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Called by the Word, Sent for Mission: Six New Priests Ordained in SVD Timor Province
Dismas Mauk, SVD
The Church in Timor celebrated a joyful moment of grace on 1 October 2026 as six new priests were ordained at St. Joseph SVD Motherhouse in Nenuk, Diocese of Atambua. The solemn Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Most Rev. Dominikus Saku, Bishop of Atambua, and attended by SVD confreres, priests, religious, families, friends, and faithful from various communities.
The six newly ordained priests are Fr. Kanisius Bauk, SVD; Fr. Yosef Mario Ambasan, SVD; Fr. Clitus Marselinus Hausufa, SVD; Fr. Febronius Meni Subun, SVD; Fr. Wilfridus Oki, SVD; and Fr. Robertus Bellarminus Meak, Sch.P.
Their ordination marked the culmination of years of formation, theological study, prayer, pastoral experience, and discernment. At the same time, the celebration carried a deeper message: ordination is not merely the completion of formation, but the beginning of a new journey as servants of God and missionaries.
Priesthood: Rooted in God and Close to the People
In his homily, Bishop Dominikus reminded the newly ordained that priesthood is fundamentally a call to follow Christ in service. The priest participates in Christ’s threefold mission: to proclaim the Word as prophet, to offer himself for God’s people as priest, and to shepherd the community with love.
At the center of this vocation must always be God. The Bishop emphasized that God must remain the source of a priest’s joy. Priesthood cannot therefore be reduced to functions, positions, or pastoral activities. It is first of all a relationship with Christ that gradually becomes a life offered for others.
The Bishop also stressed the importance of communion with the people. Priestly ministry cannot be lived in isolation. It requires humility to listen and learn, openness to walk with others, and a pastoral presence particularly attentive to those who suffer and those on the margins.
“Ordination Is Not the Finish Line”
This understanding of priesthood found a strong missionary expression in the message of Fr. Dismas Longginus Mauk, SVD, Provincial Superior of the SVD Timor Province.
Addressing the newly ordained, he reminded them:
“Ordination is not the finish line. It is a sending.”
For Fr. Dismas, ministry and mission must remain inseparable. Ministry describes what a priest does; mission gives his ministry direction, meaning, and purpose.
“There must be someone who sends and someone who is sent,” he emphasized. “We do not send ourselves, nor do we determine our mission entirely by ourselves. Mission is received.”
For a Divine Word Missionary, this availability is rooted in religious profession and fidelity to the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience. The missionary is therefore called to move beyond personal preferences, familiar places, and individual agendas in order to remain available to God’s mission entrusted through the Society and the Church.
From the Altar to the Mission Field
The celebration also offered a powerful image of missionary priesthood: the altar and the mission field must never be separated.
From the altar, the priest receives the strength to go forth. From the Word, he receives the direction of his mission. Among the people, his mission takes flesh in concrete acts of presence, compassion, and service.
In this sense, ordination does not place the six new priests above the community; it sends them more deeply into the life of the community.
The messages of Bishop Dominikus and Fr. Dismas thus converged around one vision of missionary priesthood. The Bishop pointed to the heart of the priest—rooted in God, configured to Christ, and close to the people. The Provincial pointed to the direction of the missionary—called by the Word, available to be sent, and ready to serve beyond himself.
The Provincial expressed gratitude to Bishop Dominikus Saku, the formators, families, benefactors, religious communities, and all who accompanied the newly ordained throughout their years of formation.
As the six new priests begin this new chapter, the celebration in Nenuk leaves them—and the entire missionary community—with a simple but demanding conviction:
Priesthood is not a destination; it is a mission.
Ordination is not the finish line; it is the beginning of being sent.
From the altar, they receive strength.
From the Word, they receive direction.
To the people, they are sent in mission.
