The Truth about the Great South Land of the Holy Spirit
The Australian-Austrian Connection
Image: A shopping bag I received in Vienna to hold all my souvenirs.
The Lord is calling us back to walk in our full inheritance that Christ paid for us. “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children of God, then heirs – heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together”. Romans 8:16.
Hearing of Smith Wigglesworth prophecy for Australia, I’ve been praying and asking God – why Australia? Why have you marked Australia for a sweeping end-time revival and harvest? He led me to the story of one Portuguese explorer and the term that Christians in Australia all know, “The Great South Land of the Holy Spirit”.
In 1605, Pedro Fernandez de Queiros, Portuguese by birth but educated in Spain, received approval to commence a new expedition from Pope Clement III in Rome. He was a zealous missionary with a lot of ambition to discover the Great South Land. He set sail from Peru and declared his mission to find” the Southern Continent”. On 1 May 1606, they sighted a landmass which de Queiros was convinced was the Great South Land, but he had founded Vanuatu.
In his official declaration, de Queiros announced,
“I take possession of this bay of St. Phillip and St. James and of the site on which is to be founded the city of New Jerusalem. I take possession of all the lands I have sighted, and all the lands to the south as far as the Pole, which from this time shall be called Austrialia del Espiritu Santo”.
De Queiros references the “House of Austria” to honour the Spanish King Phillip’s Austrian heritage. Later explorer Mathew Flinders adopted a variation of de Queiros name “Australis del Espirito Santo” – eventually leading to the name Australia.
Even though it was Vanuatu, it was the first public declaration of lands from Vanuatu to Antarctica – that whole region was dedicated to the Holy Spirit!
And again, the connection to my heritage, Austria! But not only that, but also to my mother’s heritage of Peru, where de Queiros set sail from. What are the chances! That both my cultural backgrounds – both Father and Mother have a place in the story of Australia being founded and that I, the first-generation Australian, was born here for such a time as this?! Do you think God is now speaking about our inheritance?
Many Christians say that Quiros spoke prophetically over Australia with his declaration. However, also people, including Christians, contend that the term “Great South Land of the Holy Spirit” is just a myth because de Queiros named it in honour of the Spanish King, who was Austrian and had no connection with the name Terra Australis, and that he didn’t set foot on Australian soil.
Well, perhaps it wasn’t our time back in 1606, but maybe it now is. Aren’t the days getting darker? And aren’t we born for such a time as this? In your quiet time with the Lord, ask Him to show you. For me, I know He’s speaking to me personally - I know that I was born in Sydney, Australia in 1977, from migrants of Austria and Peru, and I know He’s fully revealed my inheritance both in the body and spirit.
Australia, it’s your time to shine!
Footnote (for the Holy Spirit nerds):
During this time of prayer and seeking the Lord about Australia, the Lord also revealed to me the number 419. I took our current year 2025 and deducted the year that Quiros made his declaration 1606. This left me with 419. As soon as I saw this number, I knew what God was saying. God has been speaking to me through His number 14 for the scripture verse Revelation 14:14 but also through the number 19, for the scripture verse Leviticus 25:19 about the Jubilee (Read more about my Jubilee House testimony). What I see is this. When you look at the number 419 from middle to left, you see the number 14, and from middle to right, you see the number 19. The Lord has married both scriptures together for me for this time. His final coming is the final Jubilee!