Community Life
Living “in community” is an integral part of day-to-day life as a Divine Word Missionary. In fact it plays both a spiritual and functional role in our missionary order, the Society of the Divine Word (SVD).
Part of the spirituality of the SVD is reverence for the Holy Trinity. As the Father, Son and Holy Spirit exist in perfect harmony, Divine Word Missionary priests and brothers seek such harmony with each other. Each one must be ready to leave his home country and go anywhere in the world to work with other members of the Society. With more than 6000 Divine Word Missionaries from dozens of different countries and cultures, it is important that we not only respect each other, but also understand and appreciate our individual and cultural differences.
A Divine Word Missionary priest or brother from the U.S. may find himself working in a mountain village in Chile with members from Indonesia and Poland. He might be assigned to an inner city parish in Chicago with a member from Vietnam and another from Ghana.
They live, work and pray together, in community, by not just getting along, but actively getting to know each other, developing respect for their cultural differences and enriching their lives by what they’ve learned.
To prepare for this intercultural approach to missionary life, our SVD candidates experience community life with students from more than 20 countries around the world at Divine Word College. They live, pray, study and play together in an environment that honors the rich cultural diversity of the world.
Our intercultural approach to living in community, coupled with a well-rounded education and development of professional skills, is integral to the Society of the Divine Word. It enables us as Divine Word Missionaries to serve God throughout the world by living and working together in an atmosphere of mutual respect and understanding.
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