Rediscovering
Mission at the Heart of Christian Faith
‘Rediscovering Mission at the Heart
of Christian Faith’ is the theme for World Mission Sunday 2017, chosen by Holy
Father Pope Francis which invites us to understand more than ever that our‘mission’
constitutes an essential aspect of the ‘Christian faith’; we are sent to our
brothers and sisters in order to bear witness of our faith in Christ and to
proclaim his Gospel. Beginning with the Second Vatican Council, the Church has
worked to restore the essential importance of every baptized person’s
missionary dimension.
Faith and Mission are
directly proportionate:Pope John Paul II
asserted that “mission is an issue of faith, an accurate indicator of our faith in Christ and his love for us” (RM
11). Similarly, Pope Benedict XVI writes: “Faith grows when it is lived as an
experience of love received and when it is communicated as an experience of
grace and joy.”
Pope Francis exhorts us repeatedly
to go out of the temple’s sacred walls and to make sure that our Church becomes
a Mission Centered Church. In order
to understand this issue better, let us not simply say that the Church has a
mission, but that the mission depends on
the church to continue. This assertion encourages us to make a reflection: God, who has the mission of saving the
world, uses the Church as an instrument to achieve it!
We are currently experiencing a
real missionary shift across the country. We are witnessing a growing awakening
of the missionary spirit that will support our pastoral conversion and the
revival of our Christian communities. Looking at the new Areopagus, the new
meetings taking place and the subsequent experience gained from these
encounters will result in new ways to transmit the faith and the new
evangelization.
What if we develop a passion for
mission and we commit ourselves even more in the joy of the Gospel and the
Evangelization? To achieve a missionary revival, we must enter into the
dynamism of a continuous conversion to the Gospel, the sacraments, the
fraternal and missionary communion. It is a complex program but also one that
is highly attainable.
Church
which goes forth
The Word of God constantly shows us
how God challenges those who believe in him “to go forth”. Abraham received the
call to set out for a new land (cf. Gen 12:1-3). Moses heard God’s call: “Go, I
send you” (Ex 3:10) and led the people towards the promise land (cf. Ex 3:17).
To Jeremiah God says: “To all whom I send you, you shall go” (Jer. 1:7). In our
day Jesus’ command to “go and make disciples” echoes in the changing scenarios
and ever new challenges to the Church’s mission of evangelization, and all of
us are called to take part in this new missionary “going forth”. Each Christian
and every community must discern the path that the Lord points out, but all of
us are asked to obey his call to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to
reach all the “peripheries” in need of the light of the Gospel.
The Gospel joy which enlivens the
community of disciples is a missionary joy. The seventy-two disciples felt it
as they returned from their mission (cf. Lk 10:17). Jesus felt it when he
rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and praised the Father for revealing himself to the
poor and the little ones (cf. Lk 10:21). It was felt by the first converts who
marveled to hear the apostles preaching “in their own native language” (Acts
2:6) on the day of the Pentecost. This joy is a sign that the Gospel has been
proclaimed and is bearing fruit. Yet the drive to go forth and give, to go out
from ourselves, to keep pressing forward in our sowing of the good seed,
remains ever present. The Lord says: “Let us go on to the next towns that I may
preach there also, for that is why I came out” (Mk 1:38). Once the seed has
been sown inone place, Jesus does not stay behind to explain things or to
perform more signs; the spirit moves him to go forth to other towns.
God’s word is unpredictable in its
power. The Gospel speaks of a seed which,
once sown, grows by itself, even as the farmer sleeps (Mk 4:26-29). The
Church has to accept this unruly freedom of the word, which accomplishes what
it wills in ways that surpass our calculations and ways of thinking.
The Church’s closeness to Jesus is
part of a common journey; “communion and mission are profoundly
interconnected”.In fidelity to the example of the master, it is vitally
important for the Church today to go forth and preach the Gospel to all; to all
places, on all occasions, without hesitation, reluctance or fear. The joy of the Gospel is for all people; no
one can be excluded. That is what the angel proclaimed to the shepherds in
Bethlehem; “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy
which will come to all the people (Lk 2:10). The Book of Revelation speaks of
“an eternal Gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and
tongue and tribe and people” (Rev 14:16).
The
Liturgy
Welcome
and Gathering
(Gather and welcome the
participants to the liturgy around an altar with the pastor, a bible, globe,
sandals and two candles).
Introduction
World Mission Sunday was proposed
by Pope Pius XI in the year 1926 and we celebrate the 91st
anniversary this year. Evangelization takes place all over the world in
obedience to the missionary mandate given by Jesus, “Go therefore and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of
the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mt
28: 19-20). Through these words Jesus invites his disciples to spread the
message of Good News to all, in all times, so that all have the opportunity to
come to the knowledge of truth. This is an invitation to every Christian to go
‘beyond the frontiers’ of Christian community; to the world at large, to those
who have no knowledge of the Good News.
