Fr Carlo with young men discerning their vocations – “I continue to journey with our young men, helping them, the sheep of Christ, to remain close to Jesus the Good Shepherd.” Photo: Fr Carlo Jung SSC
I still remember the very first day I joined the Missionary Society of St. Columban. It was a cold winter day in February 2001 when I entered through the gate of the Columban formation house in Seoul, South Korea. The air outside was freezing, yet the moment I stepped into the house, I experienced a deep sense of warmth. It was not only the warmth of the building itself, but also the warmth of welcome, belonging, and grace. Even in the midst of the harsh Korean winter, I was surprised to feel at home. In that moment, I sensed that I was entering a place where my vocation would be nurtured and my heart would be formed for mission.
During my 12 years of Columban formation, I was asked many times, “What kind of missionary priest do you want to be?” This question stayed with me throughout the years of prayer, study, community life, and missionary preparation. From the very beginning, the desire in my heart was clear: I wanted to become a humble missionary priest who journeys with the local people, crossing boundaries of language, culture, food, and way of life.
Since 2017, I have been living and serving in Fiji, in the Region of Oceania. Over the past nine years, this land and its people have become a deeply meaningful part of my missionary journey. I still remember that, in my first few years here, I would often complain about the slow pace of the Nasese bus in Suva. For a young man coming from a high-tech and highly developed country, adjusting to a different way of life was not easy. It was a genuine cultural shock. Yet, through that experience, I began to learn an important lesson of missionary life: mission is not about imposing one’s own pace or way of living, but about humbly entering into the lives of others, learning from them, and allowing oneself to be transformed by their culture, simplicity, and humanity.
Now I live at Holy Family Parish, Labasa, where I have been serving as Parish Priest for the past six years. Over time, my missionary journey has continued to shape and transform me in unexpected ways. After experiencing the much slower buses travelling to Karokaro, Labasa, and along the branch roads through the towns and villages of the Northern Division, the Nasese bus in Suva now feels like an express bus running on smooth highways and well-sealed roads. These days, whenever I return to Suva, I experience a kind of reverse cultural shock. What once felt slow to me now feels fast. In this simple experience, I see how mission has changed not only where I live, but also how I see, how I understand, and how I value the rhythm of life among the people I am called to serve.
As a Columban Missionary Priest, Fr Carlo had to adjust to a new way of life and cross boundaries of language, culture, and food in order to answer God’s call and journey with the people and communities he was sent to mission beside. Photo: Fr Carlo Jung SSC
Vocation is, above all, about listening. It is not for me to control the world, but to allow God’s will to enter my heart and take hold of my life. True vocation begins when we surrender ourselves to God and let Him lead us in His wisdom and love.
As the Vocations Contact Person for the Region of Oceania, I encounter young men in Fiji, Australia, and Aotearoa New Zealand, encouraging them to listen deeply to the voice of God and to find their response to His call. In walking with them, I see that discernment is a sacred journey of faith, patience, and trust.
Even today, I continue to journey with our young men, helping them, the sheep of Christ, to remain close to Jesus the Good Shepherd. To accompany them in their search for God’s will is both a grace and a joy.
May this Vocation Sunday remind us that God still calls, and that His voice continues to echo in the hearts of the young. May we pray for the courage to listen, the generosity to respond, and the faith to follow wherever Christ may lead us.
Columban Fr. Euikyun Carlo Jung lives and works in Fiji.
