SVD
Generalate

As we look back, we can see that this profound Jubilee Prayer has fostered our spiritual bonds. With the help of this prayer, we can reflect on some significant moments as well as some fundamental understanding of what we have experienced during the last year. Pondering it, part by part, we can capture its insightful implications for us.

Holy Triune God, source of life and communion, we thank you for inspiring Saint Arnold Janssen to found the Society of the Divine Word. We extend our gratitude to those who preceded us, and to all collaborators in mission.

As Missionaries of the Divine Word, we are “sent to proclaim the splendor and love of the Triune God and so make it possible for others to enter the fullness of divine life” (Con 405). Therefore, our gratitude is directed first and foremost to the Triune God, who is the life-giving source of our personal and communal life.

Many celebrations have taken place to commemorate this outstanding event in our SVD history. It will take a considerable amount of time to gather the relevant information about what has happened. From the information which reached the General Administration through various channels, it can be stated that “gratitude” was the basic tenor wherever this Jubilee was celebrated.

We also continue to extend our gratitude to all the members of the great Arnoldus Family who have gone before us. Every day we remember our deceased confreres and Sisters. With every name we mention during the celebration of the Eucharist, a particular part of the history of the Arnoldus Family comes alive. Perhaps one day our mission collaborators will also find a place in this beautiful practice.

United to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word, we are his missionary disciples who proclaim the Good News of life and joy, alongside works of friendship and compassion for a wounded world.

From March 27-29, 2025, the International Conference on the theme “Missio Dei in Today’s World” took place in the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. Keeping in mind the emerging paradigm shifts in mission, the participants hailing from different countries, cultures and congregations, reflected deeply on how the Good News of life and joy should be proclaimed in today’s world. This major event of our Jubilee Year has enlightened us in terms of putting in a global context our own SVD missionary thrust. The significant statement of the conference must reach all the members of our Congregation on a grassroots level so that the implementation of the insights on how we understand mission in today’s world can be gradually integrated into our formation and education and pastoral programs.

The “Document of the 19th General Chapter SVD 2024” deals at length with the wounded world. As members of a large congregation and citizens of this wounded world, we are personally affected as victims and victimizers at the same time. In the context of our Jubilee Year, a circular letter on “Forgiveness, Restoration and Restitution of Dignity” was sent out to all confreres in February 2025. We were invited by our Superior General, Fr. Anselmo Ribeiro, to think about the areas where we have to ask for forgiveness as well as concrete actions during our Jubilee on personal, communitarian and institutional levels.

A concrete example of our works of friendship and compassion can be seen in our Jubilee Year Flagship Project, “150 Wells for 150 Years”. This initiative of the Mission Offices from the EUROPA Zone in collaboration with Techny Mission Office is aimed at catering to the basic necessity for clean drinking water which is welcomed by our PRMs.

With your Holy Spirit, renew us, Lord, strengthen our journey as pilgrims of hope, and in the face of new challenges, may we generate responses with creativity, fidelity, and synodality.

When we pray to the Holy Spirit to strengthen our journey as pilgrims of hope, we synchronize our SVD Jubilee with the Jubilee Year of the entire Church. The theme for this year of grace, “Pilgrims of Hope”, strengthens the idea that we are on a journey, the journey of a Church that bravely encounters the challenges of today’s world.

The release of the Jubilee commemorative volume “Treasures of the Past and Experiences of the Present” on 15th January 2025, with its unique layout, was another moment of shared joy. Fr. Anselmo Ribeiro writes in the presentation of the volume that what we are celebrating now “should make us aware that a quarter of this century is complete and that we have already entered a new era”. As this new era will bring new challenges, we have to generate responses with creativity and fidelity as we are mandated by our last General Chapter, infusing the synodal spirit.

Holy Mary, Mother of the Divine Word, guide our mission with signs that build communion and promote participation. May the Light of your Son, which overcomes darkness, illuminate our hearts, and all of humanity, and creation.

During the “Caucus” meeting in June 2025, when the entire Generalate leadership team met to discern the stand of our Congregation, we were searching for those signs that build communion and promote participation in a synodal way. It became clear to us that we require a transformative mission mindset which is creative in searching for new ways of evangelization while being faithful to our charism.
Another significant moment for the Generalate was the common retreat in July 2025. Based on our Jubilee Theme „Witnessing to the Light: From everywhere for everyone” Fr. Steve Bevans SVD led the Generalate community through these days of prayer and recollection. We reflected on how we testify to this light on a personal level. We became aware that this light, which we want to radiate, has to illuminate first our own hearts. As we overcome the darkness in ourselves with the help of Christ´s light, we are prepared to bring the fullness of life to others, reaching out to humanity and creation. “As Mary gave witness to the Light of her Son, our mission of bearing witness to the light is a spark of God´s Mission to dispel darkness with the light of the Word.” (General Chapter 2024 #24)

Fr. Superior General Anselmo Ribeiro, SVD
and the Leadership Team