The Provincial Chapter was a positive, hopeful time of deliberation on the future priorities of the SVD Australia Province, with a focus on personal and communal renewal for mission, says Provincial, Fr Asaeli Rass SVD.

The outcomes included a reaffirmation of the priority given to ministry in indigenous communities, as well as a renewed commitment to multicultural parish ministry and interfaith dialogue.

As we all embark on the season of Lent, we Divine Word Missionaries of the Australia Province are also about to undertake our Provincial Chapter.

The theme of the Chapter is ‘“Your Light Must Shine Before Others” (Mt.5: 16): Faithful and Creative Disciples in a Wounded World’ and it is a theme which gives us much to reflect on.

Happy New Year! And welcome to the first edition of In the Word for 2023.

As you receive this Enews, I am in Fiji preparing to facilitate the meeting of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania. It is a crucial meeting for the bishops of our region and will cover many things, including the preparations for Pope Francis’ Synod on Synodality. I ask for your prayers for the bishops’ discernment and also for me as I facilitate the meeting with the help of secretariat staff.