SVD confreres joined with Holy Spirit Sisters, lay partners and staff earlier this month to celebrate Foundation Day at the Marsfield community in Sydney.

The day, on the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, marked the 144th anniversary of the founding of the Divine Word Missionaries by St Arnold Janssen in Steyl, Holland, in 1875, and was celebrated at SVD communities throughout the AUS Province and around the world.

Vice Rector of the Marsfield community, Fr Ho Bach Tran SVD, says the Foundation Day program began with Mass celebrated by Fr Dom Flores SVD, in the Arnold Janssen Chapel, with the local chapel community.

In the afternoon, Fr Nick de Groot SVD celebrated Mass in the House Chapel with confreres, Sisters Patricia and Josepha SSpS, lay partners, staff and friends. The Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters (Holy Spirit Sisters) were also founded by St Arnold, in 1885.

“After Mass we had a social event, dinner and a beautiful cake,” says Fr Ho.

A special part of the proceedings was the honouring of those confreres celebrating special jubilees this year.

They included Fr Dom Flores (60 years in priesthood), Fr Mikhael Loke (25 years in priesthood), Fr Nick de Groot (50 years in priesthood), Fr Michael Madigan (50 years in priesthood), Fr Kevin Cantwell (60 years in priesthood), and Fr Anton Bulla 65 years in vows).

Similar celebrations were held around the Province to mark Foundation Day.

At the Box Hill community in Melbourne, the SVD confreres and their local Holy Spirit Sisters’ community joined together for a special Evening Prayer followed by a barbecue and social gathering.

In a video message posted to social media, the Superior General of the SVD, Fr Paul Budi Kleden, wished confreres and lay partners a happy feast day and Foundation Day.

“The celebration of the birth of Our Lady and the Foundation Day of our beloved Congregation, unite us all … in a spirit of gratitude for having been called as Divine Word Missionaries, sharing in the mission of the Church through our varied ministries,” he said.

“I wish all of you a happy feast day on the birth of Our Lady and the 144th anniversary of the foundation of our Congregation.

“Both feasts inspire and strengthen us in our missionary commitment as professed religious and lay people.

“The document of our last General Chapter states that Mary is our model of attentive listening and generous response to the Word of God.

“This attentive listening and generous response to the Word of God were distinctive of the personality of St Arnold Janssen. Because of his personality he was able to start our congregation in a difficult time. This is also his legacy to all of us, to attentively listen to the Word of God and generously respond to it.”

Fr Budi said 6000 members of the Divine Word Missionaries are currently serving the people, the Church and the broader society in 82 countries.

In addition to that, in all these countries thousands of friends and lay mission partners are involved in missionary work.

PHOTO: Group shot of those gathered to celebrate the 144th SVD Foundation Day at Marsfield in Sydney.