension at the Catholic Theological Institute at Bomana outside Port Moresby to be in the Divine Word missionary order known as Societas Verbi Divini (SVD) in Latin.
“Today, I have made a decision to cut myself off from my biological family, people and society to be part of this Christian community for life to serve God’s call in praying for others,” he said after signing the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in front of Fr Josef Maciolek, the SVD provincial superior and the main celebrant of the service and other priests and brothers that were present.
Fr Josef explained that by Ketiga’s vow of poverty, he promised to a lifestyle marked by simplicity and detachment from material goods as practiced by Jesus and the apostles.
“A vow of celibate chastity seems counter-cultural and especially difficult in today’s world and yet it is a vow of deep loving commitment to all persons as brothers and sisters.”
He said and the vow of obedience required intense relationship of listening to the voice of God and responding accordingly.
After signing his vow, Ketiga shared a moment of appreciation to his family and relatives and the Christian congregation that were present during his perpetual profession and those that had assisted him to answer his call in life.
“I drew the inspiration to be part of this Christian family when I was growing up as a child from my uncle Markus Maka who is a Missionaries of Sacred Heart (MSC) brother.
Ketiga said because his grandparents were very strong Catholic believers, they were part of his inspiration to accept God’s call in his life to be a SVD member.
His paternal uncle Nicolas Wako congratulated him and offered words of encouragement for his life-long commitment to God’s call.