Roman Catholic Diocese of Mendi

[1] A Short History of the Mendi Mission The Catholic Church in the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea celebrated its Golden Jubilee tin 2004.

Alexis, a gregarious and friendly man of many talents and deep faith, was so moved by the Gospel reading of the Mass of the day, that he never grew tired of repeating it: "At that time Jesus said to his disciples, 'Fear not little flock, for it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom (Luke 12:32). "

This quotation proved to be prophetic for it continues to describe the joy, faith and great enthusiasm with which the people of the Southern Highlands have accepted the Good News of Jesus Christ into their lives.

It is believed that the original people in these rugged mountains were pushed to the region by hostile coastal tribes some 10,000 years ago.

Accustomed to fighting in the maze of deep valleys and rushing rivers for centuries, the tribes of the Southern Highlands became territorially confined.

Cut off from the outside world, and to a great extent from each other as well, the various tribes developed distinct languages and as with the people of the other highlands provinces accurate human history extended back only as far as living memory could recall, at which point it disappeared into the fog of rich mythology.

Australian Mick Leahy, a gold prospector and one of the first expatriates to enter the highlands, described the region appropriately, "The Land that Time Forgot".

World War II put an end to exploration of the Southern Highlands as the Australian colonial government hunkered down to meet the threat of the Japanese invasion.

The highlands local people were mostly unaffected by the war although they wondered about the large noisy birds that flew overhead on many days in perfect formation, from south to north and back again.

Years later patrol officers would show the people how to clear and level ground to build fields on which the iron and cloth birds would land.

Pierre Guichet MSC, his vicar, are credited with taking the initial step of sending the missionaries to investigate this little known mountain region of the Port Moresby vicariate.

By the time Archbishop Carboni left office a few years later the Passionists, Marianhill Fathers, Montforts, Capuchins and Dominicans had been added to the list.

Capuchins from the St. Augustine Province of Pennsylvania in the USA accepted the Mendi Mission two weeks after receiving a formal request from Rome to do so.

Preparing to fly from Tari, the second government centre he had visited while in the Southern Highlands, and return to Mendi on his way back to Port Moresby, Fr.

Shortly thereafter three Mekeo lay missionaries arrived, Ferdinand Maino Kap, Louis Vangu'u and Peter Peleka.

Felix Walaba of the Oblates of St. Joseph, a local Papuan religious congregation also known as "Little Brothers", to help him lay the foundation for the Catholic Church in Ialibu.

At the same time landowners provided plots of land for the missionaries to build their homes, make a garden, set up a school and construct the church.

People brought food and firewood and there was no lack of curious and friendly youths to help dig the drains, build the houses and clear the bush.

Alexis' Swissstyle two-storey bush houses, constructed without a single steel nail (he drilled holes and fastened the framework timbers with wooden pegs) were the wonder of both Mendi and Tari.

Happy or sad, angry, worried, calm, tired, anxious or relaxed, his reaction was almost always the same, a little laugh and a joking word.

During the following months the MSC and Capuchin missionaries worked together, preaching the Good News, building up the mainstations, opening schools.

They went on long and difficult foot patrols, often two-by-two, days and weeks at a time as the experienced MSC missionaries taught their Capuchin brothers the tricks-of-the-trade.

Through all this they felt the grace of God blessing their ministry as the people of the Southern Highlands embraced the Good News of Jesus with enthusiasm.

A physically strong man from a Kansas farm family, Bishop Firmin, a Doctor of Theology with a great devotion to the Blessed Mother, did not volunteer for the missions.

Rather, he generously and joyfully accepted the call to lead the Church in the Southern Highlands, and gave his life to that task for 36 years.

Now late into his eighties and with failing health, Bishop Firmin lives in a retirement home near the Capuchin friary in Victoria, Kansas.

They Planted the Good News and Helped it Grow The Catholic Church would not have taken root in the Southern Highlands had not the Spirit of God prepared the people of this land to accept the Gospel of Christ so readily into their lives.

There are numerous young men who are presently discerning God's call to the priesthood and religious life and are in the seminary or other formation programs.

Lay missionaries, serving as teachers, health care providers, pilots, mechanics, carpenters, electricians and pastoral workers have given invaluable service to the Church in the Diocese of Mendi.

Many individuals and parish groups in America and other countnes pray for the Mendi mission and donate money to continue the work of evangelization and social ministry even today.