Dear Friends,

I have just returned from a trip to South-East Asia, taking in the Philippines, Thailand and Myanmar, the latter two countries of which are part of the SVD AUS Province.

Whenever I go to Thailand and visit our ministries there, I am struck by the reality of our commitment as Divine Word Missionaries to breaking down cultural and religious barriers.

Elsewhere in this edition of In the Word, you will read Fr Nick de Groot’s thoughts on interfaith relations, and how it’s possible for each of us to pursue it in our own place and circumstances.

For our missionaries in Thailand, this is an everyday lived reality.The SVD confreres in Thailand are living and working in a country that is overwhelmingly Buddhist and this colours everything about the way the people live their lives. But, through our SVD Catholic parishes, and our ministry in AIDS care, education and support for the local population, our missionaries have become a deeply valued part of the fabric of the community. It is at this local, person to person level, that the rubber hits the road for interfaith relations.

As missionaries, we no longer arrive in a place, Bible in hand, to convert them. Rather, we start by listening, getting to know, and sharing in all the ups and downs of the life of a local community. In our presence and through our works, we bring the love of Christ to all we meet, within their cultural context.

In this Easter season may we continue to be renewed by the Risen Lord, who showed us in his own life how to meet people from different backgrounds and cultures and reach out to all in love.

Yours in the Word,

Fr Henry Adler SVD

Provincial