STEYLER

 About the mission of the SVD community in Steyl

 The community of St. Michael’s Mission House is organizing the exhibition STEYLER together with the artist and researcher Krien Clevis. In this project, Krien Clevis portrays the mission of the community in the past and present. To do this, she approached its current members and conducted interviews, asking them: What is your mission? Can you sum it up in one sentence?

STEYLER is an exhibition dedicated to the life and work of the Divine Word Missionaries, the Societas Verbi Divini (SVD). The project aims to reveal the core, roots, and background of the SVD’s missionary work. It showcases how brothers, fathers and friends have contributed in the past and continue to work today. The resulting perspectives show a mission in transition.

The multimedia exhibition is part of the celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of the SVD and the 150 years of the monastery village of Steyl (Kloosterdorp Steyl). Various local groups from Steyl are participating in the event. In collaboration with the Mission Museum, six lectures will explore the theme in greater depth.

The missionaries themselves play a central role in the project, contributing both to its conceptualization (content and moderation) and its implementation (as guides and storytellers). Additionally, an educational program has been developed in collaboration with school children from Steyl and students of art and art education at the Maastricht Art Academy. This program explores the same central question, and the results will be shown in the Apostles’ Hall through the film Mijn missie is groter dan ik (My mission is greater than me). Through this collaboration, the house community, Krien Clevis, and their partners aim to create a contemporary document for future generations.

The exhibition features photographs, sound, text, video, and objects, capturing the monastery village of Steyl and its communities as part of our cultural heritage – both valuable and ever-evolving. At the same time, visitors are invited to engage in an ongoing dialogue, reflecting on the question: What is my mission? What is my passion? What is my purpose in this world, here and now?

PROGRAM
(tentative) Every Saturday and by appointment from June 8 to November 16, 2025:
- Missionaries of the SVD community of Steyl tell personal stories about their mission
- Steyl missionaries guide visitors through the exhibition
- There will be several guided tours with the artist Krien Clevis.
- Several lectures will be held in cooperation with the Mission Museum.
   Location: St. Michael's Mission House lower church
   The program of the lectures can be found at: www.missiemuseum.nl/nl/activiteiten-kalender/lezingenreeks