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For Verbites, India is a Church with a global mission
by Nirmala Carvalho
Hundreds of worshipers celebrate in Mumbai the feast of St Arnold Janssen, founder of the Society of the Divine Word in 1875. Today, the Verbites have 901 members of Indian origin, 676 in India and 225 in 43 countries, including an archbishop in Zimbabwe.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) – “India has become a Church with a global mission,” said Fr Lazar Stanislaus, provincial superior of the Mumbai Province of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD or Verbites), as he began the Eucharistic celebration of the feast of St Arnold Janssen, founder of the congregation. He was joined by 23 priests, who concelebrated the Mass, and more than 300 worshippers. Fr Janssen founded the congregation in 1875 in order to send missionaries around the world to spread the Word of God.
“The Verbites have 901 members of Indian origin, 676 working in india and 225 in 43 foreign countries,” Fr Lazar said. “Eight are provincial superiors in Latin America and Africa. One is an archbishop in Zimbabwe. Even Siberia has a Verbite of Indian origin.”
These numbers “are in tune with the spirit and charism of our founder. For St Arnold Janssen, the Church is inherently missionary in nature.”
"Mission is a single but complex reality, and it develops in a variety of ways (RM, 41),” he said. Today, the missio inter gentes includes the missio ad gentes. Understanding different realities by looking at them from an Asian or Indian perspective means developing a deep understanding of cultures, religions and nations. Hence, the missio inter gentes entails building a Church totally included in the Kingdom of God.”
In addition to the Society of the Divine Word, St Arnold Janssen founded two other international missionary congregations: the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit (1889) and the Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration (1896).