The Society of the Divine Word (SVD), also known as the Divine Word Missionaries, was founded by St. Arnold Janssen, whose spiritual life and vision were shaped by the fundamental Christian concept of Divine Revelation embodied in the Word of God. The Word of God refers to Jesus Christ as the fulcrum of divine revelation and the Divine presence in the Word.
The founder’s vision and focus drive and define the SVD mission in the contemporary world. SVD Constitutions, #102, states:
“As members of the Society of the Divine Word, we consider it our duty to proclaim the Word of God to all,” echoed in #107, which reads, “Our foremost obligation is the proclamation of the Word.”
The Divine Word
More broadly, the term “Divine Word” also refers to the Divine Revelation contained in the Sacred Scripture, the Bible. Based on this understanding, the 13th SVD General Chapter officially recognized the Biblical Apostolate as a priority of our Society. "We realize that in dealing with the word of God, the Bible, we are talking about the very heart of the Society of the Divine Word.... The Biblical Apostolate forms an integral part of our heritage left to us by Blessed Arnold, and as Divine Word Missionaries, we ought to make it a permanent trademark of our mission work" (Nuntius XII, pp. 710).
The Biblical Apostolate
The term Biblical Apostolate (BA) and the related references to Biblical Pastoral Ministry (BPM) define the core mission of the Society. Biblical Apostolate is an “umbrella” term referring to all Bible-related activities: intellectual, pastoral, and spiritual, conducted in academic, parochial, educational, and all other settings. The second term, Biblical Pastoral Ministry, refers to the use of the Bible in the pastoral setting, aiming to make the Bible a living and life-shaping presence in the daily life of the faithful through the biblical education of the Christian faithful. Thus, BPM is a part of BA with a specific pastoral focus.
Focusing on the Divine Word incarnated in Jesus Christ, the Divine Word Missionaries are entrusted with continuing his mission in this world, particularly through the Biblical Apostolate in all its iterations.
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