ARNOLD JANSSENFATHER – LEADER -FOUNDER

AT THE SERVICE OF THE WORD FOR

ONE WORLD

“CHAMPION OF EVANGELIZATION”• “Proclaiming the Good News

is the first and main expression of love for one’s neighbor.” A. Janssen

• “He was an ardent animator of the church’s mission in Central Europe. He gave proof of his courage while opening a mission house in Steyl when the Church went through difficult time due to the so-called ‘Kulturkampf’.”

Pope John Paul II

BORN IN GOCH – 05 November 1837

Parental house in Goch

HIS FATHER – GERHARD JANSSEN

Arnold‘s father, Gerhard Janssen, was a small business man. He transported and sold goods from Goch across the border to the Dutch city of Nijmegen. Additionally he had small parcels of land and rented to some farmers.

ANNA KATHARINA JANSSEN

• His Mother was Anna Katharina Wellesen, born in Heust-Weeze.

• She gave birth to 11 children. Arnold Janssen was the second eldest.

• “She was a praying mother in the fullest sense of the word.”

Arnold

APOSTLESHIP OF PRAYERGrowing commitment to the world mission

• 1867, he became acquainted with Fr. Malfatti, Director of the Apostleship of Prayer in Germany and Austria. He was asked to be a promoter in the Diocese of Muenster.

• Apostleship of Prayer was founded in France in1844 by a group of Jesuits for ordinary people – as kind of school and formation for growing in faith.

• His spent all his holidays promoting the Apostleship of Prayer in the parishes of the Diocese and was appointed as Diocesan Director in 1869.

• He promoted it also in other Dioceses in Germany like Trier, Cologne, Munich… Switzerland, Luxembourg.

• He started to write and publish pamphlets and prayer leaflets which were very popular.

• 1873 occasioned by a problem in the school about the statue of our Lady, he resigned from teaching for apostolate

MISSION PROMOTER – 1873 -1875 KEMPEN – URSULINE CONVENT

• Mission promotion through the Prayer Apostolate.

• Published a new magazine- Little Messenger of the Sacred Heart in 1874

• to support and pray for the mission

• to promote missionary awareness in Germany.

• to report on the home and foreign mission.

• June 1874 issue: “Is there not one among you in the whole of Germany who feels called to devote himself to the missionary cause?”

BISHOP RAIMONDI – DECISIVE ROLE• Bishop Raimondi: “No Mission

Seminary in Germany? Found one yourself?”

• Arnold felt he was not the right person to start for lack of experience and no vocation for it. He can only help the project.

• Others had doubts due to his obstinacy and being impractical.

• Bishop Raimondi saw in Arnold that he can do it because of his faith, he is a man of prayer and has passion for the mission.

• To Arnold in his last visit in Kempen: “You trust in God more than in yourself.”

Bishop Raimondi, Apostolic Vicar of Hongkong

Mgsr. Von Essen had also plan to start a Mission Seminary

TROUBLED WATERS IN GERMANY• The politics of Otto Von Bismarck,

the Kulturkampf – a political persecution of the Catholic church.

• Expulsion of religious, closing of churches, schools, imprisonment of Clergy, Religious and Bishops…

• Prohibition of opening any religious institutions.

• Nobody and nothing is in his favor to start a mission house.

• “We live in times when all is crumbling down and threatening to collapse…” Bishop Paul Melchers of Cologne, 1874.

CROSSING THE BORDER - STEYL

• Arnold Janssen: “We are living when much is being destroyed, but that is all the more reason to build something new.”

• Bishop of Roermond Joseph Paredis: “Imagine, he wants to build a mission house and has nothing. He is either a fool or a saint.” Dec 1874.

OLD BARN ALONG THE MAAS RIVER• June 16, 1875 - the purchase of the

house from Mr. Nicholas Ronck.

• “It was decided to make this day the FOUNDATION DAY. We resolved that each one of us would consecrate himself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the objectives of the mission house.”

• “The purpose of the house will be to prepare and send forth missionaries to mission countries, for the spread of God’s Kingdom on earth…”

• “It should also serve the Catholics of Austria and the Netherlands…without excluding members of other nations.”

The signing of the purchase

SEPT. 8, 1875 - INAUGURATION DAY • “The simplicity of this

beginning should not discourage us. We know that our present resources we cannot accomplish our task, but we hope that the dear God will provide everything we need. And he may do with us what he wills.”

• “If the seminary succeeds, we will thank the grace of God. If nothing comes of it, we will humbly strike our breast and confess that we were not worthy of the grace”

Arnold Janssen

In the Steyl Village Chapel

FIRST BUILDING IN 1876-77

The new building had rooms for the growing community. There was a chapel which can accommodate 120 persons. On the main altar was the statue to the Sacred Heart. This chapel was used till 1883.

