Members of the Divine Word Missionaries who are serving in the Good Shepherd Parish, Kirwan, in Townsville recently celebrated SVD Mission Weekend with parishioners.

The Mission Weekend also marked the postponed feast day celebrations of SVD founder, St Arnold Janssen.

Parish Priest, Fr Joseph Reddy SVD, said the aim of the SVD Mission Weekend was to help parishioners know more about the Divine Word Missionaries and be part of the Mission around the world by their support and prayers.

“Gone are the days when we used to hear the saying, ‘The Church has a mission’,” Fr Joseph said.

“Nowadays it has transformed into, ‘The mission has a Church’.

“By this saying, the Church is now highlighting the importance of mission in the life of every Christian.

“A missionary Church has to have a missionary people, a people who engage with their whole beings in mission, which is most simply bringing to others the Good News.”

Fr Joseph said this was most probably how St Arnold Janssen saw himself when he established the three missionary congregations: The Society of the Divine Word (SVD), known as Divine Word Missionaries, the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters (SSpS) and the Holy Spirit Adoration Sisters (SSpSAP).

“As Sons and Daughters of St Arnold, our mission is to serve the Word and the Master – ‘For the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many’.

“To go to others we have to go to God first. To learn that we are called to serve—and to learn how to serve—we have to go to the servant, Jesus, the one who shows us what it means to give one’s life for many. Such is our faith and our Church, and such is our mission.”

Assistant Priest at Good Shepherd Parish, Fr Joe Jacob SVD said the SVD Mission Weekend was a great way to encourage reflection on the meaning of mission.

“According to (the Vatican II document) Ad Gentes, the pilgrim church is missionary by nature,” he said.

“Thus, the Arnoldus family is very much part and parcel of this pilgrim church through which the Word of God is being widely spread to the hearts and minds of various people living in Townsville, Australia and across the globe.

“As a matter of fact, our parishioners in Townsville were so delighted to commemorate the feast of St Arnold Janssen, who with unwavering faith and determination became the humble instrument of Jesus, the Incarnate Word, and, as a result founded the three missionary congregations.”

Thuc Truong, who is in Australia as part of the SVD’s Overseas Training Program, and is currently enjoying pastoral experience in the Good Shepherd Parish, said that celebrating the feast of St Arnold was a unique opportunity for him to dwell deeper into the life of the Founder of the Divine Word Missionaries.

“It served as a moment to enlighten the parishioners of Ryan Parish about our global mission as missionaries working tirelessly around the world,” he said.

“The support and active participation of the believers in our parish, as evident during the celebration of St Arnold’s Feast and the SVD Mission Weekend are truly encouraging.

“These moments provide motivation for us Divine Word Missionaries to ardently pursue our mission with the unwavering commitment of ‘The Arnoldus Family’.

The Arnoldus Family in Townsville was well-represented at the recent celebration, with Holy Spirit Sister Bernaria Kuabib SSpS, who is serving in Townsville in pastoral ministry and prison ministry, also taking part.

PHOTOS

TOP RIGHT: Fr Joseph Reddy SVD, Fr Joe Jacob SVD, Sr Bernaria Kuabib SSpS, and Thuc Truong SVD are pictured at the Mission Weekend in Townsville.

BOTTOM LEFT: A cake featuring the image of St Arnold Janssen was a popular feature of the parish celebration.