This Christmas is a little different from the last one in that our Pope (Francesco) has issued an exhortation that gives an enormous amount of hope to all Christian people around the world. Evangelii Gaudium is a most uplifting treatise about our baptismal obligation to share the joy of the gospel with everyone – especially the poor.

Last month I reflected with you on the impact of the bushfires in New South Wales. This month our attention is focused on the aftermath of devastating Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines. Of course, severe weather events such as these have always been a part of human history, but scientists are telling us that they will increase in regularity and intensity as climate change continues to affect our planet.

World Mission Sunday, which we celebrated on October 20, is a day set aside for Catholics worldwide to recommit ourselves to the Church's missionary activity through prayer, sacrifice and personal involvement.

In collaboration with the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and with our lay partners in Mission, we as SVD members support and celebrate with the local and worldwide Church our unique calling to God’s Mission.

As I write this message, savage bushfires are burning across areas around Sydney, in particular the Blue Mountains. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all the families who are affected by the fires, especially those who have lost their homes and all their belongings.

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?’

I was born in a small town called Ruteng in the western part of Flores, Indonesia, the youngest of three children. I became interested in becoming a religious when I was 6 years old. But my mother told me that becoming a priest was already my answer, when I was 3 years old, when I was asked “what do you want to be”. When I was little, I really enjoyed watching our parish priest distributing communion. This amazement drew me to create my own ‘liturgy’ at home. I put all my snacks in a bowl and distributed them to my sister and brother. Both of them kept coming back to me for the snack until the bowl was empty. What was in it for me? Not just snacks, but an enjoyment of giving and sharing.

Welcome to the August edition of In the Word.

We in the Australian Province of the Divine Word Missionaries are celebrating the news that Fr Henry Adler SVD is to become our next Provincial.

Fr Henry, who is currently the Mission Secretary for the Province, will take up his three-year term as Provincial in January, with my term coming to an end on December 31. 

As this edition of In the Word is published, we are surrounded with news and events that range from joyful and life-giving to profoundly sad and frustrating.

On the joyful side, we are witnessing all the energy, faith and exuberance of World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Pope Francis set the tone when he said this upon arrival in Rio:“I have neither silver nor gold, but I bring with me the most precious thing given to me: Jesus Christ! I have come in his name, to feed the flame of brotherly love that burns in every heart, and I wish my greeting to reach one and all: The peace of Christ be with you!"