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News & Events

Fr Roger Schroeder SVD 250Internationally renowned theologian and missiologist Fr Roger Schroeder SVD was in Australia recently, presenting a range of workshops on interculturality and spending time with a diverse range of people in SVD ministries in Sydney, Alice Springs, the Tiwi Islands and Brisbane.

During the first half of his time in Australia, he gave two talks and a day workshop around the theme of interculturality, which has been the central theme for the SVD and SSpS since their General Chapters of 2012 and 2018, respectively.

Fr Anton Bulla SVD horizontal 250Fr Anton Bulla SVD has been remembered as a faith-filled and joy-filled person, a committed priest and missionary, both during his years in Papua New Guinea and later in his ministry of healing through the marriage tribunal in Sydney.

Fr Anton died at Marsfield on July 11, just shy of his 89th birthday. His requiem Mass was held in the St Arnold Janssen Chapel and was attended by confreres, friends and fellow members of the canon law community of which he had been an active member. Members of his family overseas were able to watch by video.

Synod on Synodality Logo 250The SVD Australia Provincial, Fr Asaeli Rass, has been appointed to take part in the Synod of Bishops in Rome in October, an opportunity he describes as both humbling and exciting.

Fr Rass was named as one of the expert facilitators from the Oceania region to attend the Synod, following his role as a facilitator of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania (FCBCO) gathering in Fiji earlier this year.

Saturday, 29 July 2023 11:24

Shining a light on the gift of vocation

Fr Asaeli Rass SVD profile pic 250Next week, from August 7-14, the Church in Australia will celebrate National Vocations Awareness Week, a time to shine a spotlight on how we choose to respond to God’s call in our life.

We all have a vocation – that is a path to knowing, loving and serving God in our life. Whether it be marriage or single life or a vocation to priestly or religious life, each vocation, given to us by God, is precious and to be valued.

At Te Papa Museum in Wellington, New Zealand, I once saw some boys and girls holding some paper and being asked to answer some questions, but in order to do that they had to run and find the answers located in different exhibitions all over the museum.

man holding the old lamp with a candle outdoors. hand holds a large lamp in the dark. ancient lantern with a candle illuminates the way on a nightAs the Society of the Divine Word prepares for the 19th General Chapter as well as its 150th anniversary in 2025, the theme that has been chosen for reflection is, “Your Light Must Shine Before Others” (Mt 5:16): Faithful and Creative Disciples in a Wounded World.

As is indicative from the theme, there are many elements brought together to constitute the reality of today’s mission. How does this theme apply in our own Australian context? In this reflection, I would like to outline how the theme could be understood locally.

MER presentation Albano 250 lighterBuilding healthy parish communities is crucial if the Church is to become truly missional in today’s world, Fr Albano Da Costa said in his presentation for the first of the Divine Word Missionaries’ online lectures on mission.

The six-part ‘Mission and Dialogue Today’ lecture series is an education and ongoing formation initiative of the SVD Australia Province and attracted participants from around the country and around the world.

Frank Brennan with Dianne Foster on Palm Island 250Well-known priest, lawyer and advocate, Fr Frank Brennan SJ visited Townsville and Palm Island recently and while there, presented information sessions to the local people about the Indigenous Voice to Parliament.

Fr Manh Le SVD, parish priest at St Anne’s Parish on Palm Island, said Fr Frank’s visit, while primarily to attend a funeral for a local leader, was a great opportunity to share information on the Voice with the local Indigenous community.

Syro Malabar community Alice Springs gathering 250As a new Syro-Malabar bishop begins his ministry in Australia, Fr Joe Jacob SVD says his own chaplaincy ministry to the Syro-Malabar community in Alice Springs brings him much contentment as he cares for the spiritual needs of migrants who are far from home.

Bishop John Panamthottathil CMI was ordained the second leader of the Syro-Malabar Eparchy of St Thomas the Apostle in Melbourne on May 31.

ASPAC Comms meeting 2023 smaller group 250SVD Communications Coordinators from across the Asia-Pacific region gathered in Manila, the Philippines, recently to share ideas and resources for spreading the Good News in effective and innovative ways.

Communications Coordinator for the SVD Australia Province, Fr Joseph Reddy SVD, said the purpose of the gathering was “to enhance the communication skills and media learning of the SVD Provincial/Regional Communication Coordinators of the ASPAC Zone”.

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