MISSION PRESS APOSTOLATE• 27 January 1876 – opening of

the printing press.• Lay typesetter, Joseph Stute,

gave a big help and worked till 1882.

• The first magazines aside from the Little Messenger were Stadt Gottes (City of God), St. Michael’s Almanac.

• Press Apostolate with strong lay collaboration was set up by the Brothers.

• “Itinerant or traveling Brothers” emerged from this apostolate

MISSION SCHOOL IN STEYL

• Preparing missionaries in the spirit of generosity, devotion and readiness for sacrifice.

• In 1879 – 60 students. In 1881 over 100 students. In 1886 – 200 students..

FIRST TWO MISSIONARIES TO CHINAMarch 2, 1879

JOHANN BAPTIST ANZER JOSEPH FREINADEMETZ

RETREAT MOVEMENT IN STEYL• In1877 started the retreat

movement. In 1889 the Third General Chapter – “the first priority for Europe is holding spiritual exercises in our own houses, if possible”.

• Tradition in Steyl – every new building was first for retreats before occupied.

• Till the death of Arnold, 63 thousand retreatants came – men, women, lay, religious and clergy.

• Arnold Janssen was looked up by other religious as great promoter of retreat movement and renewal.

Gardens with grottoes were made for the retreatants.

STEYL SVD MISSION BROTHERS

•The growth of Steyl Congregations, constructions, expansion, finances in Europe and in the missions were done by the selfless dedicated and services of the Brothers.

DIFFERENT PROFESSIONAL WORKSHOPS

PART OF MISSION FORMATION

FOUNDATIONS IN EUROPE

1889 - St. Gabriel - Austria 1898 Sankt Wendel - Germany

1904 – St. Rupert - Austria1892 – Holy Cross - Germany

WOMEN MISSIONARIES TO THE WORLD

• The Sisters were trained for different apostolates like as teachers, midwives, nurses…

• Mission sending sermon: “They dedicate their lives to

the service on the missions, to take up an apostolate among women…to take up the care and education of children and to be good mothers to them…to support the work of the missionaries.”

Arnold Janssen, 1895

LIFE OF PRAYER FOR THE MISSION

Notre Dame Convent -1896-1904

Sacred Heart Convent – 1904-1914

Holy Spirit Convent – from 1914

ETHNOLOGICAL AND LINGUISTIC RESEARCH

• With the interest of Arnold Janssen, Fr. Wilhelm Schmidt – started the review for studies in cultures, peoples and languages

• In March 1906 was published the first issue of “Anthropos”.

• It developed with inter-national collaboration and edited in German, French, English and Italian.

FROM STEYL TO THE WORLD

SVD AND SSPS MISSION IN THE TIME OF ARNOLD JANSSEN

SSPS

1895 – Argentina

1897 – Togo (1989)

1899 – Papua New Guinea

1901 – USA

1902 – Brasil

1905 – China

1908 - Japan

SVD

1879 – Hongkong, 1882 - China

1888 - Rome, Italy

1889 – Argentina

1889 – Austria

1892 – Germany, Togo-[1917, 1974]

1893 – Ecuador – [1899,1962]

1895 – Brazil

1895 – USA

1896 – Papua New Guinea

1900 – Chile

1907 – Japan

1908 - Philippines

“IN THE EVENING OF MY LIFE”• “I come to you, God Holy

Spirit. In heartfelt praise and thanksgiving. Before you whom my soul praises.

• Yet none of this was my work. You yourself brought it all about.

• When my eyes close for the last time, may my sons and daughters pray to you in the Spirit. That united and with all their strength they may praise you and may they continue to work for your glory.”

Arnold Janssen

CHOSEN BY GOD

„

“It is remarkable that a man who was humanly speaking so ordinary and frail, and in spite of many difficulties and contradictions, achieved such extraordinary things. That goes to show, how he, Arnold, was a man chosen by God”

Bishop Poggenburg - Muenster - 1913

CHARISM ALIVE- ARNOLDUS FAMILY

ASIA SVD – 3080 SSPS – 1344 SSPSAP-178 Total – 4,602

OCEANIA SVD - 51 SSPS – 38 SSPSAP-0 Total - 89

AMERICAS SVD - 739 SSPS - 692 SSPSAP – 107 Total – 1,532

AFRICA SVD - 236 SSPS - 31 SSPSAP – 8 Total - 275

EUROPE SVD - 1923 SSPS – 1372 SSPSAP-114 Total – 3,409

CAUGHT UP IN THE MYSTERY OF THE INDWELLING TRIUNE GOD

CALLED TO SHARE IN THE MISSION OF THE TRIUNE GOD

The Mission response of St. Arnold

to the Realities of His Time

His PEG: Triune God dwelling in meHis PEG: Triune God dwelling in me

Self Image: I am indwelt, loved by the Triune God, Self Image: I am indwelt, loved by the Triune God, called to live by the Word called to live by the Word

