Dear Bro. Provincial Superior and Brothers,

WORDS OF CONDOLENCE, BRO. MARTINUS SARIYA GIRI.

I do not know whether to say it is God or Bro. Valentinus Daru who saddened my heart today. With a tear-jerking and sad voice Bro. Valentinus Daru announced to me this morning the sudden demise of our fellow Bro. Giri. I am shocked! Having now regained my composure, and having offered prayers to God for the peaceful repose of the soul of our late brother, I turn to express my sincere condolence to you: fellow Brothers, members of the family; teachers and students; friends and acquaintances of the late Bro. Giri. And I do so also on behalf of the members of the General Council.

When God calls home a loved one, the pain is hard to bear. I am not sure that I have never met the late Bro. Giri in person. However, in other ways and in particular through his last write-up in the FIC Magazine on the topic “Making the Church more colourful,” I can claim to have encountered him. His death has been so sudden and this can be distressful to all of us. Indeed the congregation has lost a fellow brother but more so, you have lost a dear member of your province. Truly God’s ways are not our ways (Is. 55:8) and the human Life is not meant to be lived according to man's ways, but God's ways. ... God is a holy God and the Lord is righteous in all His ways (Psalm 145:17). God looked around his garden and found an empty space. Then God looked among us and saw the tired face of Bro. Giri. Then God puts his arms around him and lifted him up to rest (all-greatquotes.com).

Dear Brothers, it is our hope that we shall keep alive the memory of our late Bro. Giri: his personality and our experience of brotherly affection; his apostolic accomplishments; and above all his contributions to the growth of both the local church and the society of Indonesia. Similarly, through our FIC traditions we hope to ensure a continuous relationship with him and all our deceased fellow-brothers. We entrust ourselves and the mission of the congregation to God through their intercession (FIC Cons.11). May the noble soul of the late Bro. Martinus Sariya Giri, rest in peace.

Your fraternally,

Bro. Augustine Kubdaar

General Superior, FIC