Fr. Clement is OMI new Provincial

Rev. Fr. Clement Ashley Waidyasekera, OMI Superior of the Oblate Scholasticate will assume duties as the Colombo Province new Provincial of the Congregation of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) on Monday, June 20, succeeding Very Rev. Fr. Oswald Firth OMI, the first Assistant General of the OMI's now residing in Rome.

Fr. Clement who joined the St. Joseph Juniorate, Kohuwala under the Rectorship of Fr. Adrian Joseph in 1963,went to Mount Eden Novitiate in 1966 when Fr. Andrew Peter Fernando was the Rector and learnt his first lessons of Religious life from late Rev. Fr. Selmor and took his first vows in 1967 when the late Bishop of Badulla Rt. Rev. Edmund J.Fernando OMI was the Director of the Novitiate.

He joined the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya in the same year and did his philosophical studies at the National Seminary, Kandy. For one year he went out of the scholaticate being a member of the first batch to go out to live with the world, working for his living, an experiment the Oblate Congregation tried with their scholastics.

From 1972 to 1977 he was in Rome doing his Theological studies and obtained B.Th, Licentiate, Ph.D. from both Gregorian and Lateran Universities and he has also done extensive studies in Islam. He was ordained a Priest of God on November 11, 1977 and he obtained his Ph.D. in 1986.

For 23 years he served in Pakistan dedicating his life in the field of education and founded the National Catholic Institute of Theology (NCIT), in Karachi, Pakistan, affiliated to Melbourne, College of Divinity, Australia.

He served in this capacity until he was elected the Provincial by the Members of the OMI Congregation.