Jose Freinademetz SVD, Missionary of the Divine Word in China for 28 years, was a missionary who made history.

In the Holy Year of 1975, the centennial of the Divine Word Missionary Work and the centenary of his priestly ordination, Father Joseph Freinademetz, together with Fr. Arnold Janssen, Founder of the Missionary Work of Steyl, were inscribed on the list of the Blessed of the Church.

Father Joseph Freinademetz was a true and authentic apostle, bearer of the Good News to the Chinese People in a unique way regarding them as his brothers and members of the same race and nation as his. As a Missionary of the Divine Word in China, Father Joseph Freinademetz marks a luminous and radiant milestone in the glorious record of the Catholic Missions of East Asia.

This work is the Spanish version of the extensive biography written by Father Fritz Bornemann SVD. Using the words of the Conciliar Document of Ad Gentes, Fr. Eduardo Saffer SVD, the translator, affirms that “Today as always, the missionary activity conserves all its strength and its necessity”, explaining the true reason for this publication.

We hope that this biographical account, dotted with risky situations, can serve as a source of inspiration and courage for those who in our missionary life today must face the challenges of the New Evangelization.