Rooted in mission: Fr Bob’s fifty years in Hazaribag

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Rooted in mission: Fr Bob’s fifty years in Hazaribag

26 January 2026

As Jesuit Mission celebrates 75 years of faith in action, we reflect on the missionaries who became living branches of hope, rooted in Christ and bearing fruit through humble service.

Since 1951, fifty-five Australian Jesuits have been missioned to Hazaribag, rural India, responding to the call to accompany communities with humility and compassion. Today, just three Australian missionaries remain — among them Fr Bob Billings SJ.

Fr Bob first felt called to mission through the Catholic magazines that arrived at his family home such as The Far East and News from India and through his time in the Mission Group as a student at Xavier College in Melbourne. A retreat during his final year of school helped him “discern the yearning of my heart,” and that discernment led him to India.

Since moving to India in 1974, Fr Bob has walked alongside tribal communities, become fluent in Hindi and immersed in their daily lives.

“Everything has changed in fifty years,” he says. Yet for Fr Bob, mission was never one-sided. “The people have always had a living faith that mattered. It was quite humbling to see.”

Today, more than 25,000 students are educated each year in Jesuit schools developed in partnership with our Australian Jesuit Mission family across Hazaribag. What began as a single mission has since become a flourishing Province, with 12 parishes supporting nearly 700 villages through healthcare, livelihood programs, emergency assistance and education.

“You can’t give without receiving,” Fr Bob reflects. “I believe I have received the hundredfold at the hands of such.”

“It is my hope that Jesuit Mission continues to be such a resource that fosters the spiritual growth of people here, there and everywhere.”