Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Divine Word Missionaries join the world in prayer to mourn the death of Pope Francis, who passed away Monday at age 88. In our sadness, however, we are grateful for the way he led the Catholic Church for 12 years—with wisdom and humility and a defining love for the message of Jesus Christ.
From the earliest days of his papacy, Francis expressed a special devotion to the poor, especially neglected people on the margins of society. This aligned with our longstanding mission to reach out to those that society had turned its back on, whether in the slums of large cities or in remote villages far beyond the conveniences of the modern world. These people that we minister to are the same people the pope spoke of: “Poverty calls us to sow hope. ... Poverty is the flesh of the poor Jesus, in that child who is hungry, in the one who is sick, in those unjust social structures.”
Like millions of Catholics, Divine Word Missionaries were inspired to action by Pope Francis. In 2015, he released what likely will be remembered as his most influential encyclical letter, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home. Moved by the pope’s urgent call to save our planet from ecological ruin, Divine Word Missionaries signed on to the Laudato Si’ Action Plan in October 2021.
Our missions throughout the world were encouraged to create projects to safeguard the environment—a call that has produced organic farms, solar-powered church buildings, systems to harvest rainwater, and thousands of newly planted trees. All of this to heed Pope Francis’ words: “The world that surrounds us is not an object of exploitation; we are part of nature and must care for it.”
We are thankful, too, for the friendship that Francis extended to Divine Word Missionaries during his papacy. He elevated 14 of our members to leadership roles in the Church as bishops, archbishops and the first two Divine Word Missionary cardinals in 78 years: Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi SVD of Japan and Ladislav Nemet SVD of Serbia. They will be among the cardinals who choose Pope Francis’ successor.
During the 19th General Chapter of the Society of the Divine Word last summer, Pope Francis had a private audience with approximately 170 chapter participants, including lay partners. In his message to the assembled, the pope instructed Divine Word Missionaries to be peacemakers and “prophets of hope.”
His words were: “Peace is the cry rising from the world’s people; let us listen to this plea and be peacemakers.”
Also: “You must be the hope for every culture. ... It means that before giving hope, we must be hope, exercising the character that derives from our baptism.”
Concluding his message, Francis brought up our jubilee year and our history of service to God and his people, with special mention of our founder, St. Arnold Janssen:
“Dear brothers and sisters, in 2025 you will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the Society of the Divine Word. Your hearts are filled with gratitude to God for his immense love, which has moved you to go to every part of the world to preach the Word and to spread the love of God, forming communities, serving the poor, working for social justice, offering education and empowerment, and caring for the environment. In this spirit of gratitude, you are now reflecting on how to share creatively the joy of Jesus’ resurrection. St. Arnold Janssen knew how to discern God’s will and to guide the society in the way of the Spirit. This is the charism of a founder! Today, may you follow this charism, and may his example and intercession guide your communal discernment and help you to take courageous steps forward, in humility and in trusting abandonment to God. I thank you for who you are and for all that you do. I offer you my heartfelt blessing.”
While we realize that Divine Word Missionaries form only one aspect of the vast Church that Pope Francis oversaw, we cannot overstate our gratitude for the times he recognized and encouraged our missionary work. He touched us deeply, as he touched countless others, Catholic and non-Catholic alike.
We were fortunate to have had such a leader, a man whose example revealed what it truly meant to be the face of Christ in today’s world. The loss we feel today is as profound as the gift to the Church—and to the world—that was Pope Francis. May we all continue to learn from him.
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon him.
Yours in the Divine Word,
Bro. Daniel Holman SVD
Mission Center Director
