India's Divine Word Order on a global mission

(Jan. 18, 2012) “India has become a Church with a global mission,” said Fr Lazar Stanislaus, provincial superior of the Mumbai Province of the Society of the Divine Word ,
SVD or Verbites, as he began the Eucharistic celebration of the feast of St Arnold Janssen, the founder of the congregation. Some 23 priests concelebrated Mass with him which was attended by more than 300 faithful. Fr Janssen founded the congregation in 1875, in order to send missionaries around the world to spread the Word of God. Fr. Lazar said “Today the Verbites have 901 members of Indian origin, 676 working in India and 225 in 43 foreign countries. Eight are provincial superiors in Latin America and Africa. One is an archbishop in Zimbabwe, and even Siberia has a Verbite of Indian origin.” Fr. Lazar said that these numbers are in tune with the spirit and charism of the founder because for St Arnold Janssen, the Church is inherently missionary in nature.
In addition to the Society of the Divine Word, St Arnold Janssen founded two other international missionary congregations: the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit (1889) and the Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration (1896).