Society of the Divine Word
Catholic missionary religious congregation / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Society of the Divine Word (Latin: Societas Verbi Divini), abbreviated SVD and popularly called the Verbites or the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of Pontifical Right for men. As of 2020, it consisted of 5,965 members composed of priests and religious brothers working in more than 70 countries, now part of VITA international. It is one of the largest missionary congregations in the Catholic Church.[10] Its members add the nominal letters SVD after their names to indicate membership in the Congregation. The superior general is Paulus Budi Kleden who hails from Indonesia.[11]
| Societas Verbi Divini (Latin)[1] | |
 Logo | |
 Location of countries where SVD serves | |
| Abbreviation | SVD (post-nominal letters) [2] |
|---|---|
| Nickname | Verbites |
| Formation | September 8, 1875[3] |
| Founder | St. Arnold Janssen[4] |
| Founded at | Steyl, Venlo, the Netherlands |
| Type | Clerical Religious Congregation of Pontifical Right (for Men)[5] |
| Headquarters | General Motherhouse Via dei Verbiti 1, C.P. 5080, 00154 Rome, Italy [6] |
Membership | 5,965 (Male religious, includes 4,120 Priests) as of 2020[7] |
Superior General | Rev. Fr. Paulus Budi Kleden, S.V.D.[8] |
Ministry | Educational and missionary works |
Continent served | Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, Americas[9] |
Parent organization | Roman Catholic Church |
| Website | svdmissions |