An Interview with Brother Damien Price

by Gordon Nary

Gordon: Where were you born? Tell us about your family.

Brother Damien: I was born in a small town on the Darling Downs called Pittsworth but I lived most of my childhood in Proserpine in North Queensland - a sugar cane town near the famous Whitsunday Islands.

Gordon: When did you attend The University of Queensland, what degree did you earn, and what is one of your favorite memories when you were there?

Brother Damien: I went to a Boarding school in Charters Towers run by the Christian Brothers. Initially I joined them not long after secondary school, more because I was inspired by the men that they were and what they were doing with young people. My deep personal faith experience, a personal encounter with Jesus, came after I had joined.

Gordon: When did you attend Queensland University of Technology, what degree did you earn, who was your favorite teacher, and why was that teacher your favorite?

Brother Damien: I attended QUT in the early 1990's. I did a Masters in Counselling as the school I was working in did not have a trained counsellor and I wanted the professional skills. I don't think I had a favourite teacher. Certainly during my Secondary School years and Teachers College I had some wonderful teachers. The ones I was drawn to were those who had a passion for what they were doing, had their feet on the ground and really wanted to make a difference in the lives of young people.

Gordon: When did you attend Australian Catholic University, what degree did you earn, what was your favorite course, and why was that course your favorite?

Brother Damien: While I did a Masters in Education - Pastoral Guidance through Australian Catholic University my favourite course was my Doctor of Philosophy degree. I never saw myself as an Academic - more of a pragmatist. I had begun with Anthony Ryan, a soup / coffee van, a ministry of hospitality with the homeless men and women of the inner city. Anthony and I invited our young students to serve on the van. They loved it. I had a constant stream of parents and others telling me how wonderful it all was. But I was not convinced. Were we simply young people from a quite privileged school getting a 'feel good' fix at the expense of the poor. So I sought to find out what meaning the young people were making from the experience and what their experience actually was. The results were profound.

Gordon: You have held several positions at Christian Brothers Oceania Province. Please list them with an overview of your  responsibilities at each positron/

Brother Damien: I would be one of the rare Religious who has never been in a position of Leadership. I have never been a Principal, a Superior, a Provincial etc. Other than my 40 or so years of teaching - I worked as the Post School Formation Coordinator for the Province for several years - seeking to support young adults on their spirituality journey. I then had oversight of the Brothers' ministries in Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and East Timor and then finally, the setting up of governance structures for the Brothers' non-school ministries.

Gordon: Tell us about your work at Encounter the Heart

Brother Damien: Several years ago I set up a website - Encounter the Heart. Our former Congregational Leader - Br Philip Pinto cfc used to say, "What you do with your heart effects the whole Universe!" I am convinced of the power of story and that when one shares story the energy changes. Story is neither right nor wrong, better nor best - story just is. So I wanted to share stories, invite people into spaces whereby they could get to know the story of others and thus build a better world for all. I have recently written a book, 'Encounter a lost art'. The book breaks open my insights into how young people in our time can and do experience the transcendent. As a generalisation I believe the Catholic Faith community has lost the ability to help young people actually experience God. In the book I suggest that young people can experience 'Magis' - 'more' through experience in nature, in story sharing, in good ritual and symbol, in good theology, through mentors, silence and stillness, service and more. I have been honoured by the positive responses to the book thus far.

Gordon: You were one of the keynote speakers at the Ascent Conference - Anglican Schools of Queensland. Please provide an  overview of your presentation.

Brother Damien: I was asked to speak to the Ascent Conference - Anglican Schools of Queensland. My topic was "He is not the Messiah - he is just a naughty boy - breaking open the Upside Down Messiah!" This topic was using the famous Monty Python film quote and linking it with the reflection of the South African Dominican Fr Albert Nolan op who spoke about the Upside Down Messiah. I shared with the conference how Jesus goes constantly - on every page of the Scriptures, from Temple and Torah to the liminal space. On the edge - in the liminal space he deeply encounter the poor and powerless, the lost, least, last, lame and longing. Into this space, he came as guest to their innate dignity and worth. The guest comes slowly, gently, respectfully and open. He then chose to be deeply present and his presence said, "you are lovable"! From this presence his heart opens in compassion and like the Spanish Carmelite nun - St Teresa of Avila - we become Christ's hands and eyes, ears and heart. From this - both Jesus and the one encountered go away liberated. This flow - reflects that of the Easter Triduum. This was of encounter is what we are called to in this day and age as disciples of Jesus.

Gordon: You recently spent three days with the Identity Leaders of Catholic Schools of the Rockhampton Diocese. Please provides  an overview of your discussions.

Brother Damien: In Rockhampton I broke open both the core contents of 'Encounter a lost art' as well as the core elements of the Student Retreat. I spoke about the importance of an overarching credible theology, why we use icebreakers, the importance of story, ritual, mentors etc. I also spoke about how one of the key blokes to evangelisation today is that we have put the cart before the horse. Spirituality - the horse - is how and where and when and why we finding meaning in our heart journey. Religion is the rites and ritual, the symbols and sacred texts that give expression to and deeper our spirituality. Sadly, we continually put religion first, often as an end in itself. People have not "fallen in love with the shepherd" and yet we are raving on about the colour of the sheep pen, the shape of the shepherd's staff, the size of a flock and the types of pasture we need to use - when all the time, our young people are longing to deeply encounter the shepherd himself.

Gordon: Who is you favorite saint and why is that saint your favorite?

Damien: St Damien of Molokai as he built profound, respect filled, reciprocal relationship with people who were rejected, powerless and poor. He did not just talk about or pray about or for - he became one of them in every sense of the word.

Brother Damien: In Rockhampton I broke open both the core contents of 'Encounter a lost art' as well as the core elements of the Student Retreat. I spoke about the importance of an overarching credible theology, why we use icebreakers, the importance of story, ritual, mentors etc. I also spoke about how one of the key blokes to evangelization today is that we have put the cart before the horse. Spirituality - the horse - is how and where and when and why we finding meaning in our heart journey. Religion is the rites and ritual, the symbols and sacred texts that give expression to and deeper our spirituality. Sadly, we continually put religion first, often as an end in itself. People have not "fallen in love with the shepherd" and yet we are raving on about the colour of the sheep pen, the shape of the shepherd's staff, the size of a flock and the types of pasture we need to use - when all the time, our young people are longing to deeply encounter the shepherd himself.

Gordon: In closing. please provide an overview of your work with disadvantaged youth, homeless men and women, refugees, and asylum seekers.

Brother Damien: I have had the privilege of working with homeless men and women through Eddie's Van - a ministry of St Joseph's College, Gregory Terrace in Brisbane. I did this for almost twenty years. I also had the privilege of working with Edmund Rice Camps whereby we would take children from very poor families and provide them with a holiday experience. Finally, I did a little bit of work, assisting refugees to settle into the community as they came out of Australian Detention Centres.

Gordon: Thank you for an inspirational interview.