We are called to this Eucharistic
celebration to offer our prayers and our generous financial support, through
the Society of Propagation of the Faith,
to continue the mission of our Lord. We gather today precisely to worship God,
creator of the universe and Lord of all. Even though God is all powerful, He
exercises His power by showing mercy to sinners.
PENITENTIAL
RITE:
Lord, I have not listened to and
meditate upon Your Word.Lord, have mercy.
Lord, I have failed to heed to your
call to live by Your Word.Christ, have mercy.
Lord, I have seldom shown
enthusiasm to proclaim the Good News.Lord, have mercy.
May the Almighty God have mercy on
us, may He forgive us our sins and bring us to everlasting life.
Opening
Prayer:
O God, whose will it is that all
should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.Look upon your abundant
harvest; send numerous laborers who will proclaim the Gospel to every creature,
so that your people, gathered by the word of life and sustained by the power of
the Sacraments, may advance in the path of salvation and love. Through Our Lord
Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy
Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Readings:
1st Reading:
Isaiah 45.1 &4-6
Responsorial Psalm:
96.1 & 3-5 & 7-10
2nd Reading:
1 Thessalonians 1.1-5
Gospel:Mathew
22.15-21
Hint
for the homily on World Mission Sunday 2017
Human beings cannot live alone.
They belong to a society; they must maintain contact with others in
relationships based upon friendship and collaboration. Hence, it is necessary
to organize reciprocal relations and determine the rights and duties of each
person. We may ask: Is religion associated in any way with the organisation of
social and political life? We find the answer to this question in the Gospel of
today.
The Pharisees, together with
sympathizers of King Herod, approached Jesus and asked him that provocative
question: “Is it right for us to pay the tax to Roman Emperor or not?” (Mathew
22:17; Mark 12:14; Luke 20:22) The flattery that is used to introduce this
question was not sincere. Any answer might be seen as double-edged. If Christ
said “No” he would be identifying his mission as another series of political
revolutionary movements.
In his reply, Jesus does not answer
the original question but he announces what seems to be engagingly vague: “Give
back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs toGod.”
(Mark 12:17) What does that mean? What must we give back? What part of this tax
has been stolen from us? What part doesn’t belong to us? If one keeps Caesar’s
coins in his pocket, it means that one uses it and thus recognizes Roman power.
One can’t invent religious scruples only when it is time to pay taxes. For
Christians, the first teaching seems quite clear: It is a moral as well as a
civil duty to contribute to the common good through the payment of taxes. No
reason can justify the wanton destruction or theft of the state’s goods.
Whatever the type of society and
whatever the political or economic policies of the government may be, the
Christians possess the right and duty to tender their suggestions, to criticize
and even to contest the various options taken, but they cannot act in such a
way as to damage the civil community. However, Jesus doesnot stop at stating
out duty to contribute to the common good through the payment of our taxes. He
adds something that stands as revolutionary: “Give [back] to God what belongs
to God”.
Give back what? Is there anything
that doesn’t belong to Him?Then we must give him everything, but how? Just as
the coin has to be returned to its owner, the emperor, because it bears his
image, so we must return to God the creature bearing his image, so we must
return to God the creature bearing his image. What is this creature? The first
chapter of the Bible states: “So God created humankind in his image, in the
image of Godhe created them.” (Genesis 1:27) Here then is the creature that
cannot fall under the ownership of anybody else but God. Nobody has a right to
dominate us, to enslave us, to oppress us: we are sacred and we belong to God.
To God alone we render worship, but in other things, we happily acknowledge and
serve the secular powers, praying that they will rule wisely and justly.
World Mission Sunday gives us the
opportunity to carry out the Lord’s exhortation in both ways: We could return to the poorest churches what
they should have to pursue the mission of evangelization. In addition, we could show our gratitude to God for the
mission that he has entrusted us at the heart of our Christian faith. On
the contrary, it lies at the heart of the faith,all Christians are missionaries
of the Gospel and they participate actively to the mission of Christ. Pope
Francis calls us to a renewal of missionary outreach and to strive to reach the
peripheries that need the light of the Gospel. “We are all invited to walk the
streets of the world with our brothers and sisters, proclaiming and witnessing
to our faith in Christ and making ourselves heralds of his Gospel.” (World Mission
Day, 2013)
A
Universal Collectionfor World Mission Sunday
The collection on World Mission
Sunday is a “mandatory” universal collection. This means that all the Catholic
communities of the world must remit the
collection to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith in its entirety.
All the donations collected within the churches of the world on that day form
the Universal Solidarity Fund for the
poorest Diocese of the Church.
Statutes
of the PMS (Pontifical Mission Societies) Vatican-Chapter 2, articles 7,8 and
10
·
This day is celebrated
in all the particular churches as the feast of catholicity and universal
solidarity. On this day, Christians throughout the world become aware of their
common responsibility to the evangelization of the world.
