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.

Learning 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 - “Austria - Lia”. 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, also to my mother’s heritage of Peru, the very place from which de Queirós set sail. What are the chances? That both my cultural backgrounds, my father’s and my mother’s, have a place in the story of Australia’s founding, and that I, a second-generation Australian, was born here for such a time as this! Do you think God is speaking to us about our inheritance?

Many Christians believe that de Queirós spoke prophetically over Australia through his declaration. Yet others argue that the phrase “Great South Land of the Holy Spirit” is merely a myth, since de Queirós named the land in honour of the Spanish King (who was Austrian) and had no direct connection to the name Terra Australis, nor did he ever set foot on Australian soil.

Well, perhaps it wasn’t our time back in 1606, but maybe it is now! Aren’t the days growing darker? And aren’t we born for such a time as this? In your quiet moments with the Lord, ask Him to reveal it to you. As for me, I know He’s speaking to me personally. I was born in Sydney, Australia, the child of migrants from Austria and Peru, and I know He has fully revealed my inheritance, both in body and in 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, He revealed to me the number 419. I took our current year, 2025, and subtracted the year de Queirós made his declaration, 1606, which left me with 419. As soon as I saw that number, I knew God was speaking.

He has been speaking to me through the number 14, connected to the number of years my father has passed, the revelation of my Austrian heritage, which he led me to Revelation 14:14. And, also through the number 19, connected to Leviticus 25:19—a verse about Jubilee that ties to my own testimony of how God provided me with a home.

Here’s what I see: when you look at 419, from the middle to the left you see 14, and from the middle to the right you see 19. The Lord has joined both scriptures together for this time. His final coming is the final Jubilee!