The suburbs of Wellington, New Zealand are a long way from home for Indian-born Fr Albano Da Costa SVD, but as a missionary, he has found himself at the cutting edge of a new model of ministry which aims to fill the gap left by dwindling priestly vocations.

Fr Albano works with two priests and two lay pastoral leaders from the Archdiocese of Wellington as part of a new expression of collaborative ministry.

January is a time of thanksgiving and celebration for the Society of the Divine Word, as the worldwide community marks the feast days of two of the Society’s founding fathers, St Arnold Janssen and St Joseph Freidemantz.

St Arnold’s feast day is celebrated on January 15, while St Joseph’s is on January 28.

January is a time of thanksgiving and celebration for the Society of the Divine Word, as the worldwide community marks the feast days of two of the Society’s founding fathers, St Arnold Janssen and St Joseph Freidemantz.

St Arnold’s feast day is celebrated on January 15, while St Joseph’s is on January 28.

A large crowd gathered at the Arnold Janssen Chapel in Marsfield on Friday, December 14 for an evening of Christmas Carols and community sharing.

The annual Carols by Candelight was hosted by members of the Divine Word Missionary community at Marsfield and attended by their friends, supporters and members of the local community who regularly worship at the Arnold Janssen Chapel.

Christmas is the perfect time to thank all the friends, supporters and benefactors of The Divine Word Missionaries who by their generosity will give the gift of love to some of the poorest and most marginalised people in the world this Christmas Day.

Fr Henry Adler SVD, Mission Secretary for the SVD Australian Province, says that the Society’s missionaries, who are present on every continent of the world, will spend Christmas with the communities they serve, helping to bring Christ’s love to people who won’t enjoy a big celebration with lots of presents and all the trimmings.