Fr. Fransiskus Bhoka, SVD

Stepping into a new culture

Traveling to a new country can be an eye-opening experience for vacationers, but Divine Word Missionaries don’t just stop by and visit a new culture for a few days. They immerse themselves in it – they live among the people, eat the food, learn the customs and do their best to accept and be accepted into the culture.

For Fr. Fransiskus Bhoka, SVD, that process began in 2008 when he moved from his home in Indonesia to embark on his first assignment as a newly-ordained Divine Word Missionary Priest in Zimbabwe. Apart from a two-and-a-half-year period of study in the Philippines (June 2016 to February 2019), he has dedicated his entire priesthood to serving at parishes and outstations in Zimbabwe, where he continues to live today.

Adapting to New Foods

The main staple food in Zimbabwe is maize. Fr. Fransiskus, who was used to rice as the primary ingredient in most meals back in Indonesia, had limited exposure to maize. However, in Zimbabwe, maize is prepared differently as a dish called "isitshwala," a thick and soft porridge. He quickly adapted to its texture and found that food was the least of his cultural adjustments.

A Different Kind of Funeral

One of the biggest cultural shocks came when Fr. Fransiskus attended his first funeral in Zimbabwe. Coming from Indonesia, where funerals are typically somber and subdued, he was unprepared for what he encountered.

“The first time I went to a funeral here in Zimbabwe, I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears. I saw people dancing and I thought someone was having a birthday party. Then someone said, ‘We’re going there. That’s the funeral,’” he recalled.

To his surprise, the funeral was a lively celebration of life with singing and dancing. Initially he felt uncomfortable, but over time, he learned that it’s how the people in that culture show their gratitude to God for the life of their loved one who has died. As he spoke with people about these customs, he learned that the people of Zimbabwe understand the life of a person is a gift from God. Now when he attends funerals, Fr. Fransiskus joins the singing and dancing without hesitation. 

“You have no other choice. You have to enter yourself into the culture. If you don’t, you’ll feel like a stranger,” he said. 

Celebration of Faith

Even the Sunday Mass felt different. In Zimbabwe, a typical Sunday Mass lasts three to four hours—a stark contrast to the one-hour services he knew in Indonesia. And perhaps the most amazing part is that no one complains about the long Masses. That’s because the people view it as a celebration of thanksgiving to God. 

“The Mass is a vibrant celebration with people singing, dancing, and praying. It normally starts with a procession that can last for two songs. Their spirit of celebrating is very high,” he said. “Everyone participates actively in the Mass. Though the service is long, it’s not boring because everyone is singing and everyone is dancing. When the priest says, “let us pray,” everyone kneels down and prays. In other countries, the Mass can become boring. A group of people sing in a choir and the other people watch them. After Mass, they say ‘Oh, the choir was good.’ But here, everyone sings, so nobody is judging you because everyone is doing it.”

“For me, it is a privilege that I worked with the people and they accepted me,” he said. “My joy as a missionary is being able to contribute something that I have to the people. They are like my brothers and sisters now. I feel that they accept and support me. I have become part of the family, the family of God’s people here in Plumtree, Zimbabwe.”