Geraldine Vytilingam: a journey of faith, service and hope

For Geraldine Vytilingam, recipient of the Missionary Sisters of Service’s ‘Fr John Wallis Scholarship’, hope is not just an ideal; it is a way of life. A woman of deep faith and unwavering service, she embodies the very spirit of hope that we are invited to embrace this Jubilee Year. Guided by the words Spes non confundit—hope does not disappoint—Geraldine shares her inspiring personal story of faith, leadership and hope.

Geraldine Vytilingam grew up in the northwestern suburbs of Melbourne in a family that is Indian Tamil and Sri Lankan Tamil. From a young age, faith was always ‘the foundation’ of why her family did what they did. ‘My parents were always active in different Church groups, which focused on both prayer and service in the parish and wider community,’ she says. ‘They instilled in me a strong sense that we need to contribute.’

Geraldine attended the local parish school, St Mary MacKillop Primary School in Keilor Downs, where she sang in the school choir at sacramental events. She says singing at First Communion or Confirmation Masses was her way into music ministry. ‘I received a lot of joy and encouragement in working with other students and staff in that ministry. It was really my first entry point into being a student leader, instilling values that would hold me in good stead for the years to come.’

What an amazing thing, to be 15 or 16 years old and facilitating our own Catholic youth event. It showed that our teachers really believed in us.

Throughout her high-school years, Geraldine’s faith and love of God continued to strengthen and find a voice, particularly though her musical and leadership skills. She attended Catholic Regional College in North Keilor and ‘really appreciated’ the youth ministers and young Catholic teachers who were ‘passionate about their faith’ and shared it with their students. ‘Their investment in our lives and in getting to know us, and also caring about our development, was really integral,’ she says. ‘And music within the school and church was an important way that we really connected with each other, and with God.’ All the opportunities to gather with other Catholics—at both big and small events, local or interstate—demonstrated to Geraldine that she ‘wasn’t alone’ in her faith.

‘One of my most treasured memories was running a youth rally,’ she says. ‘We were in Year 10 and invited young people from our local area. Looking back on it, what an amazing thing, to be 15 or 16 years old and facilitating our own Catholic youth event. It showed that our teachers really believed in us. They were willing to invest in us. And for us, it was an incredible experience to share our faith.’

In Year 11, Geraldine attended World Youth Day in Poland, which she says ‘really gave me a fire in my belly to share and to lead’. In Year 12, she became Liturgy Captain at Catholic Regional College Sydenham, a role she embraced with enthusiasm and dedication. She says, ‘I loved how the teachers were so open to supporting me, be that with choices of music for Masses or running a faith and mission festival. I was able to collaborate with people in the Archdiocese and engage with local youth groups and youth ministry teams. The trust that senior staff leadership at Catholic Regional College Sydenham gave to me as a student leader, in hindsight, set me up to eventually lead in Catholic schools one day as a staff member. I look back quite gratefully at my experience of education in Catholic schools.’

When Geraldine completed Year 12, she decided to take a two-year ‘gap’ before attending university. At 18, she moved to central Queensland and lived in the communities of North Rockhampton and Bundaberg, serving on youth ministry teams. She was a youth minister and, in the second year, also team leader, serving in parishes and schools, and ministering in multiple contexts. ‘It was amazing to form such strong connections with staff, students and families during that time,’ she says.

‘We’d spend an entire day with each school ministering to different year levels and running religious education classes that involved evangelisation. We also got to hang out with students at lunchtime, play down ball and just embrace the more relational aspects of being at a school. It really taught me the importance of investing in family partnerships and community engagement. Those two years were a huge learning experience.’

The story of Fr John Wallis and my story crossed over in some special ways.

Returning to Melbourne from Queensland, Geraldine felt the need to step back from the ‘leadership’ experience and become ‘more of a student’. She enrolled at the University of Melbourne and, after three years, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology and Creative Writing. When plans to travel to London (to further her studies and love of anthropology) fell through, she became aware of a non-teaching director of mission role at MacKillop College in Swan Hill, in northern Victoria. She applied and was successful, becoming the college’s Faith in Action Leader during 2023.

