Acknowledging Joe Ensing MSC, turning 80
Joe Ensing has a Dutch family background, Queensland, student at Downlands. He made his first profession on February 26th 1963, ordained 31st May 1969.
Golden Jubilee of ordination, with Paul Cashen
Joe has spent most of his over 50 years of priesthood in Papua New Guinea, mission, catechetics, religious education, in recent times, the Community Leader. In a letter for New Years 2021, the Covid times, he wrote about Eastern Papua. It gives some idea of his life in PNG mission:
All continues to go well with me in Papua New Guinea, also known as the land of Paradise and it is surely living up to this name in regard to the Corona Virus Pandemic. My most recent official figures of 10/12/20 country wide is only 8 deaths and 720 confirmed cases out of a population of about 8 million. Even allowing for the low level of testing there are no reports of possible serious outbreaks at present. Our Capital City, Port Moresby has recorded the vast majority of confirmed cases at 360 out of the 16 Provinces, with my home province, Milne Bay at only 2 cases.
Milne Bay
Where ever I go, particularly to town, life is much as usual. Not much evidence of social distancing, and masks only in shops and places of business such as banks, with notices of warnings and advice to avoid the disease.
Pray that we may continue to be spared any major outbreak in this country which has very limited medical resources to cope.
I continue on at our Diocesan Pastoral Centre for the formation and training of local Church lay leaders in a variety of Ministries.
The rest of the time has been at home taking part in short courses and seminars, apart from 3 weeks last month, November, traveling around the islands to the East, from Misima to Rossel, on behalf of the Bishop. I was happy to do this as I spent about 20 years in that area at Nimowa Parish.
He is pictured with his co-author and fellow workers with their book: COUNSELLING BEST PRACTICE (Co-authored Joe Ensing MSC and Sr Valentina Pozzi SdR), TRAINING MANUAL FOR COUNSELLING IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA,
