Fulfilling late dad’s wish to be a priest

By JACINTA DOKTA
FOR Father Rex Andrew Dokta, being ordained as a priest was not only a milestone for him personally but also a fulfilment of his late father’s wish.
“Apa (father) was a strong Christian (Catholic) man. His dream was to see me become priest one day.”
He is now preparing to leave for his missions overseas in Kenya, Africa.
The family is from the Moge Komonka tribe in the Hagen Central district of Western Highlands. He is the second eldest in a family of three, born to Agnes and Andrew Dokta.
In 1996, he attended the Komkui Primary school in Mt Hagen where he completed grades two to eight. He then attended the Hagen Secondary School where he completed Grade 12.
While in Grade 12, he applied to join the seminary and was accepted in 2005. He originally wanted to be a pilot but God had another plan for him.

“ Apa (father) was a strong Christian (Catholic) man. His dream was to see me become priest one day.”

Fr Rex, 40, is the first priest to be ordained from a community of pastors and hopes to see another family or tribal member follow his footsteps.
He was ordained by the Archbishop of the Hagen diocese on Jan 19 at his Tilling village, after spending 16 years with the Society of Divine Word (SVD).
In 2014, he was sent home from the seminary for some incident and took a three-year break from 2015 to 2017.
He overcame many challenges in life with the help of the Holy Spirit.
“The challenges are not going to stop. I climbed one mountain but behind it (are) other mountains to climb.”
During the three years he spent at home, he was unable to find a job. He felt hopeless and asked God why he was unable to find a job after being sacked from the seminary.
In Jan 10, 2017, he was re-admitted to pursue his studies at the seminary. It was around the time of his father’s passing.
“They saw me for my wrongdoings but God had chosen me and was not finished with me yet.”
He spent another three years studying before graduating.
His late father had accomplished many things in their community which benefitted the people. The one which stood out was the peace covenant he brokered in 1980 with the neighboring tribes of Moge Nambuka and Moge Andaklimp.
The covenant was their collective promise to God that there would not be any more bloodshed between them. It was seen by Pope John Paul II through his late father Andrew Dokta.
He has been given three months to spend with his family before leaving for his mission. But he is using the time to spread the gospel in his community and conducting mass.
He is also conducting seminars in his village, sharing the knowledge he had gained in his 16 years at the seminary.
In his seminars, he emphasizes cognitive reasoning – distinguishing right from wrong – the fundamental factor that drives a society forward.
“God gave us the power of reasoning to reason things out, and the willpower to do anything. We as rational beings need to always do what is right and correct ourselves when we know that we are wrong.”
He leaves for Kenya next month for his lifetime missions.
His family, especially, his late dad, are all proud of him and wish him well.