Abstract

This chapter addresses the way in which Dutch Franciscan friars responded to the “signs of the times,” as mentioned in the Vatican II document Gaudium et Spes, in Papua. In terms of Franciscan spirituality, what was God saying to them about how they should continue the mission of Jesus and follow the Gospel? How did they experience “being church” within the changing context of daily living? Because theology in the church in Papua arose more from grassroots activities than from academic settings, the author’s reflections focus on events on the ground, on renewal from the grassroots.