The diocesan Missions Office annually assigns visiting missionaries to designated parishes within the diocese. The annual Missionary Cooperation Plan (MCP) provides opportunities to missionaries to speak at an assigned parish or parishes on a weekend between May and September. This year, 45 missionaries (including bishops, priests, and lay missionaries) from various continents, particularly Africa and Asia, will be visiting the diocese.
On behalf of Bishop Earl K. Fernandes, I would like to welcome the missionaries who are eagerly ready to share their experiences with our parishes. It is one of the greatest and holiest works of the Church to promote the universality of missionary spirit. The Church is committed to the spread of the Gospel in the face of the many tribulations and by hope in Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of the Universe.
Our Office is also responsible for the disbursement of funds to the mission organizations.
Why is the universal mission of the Church so necessary? In the early Christian era, apostles and foreign missionaries sowed the seed of the Word of God among millions of non-Christians. Indeed, God blessed their efforts with abundant harvests. There was hardly a country that was untouched by missionaries. They shed their blood while baptizing, building churches and announcing the Gospel to both the poor and the rich.
Jesus commissioned the Apostles to go and proclaim the Good News to the ends of the earth. Jesus was a missionary and sent by God the Father for redeeming us from sin and eternal death. As Jesus was sending forth the missions to His disciples by empowering them with the Holy Spirit, he said, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you” (John 20: 21).
According to tradition, St. James was the first Apostle to be martyred, by King Herod. St. Jude preached in Armenia and was martyred in Beirut, Lebanon. St. Bartholomew was martyred in India and also preached the Gospel in Mesopotamia, Parthia and Lycaonia. St. Matthew journeyed to Ethiopia for missionary work and was also martyred there.
St. Andrew traveled to Greece for his mission work and was martyred in Patras. St. Peter preached in Antioch, Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, Cappadocia and Asia and was crucified in Rome. St. Paul preached throughout the Roman Empire, Illyricum, and was martyred in Rome. St. Philip ministered in Greece, Syria and Asia Minor. St. Thomas baptized thousands of people in India, where his tomb is located.
Catholicism exists because of the blood shed by Christ and those who made sacrifices by shedding their blood for His bride, the Church.
In the Bible, St. Peter, addressing the Sanhedrin in the early days of the Church, said, “There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are saved” (Acts 4:12). To proclaim the name of Christ is very crucial to all nations on the earth. It is our duty, as baptized members of Christ, to go to the ends of the Earth, witness the love of God and share with others His mercy and kindness. Jesus Christ came into this world to bring glad tidings to the poor. We are called to support missionaries who come from afar. Even though we cannot all go to the nations through our little charity and financial help, we can enable missionaries to carry out God’s ministry to those who may never have experienced God’s unending mercy and love. Let us become partakers of Jesus’ mission by actively participating in the universal mission of the Church.
The Bible teaches us that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Jesus is the only Savior who redeemed all humanity from eternal punishment and freely offered eternal salvation to all. However, to receive this blissful eternity after death, we must believe in and accept Jesus Christ as our God and Redeemer. How can we ignore the pitiful clamoring of so many neglected people suffering material and spiritual want in mission lands? “The grace of renewal cannot grow in communities unless each of them expands the range of its charity to the ends of the earth., and has the same concern for those who are far away as it has for its members” (Ad Gentes, 37).
Missionaries very often leave family, friends and familiar surroundings. They are sent to an unfamiliar context and culture. We know mission work is impossible without the support of generous hearts. This is also an opportunity for missionaries to pray for you who are generously thankful for your financial support. As we read in the Holy Scriptures, “Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf” (1 Corinthians 10: 17).
Yes, indeed, we all are one in Christ because we are breaking and sharing the same Bread of the Jesus Christ at every altar in all Catholic churches throughout the world. Therefore, let us help and promote the need of foreign churches asking for help through this appeal for their missionary endeavors.
We can together carry out the missions of the Church and continue to be foster and transform many in the light of Christ, who commanded us to spread the Gospel to the whole world. Let us humbly serve Christ by promoting the universal Church’s Mission: salvation of humanity only through Jesus Christ!