Taking part in the Siloam Program for spiritual direction was “a journey of growth” for Fr Yon Wiryono SVD, which he says has not only helped him see the reality of his life through the lense of spirituality, but confirmed his call to help others see that reality in their lives, too.

Fr Yon, who is the Vocations Director for the SVD Australia Province, said the transformative experience of the program is already helping him in his ministry and priestly vocation.

“The Siloam course takes its name from the story of Jesus healing a blind man who came to wash in the pool of Siloam,” he said.

“It is a course which has helped me to see life and reality through the lense of spirituality. It has firstly helped me to see myself and through deepening my ‘seeing’, I am called to help others see, in the ministry of spiritual direction.

“The Siloam course has been a journey of growth. It has helped me to recognise and be aware of my vulnerabilities, and through the process of spiritual direction, communal reflection and supervision, I’ve been formed and shaped in my process of growth.

“To be a wounded healer, I need to be aware of my woundedness, attend to it and be healed, and go from there to help others.”

The Siloam Program is part of the Heart of Life Centre for Spiritual and Pastoral Formation, an apostolic work of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in Australia, committed to contemplative spiritual and pastoral formation through its programs, seminars, people and resources.

A discerning, contemplative attitude is integral to all seminars and practical work. Regular reflection, prayer time and a commitment to one’s own spiritual direction are essential to the program which is open to people of all faiths and cultural traditions.

Fr Yon said that when he was first asked by the Provincial, Fr Asaeli Rass SVD, to undertake the Siloam Program he knew the course would help him in his formation work at the SVD’s formation house in Melbourne, Dorish Maru College.

“Yes, it’s true, it has been helpful,” he said. “But it has also been more than I expected. I’ve found that it’s not just about what I can offer in formation ministry, but, first of all, about my ongoing formation.”

Fr Yon said that in undertaking the course, he was introduced to a world he hadn’t really focused on before.

“It turns out that I rediscovered myself and found myself deeply touched and attracted to spirituality,” he said.

“In the two years of this formation, I really feel the call to the ministry of spiritual direction. Looking back, I’m grateful that the lecturers and supervisors at Heart of Life really fostered a discerning, contemplative approach, where myself and fellow students who are spiritual directors-in-formation could become more and more attuned to the movement of God’s Spirit in ourselves and in our directees.”

Fr Yon said the course awakened a new awareness within himself of being a beloved child of God.

“Grounded in the joy of being the beloved child of God, and from a place of deep awareness of the Spirit of the Lord in me through my baptism and vocation as a religious, I am called to be the Heart of God that is already embodied in me, through me, and with me for others,” he said.

“Therefore, my ministry as a spiritual director will be around this call to listen compassionately with the heart of God, caring with the heart of God, journeying with the directee as a loving companion and showing them the heart of God, full of love and compassion.”

Fr Yon said highlights of the experience for him included the contemplative stance of the Siloam course, the group wisdom, the deep sharing of vulnerabilities, the openness, support and the sense of journeying inwards together with the group and the supervisors, as well as the knowledge given during lectures that deepened, affirmed and expanded his self-awareness and knowledge.

He said the course has already helped him in his ministry of spiritual direction.

“Accompanying others in spiritual direction so far has also deepened my natural sense of discerning the movement of spirits, towards or away from God, which is really important in spiritual direction,” he said.

He said he has committed himself to ongoing growth and professional development in this area, to seek spiritual direction and professional supervision himself, continuing to deepen his ability for discernment.

“With that in mind, I believe that the certificate in spiritual direction is a door to another intentional journey of accompanying others in spiritual direction ministry,” he said.

Fr Yon said he felt the course also opened up a new path for his involvement in formation ministry within the SVD.

“This Siloam course, together with the formation course in Nemi which I attended in 2021, and a few online course on formation have helped me to understand the ministry of formation and feel confident to do it,” he said. “I feel like I can become a good formator, however, I need to continue to grow; to be a spiritually matured person.

“Helping others in spiritual direction sessions or formation helps me to attend to my own spiritual growth and formation too.”

PHOTOS

TOP RIGHT: Fr Yon Wiryono SVD receives his graduation certificate from the Siloam Program.

MIDDLE LEFT: Fr Yon with fellow graduates of the Program.

BOTTOM RIGHT: Fr Yon with SVD confreres at the graduation ceremony.