The SVD confreres of the Queensland District gathered together for a week of fellowship, sharing, prayer and reflection recently, with a program focusing not only on their present mission experiences, but also paying tribute to SVD pioneer missionaries.

The members of the District gathered in Brisbane from their parishes in the Archdiocese of Brisbane, the Diocese of Townsville and the Diocese of Rockhampton.

As the Church celebrates World Mission Month in October, the Society of the Divine Word celebrates the 20^th anniversary of the canonisation of its two saints – Saint Arnold Janssen and Saint Joseph Freinademetz.

St Arnold founded the SVD in 1875 in Steyl, the Netherlands and went on to also establish two orders of Religious Sisters. St Joseph Freinademetz was one of the first two SVDs sent out on mission - to China. They were both canonised by Pope John Paul II on October 5, 2003, and on this anniversary, we share with you St John Paul’s homily from that occasion

Fr Boni Buahendri SVD this month marked the 25^th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood with a multicultural Mass and celebration hosted by the parishioners of St Mark’s Parish, Inala in Queensland.

Fr Boni said the celebration was a time to give thanks to God for his missionary vocation and to all the people he has journeyed with along the way.

Missionaries are well known for their willingness to live and serve in a variety of countries, and none more so than Fr Jun Perez SVD, who has arrived in Australia after missionary assignments which have taken him from Russia to Africa, South Korea and Thailand.

“You know the old saying,” he laughs. “Join the SVD and see the world!”

The annual SVD Mission Day in Melbourne has been hailed a big success, attracting more than 300 people who gathered to explore the theme: “Your Light Must Shine Before Others: Faithful and Creative Discipleship in a Wounded World”.

The guest speaker was Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv and the Response was given by Anglican priest and theologian, Rev. Dorothy Lee of Trinity College, the University of Divinity, with the discussion moderated by Sr Patricia Fox NDS.

My dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. In today's Gospel Jesus gives us a clear view of how to be a good disciple of Jesus.

Imagine that you have organised a big feast for your daughter’s wedding and after thinking and debating about who will be on your guest list, with one week to go before the wedding, you learn that a lot of the guests you are expecting to be there start begging off and offering cheap excuses and even worse some of them won’t give a word why, they just say that they can’t turn up.

We are celebrating today the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time. We are invited to reflect on the themes of stewardship, responsibility, and accountability in our relationship with God.

Anyone who has the good fortune to visit the Vatican should take up the opportunity to visit the Sistine Chapel and gaze upon the frescoed ceiling painted by the great Rennaisance artist, Michelangelo Buonarotti, the most famous part of which is surely ‘The Creation of Adam.’

“The Whanganui river in New Zealand is the first river in the world to be recognised as an indivisible and living being, after being granted personhood in 2017. It has been granted the same legal rights as a human being.”

No doubt this sounds very strange to us, but a couple of weeks ago I started reading a book by the late Fr. Denis Edwards called: “Ecology at the heart of faith” published in 2006. I highly recommend reading it and meditating on the various sections, reflects Fr Nick de Groot SVD.