Fr Vinco returns to Tasmania
By Josh Low
Following his successful kidney transplant surgery and subsequent ordination to the priesthood last year, Fr Vinco Muriyadan finally returned to Tasmania at the beginning of July.
Assigned as Assistant Priest in the Launceston Parish, he has already jumped straight into the parish and ministry.
“I feel very blessed having left as a deacon and returned as a priest,” he said.
“I went to India with the blessings of the people here and everything went well according to God’s plan for me and for Mum.
“Now I have returned with great gratitude to these people, as well as Archbishop Julian and the Archdiocesan staff, to serve them and bless them with my ministry. I am very grateful to all of them.
“I am very excited about my new role in the Launceston parish. Launceston has a very multicultural parish, and it is one of the biggest parishes. So I hope I have plenty of work to do,” he said.
Fr Vinco explained that there had been complications with organising his return to Australia, due to local strikes and the processing time generally associated with government offices in India.
However, he added, the eight months between his priestly ordination and return to Tasmania have given him a strong foundation in pastoral ministry.
“Those pastoral experiences definitely will help me build on my pastoral and spiritual ministry here in Tassie,” he said.
“After my ordination, I was appointed to one of the biggest parishes in the Archdiocese of Thrissur, Kerala, India.
“It is also my home parish, with about 1500 families, five Masses during weekdays and six Masses every Saturday and Sunday. People would come at all times of the day to see the priests for various reasons – marriages, baptisms, funerals, Mass for the dead, special Masses etc.
“Most days I left home at 5.30am and returned late in the night.”
Fr Vinco said he has come to realise that he needs to fall in Love with Jesus and His priesthood more and more, to be effective in his own role as a priest.
“That’s what I did. I gave all heart to my priesthood and to Jesus.
“I have already been able to be part of peoples struggles, sorrows, joy, spiritual life, healing, mental issues, and family problems – and to share the love of Christ with them.
“Now I hope to bring the same love to Tassie, and I look forward to priestly ministry here, filled with Jesus’s love and care for all people,” he said.