The SVD seminarians studying at Dorish Maru College in Melbourne spent an evening with the Provincial recently, getting to know one another better, asking questions and learning about the priorities of the AUS Province.

Student, Clement Baffoe, from Ghana, says the Provincial, Fr Henry Adler, shared insights on the specialised ministries of the Province and challenged the seminarians to deepen their commitment to the Divine Word which is at the heart of the Society.

“First and foremost, the Provincial mentioned that the SVD Australia Province is now focusing more on specialised ministries, and in the light of that, the Characteristic Dimensions of the Society of the Divine Word are our focus,” Clement says.

“He spoke about those Characteristic Dimensions: Justice and Peace, especially among the Aborigines of Australia, the Bible Apostolate in Myanmar and Thailand, Communication, Formation and Mission.

“Furthermore, Fr Henry entreated all the seminarians to use this time of formation as an opportune time to develop our talents and various skills that will be beneficial to our respective ministries in the near future.”

Clement says the students also took the chance to ask Fr Henry various questions about their formation and matters concerning the Province.

Fr Henry says the questions were a highlight of the evening.

“It was a good meeting and an important one. I believe the Provincial should meet with the students. This period of formation is an important time for young missionaries and formation is one of the priorities of our Province,” he says.

“I could tell that they really appreciated my presence and they took the opportunity to listen and to ask questions.”

“My presentation focused on the fact that the future of SVD Mission is in specialised ministries which are aligned to our Characteristic Dimensions.

“They asked some very focused questions and challenged me and the leadership of the Province to consider how they could be involved with the Four Characteristic Dimensions, which was great.

“I encouraged them to get involved in those areas and to really live the Characteristic Dimensions which define what it is to be a Divine Word Missionary.”

The formalities of the evening ended with a social gathering and more conversation.