The SVD Lay Partners group in Marsfield has resolved to continue deepening the formation of members in Divine Word Missionary spirituality as the group moves towards being formalised as part of the SVD community.

At a meeting held by Zoom earlier this month, Provincial, Fr Asaeli Rass SVD spoke of the importance of the SVD Lay Partners in the missionary activities of the Divine Word Missionaries.

The Divine Word Missionaries are extending their ministry in Central Australia, especially their outreach to Aboriginal communities, at the invitation of the Bishop of Darwin, Charles Gauci.

Bishop Gauci recently spent time staying with the SVD communities in Alice Springs and Santa Teresa, listening to their needs and meeting the people.

The SVD community in Myanmar has visited a refugee camp on the outskirts of Hmawbi Township, the town where they live, taking supplies to help the people survive in their precarious situation.

Fr Tuyen Nguyen,Fr Deva Savariyappan and Fr Mariusz Kubista  visited the Rakahine refugee camp in Taikkyee Gone village to assist the people who have fled from their conflict-torn home, leaving behind their houses and livelihoods.

It’s been a time of farewells and new beginnings for some of the SVD missionaries in the Thailand District of the AUS Province, with the Bishop of Udon Thani reassigning them to take on new challenges in a different area of the diocese.

The SVDs had been working in the area of Ban Dung in northern Thailand for some time, taking care of large parishes as well as small, deserted churches in different villages. Their new assignments will take three of the confreres to another province, BuengKan, which borders Laos.

New Year greetings to all. It’s not too late to say that is it? Not if it’s still January, surely. Even though the Christmas-New Year break is well behind us and most of us are back in the swing of work and life.

And what a horrendous Summer break it was for so many Australians this year, as the bushfires raged and lives, homes, businesses and animals were lost. Our prayers are with all those who died and with their loved ones.

The first ever Asia Pacific Workshop of SVD Lay Partners has been hailed a huge success with 38 people attending from eight countries and 11 Provinces.

The gathering was held in the Philippines and was a significant step forward in the growth of the lay partners movement within the Divine Word Missionaries.

A recent pilgrimage ‘In the Footsteps of Mary MacKillop’ was a profound experience for Fr Nick de Groot SVD, helping him to reflect not only on God’s constant presence throughout his missionary life, but also on the leap of faith taken by his migrant parents when they moved to Australia.

Fr Nick joined 20 other pilgrims from October 22 to November 2 on a journey that took them from Melbourne, where Mary, Australia’s first saint, was born, to Hamilton, Portland, Penola, Robe and Adelaide before flying on to Sydney for the final three days of visiting, reflection and prayer.

A new book on missionary life, by Fr Ennio Mantovani SVD, was launched during the SVD Mission Day activities in Melbourne this month.

Fr Ennio’s book, 'Sixty Years of Priestly and Missionary Life: The History of a Journey', is a reflection on his priestly and missionary life and on the changes that took place in the understanding of both the priesthood and the missions.

Three missionaries from the SVD AUS Province are taking part in a revamped Dei Verbum Biblical Pastoral Course in Italy, along with participants from all around the world.

The two-month course, which runs through to early November, is designed as an ongoing Biblical formation program for those engaged in the Biblical Apostolate.

The growth of the SVD lay partners groups around the world continues to bring fresh energy to the Society of the Divine Word, and one initiative they have undertaken is to promote an international ‘Prayer Bridge’ to mark the World Day of the Poor.

The worldwide prayer initiative was an idea conceived by the lay partners of the SVD in Germany and embraced by lay partners and SVD members in a range of countries and this year it will take place on Sunday, November 17.