"This year, as we celebrate World Mission Day, the Year of Faith, which is an important opportunity to strengthen our friendship with the Lord and our journey as a Church that preaches the Gospel with courage, comes to an end.

"From this perspective, I would like to propose some reflections."

Is your parish community looking for a liturgy resource for the celebration of World Mission Sunday on October 20?

The Divine Word Missionaries AUS Province is delighted to share the following resource. May God bless your Mission Day celebrations.

Paulo Vatunitu SVD was ordained to the priesthood on Saturday, October 5 in a ceremony infused with all the colour, prayerfulness and beautiful song of his homeland, Fiji.

Fr Paulo was ordained by Bishop Peter Elliott, Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne, at St Paschal’s Chapel, Box Hill.

Bishop Elliott told the congregation that when he asked Paulo what a priest is, Paulo’s quiet reply was: “A servant”.

Ten years ago, on October 5, 2003, we celebrated with great joy the canonization of our saints Arnold Janssen and Joseph Freinademetz .

Today, we want to recall anew the deep faith reflected in their lives and their commitment to mission among the poor and the unevangelized .

Mission does not always involve going to foreign countries and spreading the Good News to the ends of the earth – rather, it is a call for each one of us to reach out in love to the people in our own lives who are in need of care, concern and compassion, Fr Jacob Kavunkal SVD says.

Fr Jacob, a leading missiologist, who teaches at the Yarra Theological Union in Melbourne, says World Mission Sunday reminds us primarily of our Christian call to be collaborators in God’s mission to the world as manifested in Jesus Christ.

Four young men took important steps forward in their lives as Divine Word Missionaries recently, with Bernadinus Asmon, Prakash Menezes and Trien Nguyen beginning their formal preparation for final vows, and Paulo Vatunitu receiving his Mission Cross, ahead of his first assignment.

These signs of commitment were made during a special Eucharistic celebration at Dorish Maru College in Melbourne, during which the men were urged to base their missionary life on their personal encounter with Jesus.

Welcome to the September edition of In the Word.

The stories in this edition highlight some of the many aspects of living Christ’s mission in our world today.

As we approach World Mission Sunday on October 20, it’s useful to step back and ask ourselves, ‘what do we mean by Mission?’

Christianity has had a liberating impact on Indian society, especially the tribal peoples and Dalits, but there is an ongoing need for the further liberation of women, both in wider society and within the Church, according to visiting Indian sociologist Fr Joseph Mundananikkal SVD.

Fr Joseph, who is the SVD National Co-ordinator for India of Mission, Education and Research, was keynote speaker at Mission Day celebrations held at Dorish Maru College in Melbourne, where he spoke about the influence of Christianity on Indian Culture.

Becoming the parish priest of Santa Teresa, an Aboriginal community near Alice Springs, has been a lesson in love for Fr Bosco Son SVD.

Fr Bosco, who was born and raised in Korea, took over as parish priest from Fr Jim Knight SVD in April and says that he received some valuable advice before setting out for Santa Teresa, which helped bring focus to his ministry in this remote Aboriginal community.

Divine Word Missionaries and Holy Spirit Sisters in the Diocese of Maliana, East Timor are helping high school students in Atabae to learn English and become independent learners, in a program that has been so successful it already has a waiting list for next term.

Fr Kasmir Nema SVD, who completed his SVD formation in Melbourne, says although the English language course is only five months old, it is already bearing fruit, with students showing they are eager to learn and to expand their knowledge.