In situations where there are a variety of rich religious traditions, interreligious dialogue will be the main form of evangelisation and may be the only way to exercise mission, says the General Mission Secretary of the Divine Word Missionaries, Fr Lazar Stanislaus SVD.

Fr Lazar, who was in Australia recently for the International Mission Symposium, says the link between interreligious dialogue and mission can be found in the wisdom of the Second Vatican Council.

Five young Divine Word Missionaries, who have undertaken their formation in the AUS Province, were ordained for the priesthood or diaconate recently, and are now preparing to be sent out on their first mission assignments.

Marianus Supardi and Uili Uvea were ordained as priests, during the Mass at St Paschal’s Chapel, Box Hill, while Michael Wu Pengfei, Anthony Li and Laurensius Woda were ordained as deacons.

When SVD priest, Fr Anthony Le Duc chose the topic of Theravada Buddhist Environmental Spirituality for his Doctoral thesis, he was hoping to go beyond theory and to help provide practical resources for local communities living in environmental crisis.

Fr Anthony is a missionary in Thailand, which is part of the AUS Province. He is due to graduate soon with a Doctorate in Religious Studies.

“I am a sinner,” said the newly appointed Pope responding to his first interview. By the same token in introducing myself to the AUS province, I will take on Pope Francis’s words and proclaim that I too, first and foremost, am a sinner.

To see me and to understand my physical, emotional, spiritual, and psychological make-up, one has to look through that lens. It is inseparable to my being. It took me 27 years to actually scratch the surface of that truth. Of course, three years of vows were momentous for my understanding.

Ecological concerns are no stranger to Mission work, but too many people, including missionaries, are yet to be convinced of the central importance of ecology in the Mission of God, says visiting Austrian missionary, Fr Christian Tauchner SVD.

Fr Christian, who works in publications at St Augustine’s Mission Institute in Germany, and has previously been a missionary in Latin America, spoke on the topic of Ecology and Mission at the recent International Mission Symposium in Melbourne.

About 150 mission scholars, practitioners and interested people gathered in Melbourne this month for the International Mission Symposium – an event aimed at celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council’s decree on Mission, Ad Gentes.

The Symposium explored the ways in which the understanding and practice of Mission has developed since Vatican II, but also looked to the future and considered some of the challenges of Mission in the world today.

At 28 years old, (Joseph) Hy Nguyen SVD says his life as a missionary is still in its infancy, but already, having left his home in Japan for mission experience in Papua New Guinea and now Australia, his eyes have been opened to the joy of being with people from different cultures.

Joseph grew up in Vietnam until the age of 12, when his family moved to Japan to be near his sister, who had emigrated some years earlier.

The SVD AUS Province is gearing up to celebrate World Mission Sunday on October 18, with activities planned across the Province to mark this special day in the Church’s calendar.

A significant event happening from October 2-3, in the lead-up to World Mission Sunday, is the International Mission Symposium in Melbourne. 

As a recently ordained missionary priest from India, Fr Kommareddy Rajasekhar Reddy (Fr Raja) says he is on a big learning curve – arriving in Australia and taking up his first appointment in a parish – but says the welcome of the people is helping him adjust to his new life.

Fr Raja has been appointed as Assistant Priest at St Agatha’s Parish, Pennant Hills in Broken Bay Diocese, and says the parishioners and parish staff, Parish Priest Fr Paul Durkin, and the Diocese, have been wonderful to him since he arrived.

Supporting lay people in mission is a key focus for the Divine Word Missionaries, and through a longstanding relationship with lay volunteer mission organisation, Palms Australia, the SVD is sharing its mission experience both in the field and when missionaries return home.

SVD AUS Provincial, Fr Henry Adler, says the Divine Word Missionaries and Palms Australia have had a warm collaboration for many years and are working together to create a strong future for lay volunteering in Mission.