- svd-generalate
- / Leadership /
- July 2, 2026
Vision, Formation, and Hope: New PRM Leaders Reflect on the Future of Mission
GMD
Leadership in Difficult Canonical Situations
The morning of July 1 began with a practical yet pastoral presentation by Fr. Peter Dikoš, SVD, who addressed some of the most delicate responsibilities entrusted to Provincial Superiors: absence from community, exclaustration, secularization, dismissal from the institute, and laicization.
Rather than presenting these topics merely as canonical procedures, Fr. Dikoš emphasized that every decision involves accompanying persons whose vocation, dignity, and relationship with the Society deserve careful discernment. Community life, he reminded participants, is not simply an organizational requirement but one of the constitutive elements of religious life. Consequently, leadership requires both fidelity to canon law and compassionate pastoral accompaniment.
The session challenged the new leaders to approach these complex situations with prudence, justice, transparency, and respect for both the individual and the missionary community.
Formation for Mission
Attention then turned to one of the Society’s greatest hopes: the formation of future missionaries.
Fr. Pushpa Anbu Augustine, SVD, Secretary for Formation and Education, presented the current realities and priorities of initial and ongoing formation across the Society. He highlighted that the SVD presently accompanies 1,094 formandi worldwide, including 894 scholastics, 43 brothers, and 157 novices, with the majority coming from the ASPAC Zone.
Beyond statistics, Fr. Anbu reminded participants that formation is fundamentally formation for mission. Leadership therefore requires ensuring that initial formation, ongoing formation, educational ministries, and vocation promotion remain structurally coordinated and strategically aligned with the Society’s missionary identity.
He encouraged the new Superiors to see formation not as the responsibility of formators alone but as a shared mission of every PRM, requiring long-term planning, qualified personnel, and sustained investment in future missionaries.
The Vocation of the Brother
Br. Raúl Acosta, SVD, Assistant for Brothers Formation, continued the reflection by focusing on the formation and vocation of SVD Brothers. His presentation emphasized that the missionary vocation is lived through two equally valid paths: ordained ministry and the vocation of the Brother. Both are authentic expressions of the same missionary calling.
Br. Acosta highlighted the unique contribution of Brothers in the Society’s prophetic dialogue and missionary service. He invited Provincial leaders to intentionally promote Brother vocations, strengthen formation pathways, and ensure that Brothers are fully integrated into the missionary life and leadership of the Society.
Education as a Mission Priority
The afternoon concluded with Fr. John Szukalski, SVD, Assistant for Education, who introduced the Society’s renewed commitment to Education as an SVD Priority (2024–2030).
Grounding his presentation in the recommendations of the XIX General Chapter, he explained that education is no longer viewed simply as one ministry among many but as a strategic missionary priority that demands stronger coordination, common orientations, and greater collaboration throughout the Society.
Drawing from the SVD Constitutions, he emphasized that educational institutions are privileged places of evangelization where the Word of God is proclaimed, human dignity is promoted, and missionary consciousness is nurtured among students, teachers, and families. Participants were invited to view schools, universities, and other educational ministries as essential spaces for forming disciples and fostering intercultural dialogue.
Fr. Richard Quadros, SVD, concluded the series by presenting five discernment questions.
First Assignments: A Missionary Decision
On July 2, the workshop resumed with Fr. Fabian Mate, SVD, General Councilor, who reflected on one of the most significant responsibilities of Provincial leadership: the first assignment of newly ordained missionaries.
He reminded participants that a first assignment is far more than an administrative placement. It is a formative decision that can profoundly shape a missionary’s identity, commitment, and future ministry. Provincial leaders were encouraged to approach these assignments through careful discernment, balancing the needs of the mission with the gifts, readiness, and ongoing formation of each confrere.
First Assignments: A Missionary Decision
On July 2, the workshop resumed with Fr. Fabian Mate, SVD, General Councilor, who reflected on one of the most significant responsibilities of Provincial leadership: the first assignment of newly ordained missionaries.
He reminded participants that a first assignment is far more than an administrative placement. It is a formative decision that can profoundly shape a missionary’s identity, commitment, and future ministry. Provincial leaders were encouraged to approach these assignments through careful discernment, balancing the needs of the mission with the gifts, readiness, and ongoing formation of each confrere.
Living the Generalate Action Plan
The workshop then shifted toward the Society’s future direction through the presentation of Fr. Yulius Yasinto, SVD, General Councilor, who introduced the Generalate Action Plan and its major priorities.
Participants reflected on how the strategic orientations of the Generalate can be translated into concrete realities within Provinces, Regions, and Missions. Rather than seeing the Action Plan as a list of isolated projects, the discussion emphasized leadership as a process of fostering communion, collaboration, and shared responsibility across the Society.
Signs of Hope from the PRMs
One of the highlights of the day was the zonal group discussions, where participants shared emerging signs of hope from their respective PRMs and identified priorities for the coming years.
Across the different Zones, common themes emerged: strengthening formation, promoting vocations, supporting educational ministries, accompanying young missionaries, fostering intercultural living, empowering lay collaborators, and responding creatively to changing missionary realities. While each PRM faces unique contexts and challenges, participants recognized a shared desire to build communities that remain faithful to the Society’s missionary charism while responding courageously to new opportunities.
The conversations also demonstrated the richness of the Society’s diversity. Leaders learned from one another’s experiences, discovering that many local challenges are shared across continents and that collaboration among PRMs offers valuable opportunities for mutual support.
Forming Leaders for the Future
As the workshop approached its conclusion, these two days underscored a central conviction: leadership is ultimately about forming people and sustaining mission.
Whether addressing complex canonical situations, accompanying formandi, strengthening the vocation of Brothers, promoting educational ministries, making first assignments, or implementing the Generalate Action Plan, the mission of a Provincial leader is to create the conditions in which persons and communities can flourish in their vocation.
In this spirit, the workshop continued to prepare the new PRM leaders not only to administer Provinces, Regions, and Missions, but to become shepherds who accompany their confreres with wisdom, hope, and missionary vision as the Society of the Divine Word continues its mission in today’s world.