Incarnate in all reality, led by the Spirit Incarnate in all reality, led by the Spirit

Image of others: all are called to be a community of Image of others: all are called to be a community of disciples, indwelt by the Triune God disciples, indwelt by the Triune God

living the Word and led by the Spirit missioned to living the Word and led by the Spirit missioned to proclaim the Good News to all peopleproclaim the Good News to all people

Social Situation: Break-up of Feudalism/Exodus to Cities/Rise of Working Class/Capitalist Class/Atlantic Migration

His View: Opportunity for World Mission (geographic) – a call to nurture the migrants’ faith His Concern: The endangered faith of the migrants in the new world

His Response: He prepared and sent SVD and SSpS missionaries to South and North America

Political Situation: French revolution, rise of nation states, Political Situation: French revolution, rise of nation states, wars, growing nationalism, Kulturkampf – Germanywars, growing nationalism, Kulturkampf – Germany

His View: Saw a chance to found a German Mission His View: Saw a chance to found a German Mission Society and Society and go beyond nationalism to internationalism go beyond nationalism to internationalism

His Concern: Exaggerated nationalism, increasing His Concern: Exaggerated nationalism, increasing number of unemployed priests since parishes were number of unemployed priests since parishes were closedclosed

His Response: Founded three German religious His Response: Founded three German religious missionary congregations with international membershipmissionary congregations with international membership

Economic Situation: Industrial revolutions/Scientific InventionsRise of Capitalism – need for markets/raw materials

His View: Provided a way for frontier mission, use of industrial progress/national protectorates for mission

His Concern: Colonization of Latin America, Asia, Africa… growing materialism due to economic progress

His Response: Sent missionaries to China and colonized countries, used modern printing press and promoted lay brother vocations, founded Anthropos Institute to help missionaries understand other cultures, SSpS to evangelize families in areas closed to men, included Science in the curriculum for seminary studies

Cultural Situation: Spirit of Liberalism and Rationalism, Cultural Situation: Spirit of Liberalism and Rationalism, growing faith in Science, anti-Church and anti-clericalgrowing faith in Science, anti-Church and anti-clerical

His View: A way to influence culture through the Word of God His View: A way to influence culture through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit, guiding the creative use of high-tech and and the Holy Spirit, guiding the creative use of high-tech and scientific discoveries for the ministries of the world missionscientific discoveries for the ministries of the world mission

His Concern: De-Christianization of the society, Laicization His Concern: De-Christianization of the society, Laicization movement, multiplication of religious sectsmovement, multiplication of religious sects

His Response: Awakened mission awareness through the His Response: Awakened mission awareness through the press apostolate, recruited lay volunteers to help, founded press apostolate, recruited lay volunteers to help, founded the Brothers’ Institute, gave missionaries training in the Brothers’ Institute, gave missionaries training in languages/skills for mission purposeslanguages/skills for mission purposes

Religious Situation: Defensive Church isolating itself, Religious Situation: Defensive Church isolating itself, Church reform and lay spirituality movements, marked Church reform and lay spirituality movements, marked increase of Apostolic Congregations for both men and increase of Apostolic Congregations for both men and women, beginnings of ecumenismwomen, beginnings of ecumenism

His View: Opportunity to take well-discerned risks for His View: Opportunity to take well-discerned risks for mission, utilizing current trends, linking with othersmission, utilizing current trends, linking with others His Concern: Appropriate church reforms, need for His Concern: Appropriate church reforms, need for renewal of clergy and laity, disunity among Christiansrenewal of clergy and laity, disunity among Christians

His Response: Organized retreats for priests, religious His Response: Organized retreats for priests, religious and lay, worked for the unification of Protestants and and lay, worked for the unification of Protestants and Catholics, more emphasis on prayer and contemplation Catholics, more emphasis on prayer and contemplation for all members of his three congregationsfor all members of his three congregations

CANONIZED IN 05 OCT 2003

“Missionaries are ambassadors of divine love. They are to reveal the great deeds of God and establish the kingdom of divine love.” St.Arnold Janssen

His motto sums it up:

May the Holy Triune God Live in Our Hearts and in the

Hearts of All !