This year 2024, Rector Major of Salesians of Don Bosco, has a good news for Mongolia: He is about to sent two new missionaries here soon. After the first interview with br. Eric, here is the second one with br. Marko.

1. Please, can you share with us about your family, childhood and growth in faith?

I am Br. Marko Dropuljić. I was born in Zagreb, Croatia and was part of a diocesan parish. My family is small: my father, my mother, my twin brother Luka and me. I come from a traditional Catholic family where we learned Christian values from a young age. When we reached high school, our parents gave us the choice of whether or not to continue attending Mass. During the first year of high school, I decided not to participate in the sacraments anymore. After being away from the Lord for a while, in my last year of high school, a confession brought me back to His hands and I began my journey of growing in faith.

2. Where did you meet the Salesians and Don Bosco? Why did you become a Salesian?

My first encounter with the Salesians is a funny story that, in retrospect, seems like pure providence from God. I first heard about Don Bosco and the Salesians and actually met a Salesian during the second grade of high school when I visited the Oratory of Jarun, a Salesian parish near mine. I went there because I was in love with a girl who was active in that parish. While there to meet her, I also attended the catechesis session that was held that day. This was my initial contact with the Salesians. Although my motives were not very religious at the time, God used this experience in my life later on.

After the confession that changed my life, I felt a strong desire to serve the Lord. I experienced profound joy and love and wanted to share this with others, especially young people. I felt called to bring God’s love and joy to those who have lost hope and need someone to show them their unique value. Although I knew that my calling was to dedicate my life to young people, I was uncertain about how to realize this desire. I remembered the Oratory of Jarun and the Salesians I had met there. There was a lot of youth involvement there, and it appealed to me, so I searched for information about the Salesians online. I came across Don Bosco and his biography. As I read more about him and the Salesians, I felt convinced that this was where the Lord was calling me.

3. What do you like and admire about Don Bosco?

Two things that are essentially one: his passionate love for God and for youth. He was fearless when it came to doing things for the greater glory of God and the good of young people. And that is how he died: not from sickness or murder, but by spending his life like a candle, giving his last breath for God and youth, always thinking of them. That is also something I aspire to inherit from Don Bosco.

4. How did you find your missionary vocation? Why would you like to be a missionary?

During my novitiate, we had a spiritual exercise in February. At the beginning, we each randomly selected a saint to accompany us. I was assigned St. Callisto Caravario, a missionary in China who was martyred there. I began praying intensely for guidance on my missionary vocation, asking God to reveal His will to me. One night, during adoration from 2 to 3 a.m., Jesus spoke to my heart, asking if I would be a missionary for Him. Following this, I began a discernment process with my spiritual director and provincial, which led to my decision this year to write a letter expressing my desire to become a missionary.

5. Are you surprised that you are sent to Mongolia? What do you know about Mongolia? What do you expect there?

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to be sent to Mongolia. The only thing I knew about Mongolia was that it lies between Russia and China. After doing some research, I’ve learned a bit more, but it remains somewhat of a mystery to me. One of my biggest desires is to work with abandoned boys from the streets, and I hope this will be possible in Mongolia.

6. What is your “life motto” or a favorite Bible verse?

One of my favorite Bible verses is from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, chapter 8, where he asks: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” For me, everything revolves around this idea. Once we deeply understand the love Christ has for us, everything changes, and we belong to Him. We can say, “My beloved is mine, and I am His.”