The Janssen Spirituality Centre is known for its conferences and lectures and meditation sessions by means of which we try to promote interreligious dialogue. Often this can be rather “heady” or cerebral which is not what all dialogue is about. 

So a couple of months ago at one of our planning session we decided to have a look at prayer beads as used by the “lay” people and from the various faith traditions.

The Janssen Spirituality Centre in Boronia, Victoria, looks quiet, peaceful and unprepossessing from the outside, but the Director of the Centre, Fr Nick de Groot SVD, hopes it will continue to thrive and grow as a space for interreligious hospitality, where stories are shared and hearts opened.

“I hope it will continue to be a place in which people celebrate their search for God, for meaning in life, for healing,” Fr Nick says.

Fr Don Grant SVD is to receive an honour from the Government of Papua New Guinea, in recognition of his 45 years’ service to the community as a missionary to that country.

The honour, the Order of the Star of Melanesia, is part of PNG’s own national honours and awards system known as The Orders of Papua New Guinea.

The Mission Office of the SVD AUS Province has responded to a call for help from the Divine Word Missionaries in Ecuador to help fund emergency recovery work needed in the wake of a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake in that country.

More than 650 people died in the earthquake, with about 16,000 injured and more than 30,000 people left homeless.

Three Divine Word Missionaries, Anthony Li, Laurensius (Laurens) Woda and Michael Wu were ordained to the priesthood last week in a joyous celebration attended by their family, friends and SVD confreres.

In receiving the gift of priesthood, the three young men were also being made into gifts for the people they will serve, said ordaining prelate, Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane.

I am not the first or the last to fall in love with the nature of Central Australia. Coming here after three months from the Clinical Pastoral Education Course and one month for a holiday, Santa Teresa Parish is where I hope to stay for a long time.

I remember the first night I came, I had a good sleep because of the quiet and peaceful atmosphere. Furthermore, I had a feeling of being settled.

As he farewells Thailand and the AUS Province to take up work with refugees in the German Province, Br Bernd Ruffing SVD recalls his ministry in Thailand as being a journey of friendship and relationship with the people.

“I tried to be a brother to those who needed someone who’d walk with them for some time,” he says.

The SVD AUS Province and the Timor Leste Region are exploring new possibilities for collaboration in a range of areas, including mission and formation.

SVD AUS Provincial, Fr Henry Adler, visited Timor Leste recently to learn more about their country, their missionary activity and to discuss where some opportunities might exist for collaboration.

Br Maurice Taylor SVD has been remembered as an exemplary religious, a dedicated teacher and administrator, but also as a man of deep prayerfulness.

Br Maurice, whose health began to decline about four years ago, died in hospital in Sydney this month, at the age of 81, with his last words to a nurse at his retirement village being: “I am at peace.”

The SVD Marsfield community recently celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of their friend and Arnoldus family member, Sr Josapha Lergessner SSpS.

Sr Josapha, together with SSpS sisters and friends, joined the SVD Marsfield community for a special Mass and dinner to mark the milestone of 60 years since she took her first vows as a Holy Spirit Missionary Sister.