The deadly cyclone Pam ripped through the tiny island nation of Vanuatu last Friday, 13th March 2015 at an incredible speed of over 300 kilometres an hour, leaving behind devastation and chaos.

Over the weekend the Australian media broadcasted images from Vanuatu’s capital, Port Vila, showing destroyed homes and uprooted trees. Seven people have been reported dead so far but the number will probably increase in the coming hours and days.

Please join us as we pray for five of our young confreres who will take their Perpetual Vows this Saturday, March 14.

The Society of the Divine Word gives thanks to the Triune God for the lifetime commitment being given by Anthony HongZhou, Marianus Supardi, Michael PenFei Wu, Laurensius Wae Woda and Uili Uvea as they take their Perpetual Vows at St Paschal’s Chapel, Box Hill at 10am.

The Divine Word Missionaries AUS Province has moved to honour its history in a new way, with the establishment of a professional archive room.

The archives were organised by Br Peter Fogarty CFC and were blessed by Fr Ho Bach Tran SVD, who has taken up the position of Director of Archives for the Province.

The Thai District of the SVD AUS Province welcomed the Superior General of the Society of the Divine Word, Fr Heinz Kuluke, on a short, but joyous visit recently.

Fr Heinz spent three days with the confreres in northern Thailand, seeing first hand their ministry with people affected by AIDS, as well as their outreach to the poor, parish ministry, youth work and other mission activity.
Br Damien Landers SVD says the Father General’s visit was a great occasion.

The first months of 2015 have seen the SVD AUS Province preparing new missionaries for their ministry in Australia with two orientation and acculturation courses getting underway– one in Victoria and one in Central Australia.

The Summer Orientation into the Australian Culture program in St Leonards, Victoria was held for the newly arrived young SVD seminarians/students and missionaries, while the Central Australia SVD Orientation and Acculturation Course got underway in Alice Springs for confreres recently assigned to the Central Australia District.

Diminishment is a term by the French Jesuit and philosoper, Theilhard de Chardin, that explains the spiritual dimension at the last stage of our life’s journey. Just as everything comes to an end, each one of us will be drawn to our final stage, a time of growing old and becoming frail that regularly needs special cares and supports.

I feel privileged to have spent my time over the last two semesters as a volunteer at St Vincent de Paul Nursing Home, Box Hill, Victoria. 

“Two years of mission experience, and already I have so many stories to tell,” said Fr Vinh in a farewell dinner with friends and confreres before heading to Vietnam for home-leave.

Why is it important to “tell our tales,” especially for missionaries? SVD Superior General, Fr Heinz Kuluke SVD, in his recent visit to Thailand, encouraged our SVD confreres to share more about their ministries and working with the people of God.

January 29 is the feast day of St Joseph Freinademetz SVD.

St Joseph was the first member of the fledgling Divine Word Missionaries to be sent out on mission, when the founder of the SVD, St Arnold Janssen, assigned him to China.

Today, January 15, is the feast day of St Arnold Janssen, the founder of the Divine Word Missionaries and the Sister Servants of the Holy Spirit (SSpS).

Here is a Feast Day prayer you might like to pray with us:

A full church of family, confreres, parishioners, friends and school students gathered recently to pray for the repose of the soul of Fr Gerard Mulholland SVD, who died last month of Motor Neurone Disease.

And, in a fitting tribute to Fr Gerard’s love of the people of Papua New Guinea, instead of flowers, those attending the funeral donated more than $2000, which will be assigned to a particular mission project in PNG.