German Missionary Fr. Ewald Dinter, SVD, Passes Away After Six Decades of Service to Mangyan Community
Two days after being honored by the provincial government of Oriental Mindoro, Philippines, for six decades of dedicated service to the Indigenous Peoples (IP) of the province, German missionary Fr. Ewald Dinter, SVD, 88, passed away on November 14 at UST Hospital in Manila.
Fr. Dinter was born on October 16, 1937, in Steinwitz, Wroclaw, Germany. He made his religious vows in 1961 and was ordained in 1965.
His first mission assignment was at St. Raphael Mission House in Calapan. After initial pastoral work in Bongabon and Mansalay parishes and three years serving the Mangyan missions, he was assigned to formation work at the newly established St. Augustine Major Seminary in Tagaytay, serving as Rector, Spiritual Director, and Procurator from 1969 to 1976. The seminary, under the Apostolic Vicariate of Calapan, trained diocesan priests for Mindoro.
Fr. Dinter later returned to Mindoro for parish work and service among the Mangyans at the Panaytayan Mangyan Settlement. In 1979, he was elected Provincial Superior, and in 1982, after the Philippine SVD was divided into three provinces, he continued as Provincial Superior of the Central Province. In 1985, he briefly served as Rector of Christ the King Seminary while also functioning as a provincial councilor.
From 1986 onward, his advocacy for the Mangyans led him to spend an extended period in the Mangyan missions. While still a provincial councilor, he chose to remain at the Panaytayan settlement, where he established the Mangyan Education Center and served as its director. He was also appointed Episcopal Vicar for the Mangyan Missions, and the Mangyan Mission Secretariat was later established in Calero, Calapan City, with Fr. Dinter widely known simply as “the Mangyan Missionary.”
In addition, he served as Executive Secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Indigenous People (ECIP) of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines and as Vicar Forane of the Risen Christ Vicariate.
According to Fr. Anthony Ibarra Banawa Fabella, SVD, Fr. Dinter had been at Villa Cristo Rey, the SVD retirement house at Christ the King Seminary in Quezon City, when he fell ill. He was semi-retired at St. Raphael Mission House before being brought to Villa Cristo Rey and eventually admitted to UST Hospital.
On November 12, while hospitalized, Fr. Dinter was recognized by the provincial government of Oriental Mindoro as one of the awardees during its 75th founding anniversary.
“This morning, Fr. Mike Yasis, SVD, arrived to give him the sacrament of anointing. According to the doctor, Amang (Fr. Dinter) is still fighting. But the doctor prepared us to say our goodbyes,” said Carole Diamante, a friend and spiritual daughter of Fr. Dinter.
He was brought to UST Hospital on October 17, a day after his birthday, Diamante added.
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