38 young Carmelites gathered in Malang recently for a special program for those in their first 5 years of ministry for members of the Asia-Australia-Oceania region of the Order.

Frs Angelino Dos Santos, Martinho Da Costa, Roque Soares Da Cruz and Carltio Da Silva travelled from Timor-Leste for the meeting. Fr Wayne Stanhope travelled from Australia to be one of the presenters at the meeting. Topics included Nurturing Carmelite Vocation, Consecrated Life in the Midst of the People, Finding the Balance in the Tension between Community and Ministry, Boundaries and Intimacy in Ministry and Carmelite Lifestyle in a Changing World.

Plenty of time was also set aside for personal reflection and sharing about various experiences of ministry.

"The meeting was great," said Fr Martinho Da Costa. "It was a very positive experience for us especially in our group discussion, sharing about our life and ministry as young Carmelites. We had people who gave talks about ministry, spiritual life, and life in the midst of others and also some other matters that related to our life and ministry as a young Carmelites. We also shared about our challenges and difficulties that we face in our ministry."