PAPUA NEW GUINEA

WELKAM!

Papua New Guinea is one of the most heterogeneous nations in the world with a small population of approx. 8 million people, yet with no less than 820 different languages spoken. The primary language of the country is Tok Pisin (Pidgin) but English is the language in the government and education system.

We CPS came to East Asia already in 1932 where we worked on the island of Madura up to 1960.  From 1948–1992 we were also in Irian-Jaya which formed at that time the country of PNG but later, juridically, it went under Indonesia.  Since 1962 we have been engaged in health care, pastoral and social ministries in Lae, which is the 2nd largest city, main industrial centre and capital of Morobe, one of the 22 provinces of PNG.  The present Bishop of the Diocese of Lae is Rev. Fr. Rozario Menezes, SMM (Montfort Missionary) who was installed on 15 December 2018.  He succeeded Bishop Christian Blouin CMM who was Bishop since May 2007.  Fr. Henry van Lieshout CMM was the first Bishop of Lae in 1967.

Our CPS community in PNG is very small but very international, with Sisters from DR Congo, Korea, Mozambique, the Netherlands and Zimbabwe.  In October 2018, Sr. Monica Mary Ncube, Sr. Caroline Mjomba, and Sr. Franziscus Maria Moeller visited our Sisters in Eriku, Lae.  They expressed their gratitude for the time well spent together and were convinced that that was God’s time.  We pray and hope that more of our Sisters will continue to be open to engage in mission for the glory of God and proclamation of the Good News!

As we embrace the Synodal Journey from 2021 to 2023, let us invite the Holy Spirit to be at work in us so that we may be a community and a people of grace. 

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