Colourful and vibrant cultural dances accompanied by melodious music and harmonious singing filled the air as Rev Fr John Bosco Auram was ordained as the third Bishop of the Diocese of Kimbe.
Veritas in Caritate – Truth in Service - is the motto of the new Bishop. The solemn celebration took place at the Bernard Vogae Memorial Park on the 25th of January, witnessed by several thousand people.
Archbishop Francesco Panfilo, Archbishop of Rabaul, Cardinal John Ribat, Archbishop of Port Moresby and Bishop Emeritus William Fey were the consecrators for the Ordination.
Archbishop Kurian Mathew Vayalunkal, Apostolic Nuncio for Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands read out the Apostolic Bull from Pope Francis and preached a very fitting and well-articulated sermon.
In his homily, the Apostolic Nuncio paid tribute to William Regis Fey, who had been shepherding the diocese for over nine years with untiring dedication even to the point of neglecting his health.
Addressing the new bishop on his big commitment, he reminded him of God’s words to Jeremiah (Jer 1:4-10). He spoke of his ‘yes’ to God at his priestly ordination in 2004, and the new challenge as the Bishop of Kimbe. “It is your ‘call within a call’,” said the Archbishop. “The task of the bishop is not of domination, but of humble service, as he strives to be a pastor with the ‘smell of the sheep’. Trust in God and Our Blessed Mother and pray for your people and your priests.
“Be the ‘sacrament of closeness’ for your priests and your people.”
“I see hope in your eyes”, said Bp John Bosco as he addressed the congregation. He thanked God, his parents, family and the people for the support of their prayers. He encouraged all to be deeply spiritual and lift up their hearts and voices in prayer.
He further requested them to pray a decade of the rosary daily as a family for him and for the ministry in the diocese.
The new Bishop of Kimbe, Bishop John Bosco Auram, is the second born son of Francis Auram and Jacinta Seleime.
His father, a teacher and Catechist by profession, hailed from Kandoka village in the parish of Kaliai, and his mother a subsistence farmer came from Wasum village in the parish of Sara. Both the parishes are within the diocese of Kimbe.
His grandfather from Kaliai was a firm Legionnaire of Mary, in fact the first person to bring this highly respected devotional practice into the Parish of Kaliai. Sadly, his parents have passed away, his mother in 1985, when Bp John Bosco was doing his Grade Seven at Kandrian High school, and his father in 2014 when Bp Auram was then a formator and lecturer at Holy Spirit Seminary, Bomana.
It was in Turuk parish, where his father was teaching at Magien Community School, that the initial inspiration and call for him to the priesthood began.
As a small boy he would find solace and consolation in the very building (a classroom) where an OLSH nun was martyred. It was as if the blood of martyred Sr. Mary Rose mystically called out to him to become a priest.
He fully realised that God wanted him to become a priest. Upon the death of his mother, he was given the charge to take care of all his younger siblings from 1989-1992; this for him was the period of discernment. It confirmed his call from God.
Now, as a priest in his 15th year of priestly ordination (2004), he was called by God and appointed by Pope Francis as the new bishop of the Diocese of Kimbe. As a parish priest, Fr Auram was at Sara for five months, at Silanga for nine months and at Turuk for five months.
He was a formator and lecturer in the Catholic seminaries around the country for almost 10 years; 4 years at Vanimo Seminary, 2 years at Rapolo Seminary, 2 years at Holy Spirit Seminary and again another 1 year at Rapolo as the Rector. In 2015-2018 he was the Spiritual Director at the University of Santo Thomas in the Philippines, while at the same time doing his Masters studies in Pastoral Theology.
“Veritas in caritate” or “Truth in Charity” is the motto on his coat of arms. In his own words the Bishop-elect explains: “Truth is what we all seek, and in seeking this truth we must be motivated by love.
“Truth is not something but Truth is a Person, Jesus Christ who is the fullness of Love. In seeking the Truth through Love, we are building the Church, which is actually the Body of this same Christ.”
The Scriptural basis of his motto is a command that can be found in Ephesians 4:15 entitled ‘building the Body of Christ’. For him this is a command, as a bishop he must carry out with prudence and vigilance.
Bp Bosco Auram has the insight that his vision and mission will build up the Diocese of Kimbe, and fully reflect the Body of Christ. To achieve this, he believes that there must be, first and foremost, collaboration with all his brother priests, who are his co-workers and helpers within the Diocese of Kimbe.