At the same time, she was contemplating undertaking further study while working and came across the Missionary Sisters of Service’s Fr John Wallis Scholarship through the University of Divinity’s website. ‘I was researching who the MSS were and what the scholarship was about and felt like the story of Fr John Wallis and my story crossed over in some special ways,’ she says.

‘Fr John’s mission started when he was 23, and I was 23 at the time I applied for the scholarship. Fr John and the MSS had ministered in areas of regional Australia—the MSS were in Bundaberg, and I had lived in Bundaberg. Fr John was a proponent of Vatican II, and as someone involved in contemporary music ministry, I am deeply appreciative of Vatican II as well, so I found my values aligned a lot with what the MSS stood for.’

Geraldine was successful in her application for the scholarship, which granted her funds to complete a Graduate Diploma in Theology through the University of Divinity in 2023 and a Masters of Theological Studies in 2024. She can recall the moment she read the news of her successful application: ‘When I read the letter, I dropped to the floor of the car park and welled up with tears. I think God was laughing or smiling at me, saying, “If only you knew in August what I’d do in November, you’d be in absolute awe”.

The MSS have believed in me even when I haven’t believed in myself. They’ve invested in me emotionally and personally, not just financially. That’s been one of the biggest blessings of my life.

The scholarship reaffirmed her calling to education and faith, giving her ‘a huge sense of purpose and direction. And it really affirmed in me that academia was my vocation. It is my vocation.’ Geraldine feels deep gratitude to the MSS Stewardship Council for their encouragement and endless support. ‘The MSS have believed in me even when I haven’t believed in myself,’ she says.

‘They’ve invested in me emotionally and personally, not just financially. That’s been one of the biggest blessings of my life.’

Thanks to the scholarship, Geraldine completed a Graduate Diploma of Theology in 2023 and recently graduated with a Master of Theological Studies in March this year.

This year, Geraldine started working in the Faith and Service team at Xavier College in Kew as Youth Minister and Reconciliation Leader. As Youth Minister, she works with young people, caring for their pastoral needs and walking alongside Xavier’s student leaders. She says, ‘I learn from the students every day, and they’re leading me. It’s a fantastic experience that gives me joy and hope.’ She is grateful that she can also contribute to music ministry, retreats and Ignatian service, and support the college’s liturgical life.

It’s such a joy and a treasure to have this experience of working with young men. You see them step up, and you really do see them live out their Ignatian charism.

In her role as Reconciliation Leader, she supports the inclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and staff at the college. She will organise events like Reconciliation Week and NAIDOC Week, and support the college’s student-led Indigenous Affairs Committee. She is currently organising an immersion experience where Indigenous students from St Mary’s College in Broome, Western Australia, will visit Melbourne, hosted by both Xavier College and Genazzano FCJ College.

‘I go to bed grateful each night and wake up super excited for work in the morning. It’s such a joy and a treasure to have this experience of working with young men,’ she says ‘You see them step up, and you really do see them live out their Ignatian charism.

‘It’s beautiful to witness their maturity and leadership—they’re so proud to be Xaverians, and they’re driven to make a difference during their time at the college, which motivates us as staff to be the best we can be.’

Geraldine draws a strong sense of hope from being surrounded by, and working with, young men and women who ‘are ambitious and driven, and want to see change in this world’. Her recent experience working in a Jesuit school, together with Pope Francis’ call to be pilgrims of hope, has reinforced her awareness that ‘God is with us, always.’

Reflecting on the Jubilee Year, she says it’s ‘not just about being “Pilgrims of Hope”; it’s a Year of Jubilee’. From a faith perspective, she says, that can mean a lot of things: ‘that we need to be renewed, that we need to consider the marginalised, that restoration is needed in the world and in our hearts.

It’s in looking towards that true meaning of hope—the hope that is solace, the hope that is peace, the hope that is light—and in choosing hope that we can continue our journey.

‘It means that we invest in taking that journey, in meeting people where they’re at. It’s a time for both pausing and a time of progressing. In the Ignatian way, it’s sitting in the tension of the harder questions as well: what does it mean to hope in 2025?’

Geraldine acknowledges that it can be difficult to have hope in the world today, given the ‘numerous conflicts, wars and poverty, and a lot of the social challenges’. But, she says, ‘it’s in looking towards that true meaning of hope—the hope that is solace, the hope that is peace, the hope that is light—and in choosing hope that we can continue our journey.’