ASIA/EAST TIMOR - The seeds that the missionaries have planted are now bearing fruit

by Antonella Prenna

Venilale (Agenzia Fides) - Sister Carolina Maria Correia, of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA), comes from the village of Samalari in the district of Baucau. In an interview with Fides, ahead of Pope Francis' visit to East Timor, she talks about her years of formation, the development of the country and her work as a missionary.

"I began my vocational training with the arrival of the first missionary in Venilale. I was 17 years old and wanted to become a nun. I entered the convent and took my first vows at the age of 23. I began working in Venilale in 1996 with Sister Alma Castagna as a doctor in the Outpatient Clinic and Dispensary. I met the Salesians through the Salesian missionary Father Eligio Locatelli, who celebrated Holy Mass every week in my village of Samalari. I am one of the fruits of the missionary educational work, so to speak,” says Sister Carolina enthusiastically.

As for the social context, the nun points out that although East Timor has been independent for 22 years, there are still problems in many areas. “There are difficulties in accessing clean water, health care and education. The government rules the nations according to parties and family, the economic level is low and much still depends on foreign countries, children use modern technology without parental guidance, there are fewer jobs for young people and most look for work abroad.” Sister Carolina complains that young people do not live in harmony. “There is an organization called ARTEMARSIAIS,” she explains. “It is made up of several groups that apparently suggest brotherhood, but in reality it is a constant feud of one group against the other. The young people allow themselves to be bossed around by others and, strongly conditioned, do not live according to their own conscience. The stability of the nation is still shaky.

Regarding ecclesial life, Sister Carolina recognizes that "our superficial faith still dominates us, the true faith is not yet founded in Christ but in the tradition and culture of Timor. "I can say that the number of Catholic Christians in Timor is high, but we are still struggling to promote the quality of Christian life, which is made up of faith, hope and charity. The presence of missionary nuns and priests is very appreciated by the people. But the culture in Timor is very strong, so we need to evangelize more and better, to clarify the difference between culture and faith."

"I would like to draw on the reflections of Father Joaquim Sarmento SJ on the motto of Pope Francis' visit: 'May your faith be your culture'. The Jesuit says: 'After 500 years of Christian presence in Timor, the Christian faith has experienced a period of growth in terms of the number of believers. But the Christian faith understood as a culture of life and the feeling that the values of Christian doctrine become the principles that animate the daily life of the Timorese is something new.' He reminds us that in 1930 Catholics represented only 4% of the population of Timor. By the time of the Indonesian invasion, this percentage had risen to almost 30%. Ten years later, the figure had risen to 85%. This means that in just ten years the number of Catholics in Timor has increased by 55%. The reasons for this rapid growth include security, culture, humanitarian aid and Indonesian law. "However," the priest continued, "this increase in numbers does not necessarily translate into an authentic quality of Christian life. Many people were baptized in the emergency situation of war without adequate preparation, which opened the door to syncretism, superficiality, ritualism and moral relativism, which will be strongly present in Timor."

"Many things have changed," Sister Carolina continues. "The difficulties do not discourage us, because FMA, Salesian priests and those in government are all working for the common good. The progress and development in the nation is visible through the rehabilitation of the main roads, the construction of a house for the poor, the creation of jobs for young people working outside the country, scholarships for students inside and outside the country, the reduction of the number of illiterates, the development of water supplies, the promotion of youth groups that care for creation (Laudato Sì), according to the teaching of Pope Francis." "There is great cooperation in the country, the Ministry of Health in Timor is still very precarious and relies on doctors in hospitals in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia. In Cuba, scholarships are awarded for medical specialization."

"After 28 years of religious profession, I have worked most of my life in the Outpatient Clinic and Dispensary," said the nun. Sister Carolina studied nursing in Jakarta and Marriage and Family Sciences at the Faculty of Bioethics of the Lateran University in Rome. She is responsible for the clinic and director of the "St. Maria Mazzarello" community in Venilale. "In this community we have 196 vocational schools, clinics, outpatient clinics and a dormitory for 88 girls. We are seven FMA sisters. In the medical clinic, I am also responsible for family planning and health education in 25 schools in Venilale with almost five thousand students.

“As a Timorese nun,” Sister Carolina concludes, “I am grateful for the blessing that the missionary sisters bring us for the formation of religious, education, health, social services and for everyone. In the beginning there were only three and after almost 35 years there are a total of 97 FMA sisters, 90 of whom are from East Timor and 7 from Indonesia. This means that the spirit continues to work and spread for the people of God. Our Indonesian sister evangelizes not only Catholics but also Muslims and other religions.” Finally, Sister Carolina also speaks about her expectations for the current visit of Pope Francis to East Timor. "First and foremost, we all hope that the motto of this papal journey, 'May your faith be your culture', will be put into practice. Words and actions to live the values of the Gospel, forgiveness, solidarity, justice, peace, love of life, compassion for the poor around us," explains the nun. "May those in charge of the country recognize their failure and dare to start anew. May they know how to manage interpersonal relationships with wisdom, patience and morality. May the leaders of the nation and the Church, aware of their responsibilities, live the attitude of the Good Shepherd to lead their flock and embrace all members of the group in harmony with one another. May the leaders of the nation and the Church have a heart of the Good Samaritan to love or choose the poor following the example of Pope Francis. May the presence of Pope Francis make the heart of every Christian beat faster." (Agenzia Fides, 10/9/2024)

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