·
Bishops
are invited to ask the people in charge of the Catholic organizations and also
the Christians, to renounce, during all the celebrations of that special
Sunday, to any other collection of particular nature.
They should also ensure that all donations for the World Mission Sunday are
exclusively remitted to the Universal Solidarity Fund and they should encourage
their priests and laity in that spirit.
A
Liturgical Sign
The
collection that takes place during the Eucharistic celebration is an act and a
sign of solidarity and sharing. It represents
our communion and our participation in the mission of Christ through our
solidarity with the poorest churches of the world. This collection shouldnot be
substituted by a collection at the doors of the church, neither by a remittance
of a surplus in comparison to the ordinary collection. Also, we cannot put into
a common fund all the “mandatory” collections of the year and distribute them
fairly between various projects of the parish. This would mislead the intention
of the person who makes a donation to the Society for the Propagation of the
Faith. The Society for the Propagation of the Faith is the only recipient of
the collection for World Mission Sunday.
A
Sign of Fraternity and Solidarity
The universal collection for World
Mission Sunday is unique: its fruits are distributed worldwide, according to
the needs of the poorest Dioceses. Everyone contributes to the cause and this
allows the survival of the poorest Dioceses, especially those who do not
benefit from twinning or privileged contacts with the West. The universal
collection provides each bishop the means and freedom of action for the
formation of catechists, solidarity, priestly vocations and consecrated life,
education, health care etc. Therefore, it is a tool of justice and fraternity
between all the dioceses. Furthermore, it allows supporting the permanent
effort of the Universal Church to go and proclaim the Gospel to all nations.
This mandate, received from Christ, is borne by the baptized people and those
who are jointly responsible for the Universal Mission along with the Church of
Africa, Asia, America, Europe and Oceania.
The Mission
Rosary
The enlivening source of a merciful
Christian life is prayer. May World
Mission Sunday be a beautiful celebration of people who are open and available
to express mercy towards their poorest brothers and sisters. May the merciful
Father bestow upon the grace of forgiveness and open our heart to forgiveness
and to give it in return. As a church, as a family, let us be merciful. Let us
pray for the world mission in the Mission Rosary which encourages faithful to
pray for the 5 continents of the world in five decades of the Rosary.
As followers of Christ we are all
called to be missionaries- bringing Christ’s message to the whole world.One of
the tools we can use to help us pray for worldwide mission is the Mission
Rosary.The Mission Rosary enables our prayer to reach beyond the boundaries of
our local concerns and to be united with the entire Church.The Mission Rosary
can be prayed individually and with groups and is suitable for all ages. It is
prayed like a normal Rosary but has an added focus. While meditating on each
decade, represented by a distinct colour, the peoples of a particular continent
are brought to prayer.
·
Pray the first decade
for Africa(green)
·
Pray the Second decade
for the Americas(Red)
·
Pray the third decade
for Europe(White)
·
Pray the fourth decade
for Oceania(blue)
·
Pray the fifth decade
for Asia(yellow)
How
to pray the Mission rosary?
Introduce each mystery with the
suggested reflection before praying each decade.
First
Mission Mystery: Jesus is baptized
“He has sent me to bring good news
to the poor, to proclaim liberty to captives and to the blind new sight, to set
the downtrodden free and to proclaim the Lord’s year of favour”. (Luke 4:18)
As we meditate on this mystery, we
remember the peoples of Africa and their intentions. Let us also remember the
missionaries working there.
We pray: that all development and
aid programmes will be respectful and worthy of God’s children; for an end to
war and violence and for the peaceful growth of the young African church.
Second
Mission Mystery: Jesus proclaims the Good News to all
In their own way each of the gospel
writers emphasizes that Jesus was a foreigner wherever he went. In His public
ministry, Jesus was an itinerant, moving from place to place, “with nowhere to
lay his head…” (Matt 8:20) Jesus tells us to welcome the stranger: “For I was
hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger
and you welcomed me.” (Matt 25:35)
As we meditate on this second
mystery, we remember the peoples of the America and their intentions. Let us
remember the missionaries working there.
We pray: that the Church may
continue to promote God’s kingdom of justice, love and peace and discover new
ways of bringing the gospel into daily life.
Third
Mission Mystery: Jesus heals the sick
Jesus went all around Galilee
teaching in the synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom and curing
all kinds of diseases and sickness among the people. Those who were suffering
from diseases and painful complaints were all brought to him and he cured them.
(Matt: 4:23-24)
As we meditate on this third
mystery, we remember the peoples of Europe and their intentions. Let us also
remember the missionaries working there.
We pray: that Europe may preserve,
develop and share its rich Christian traditions; for the unity of Christians;
for immigrants and for our own families and their particular needs. We also
pray for all those who are suffering from illness in our families, in our
communities and in our world.
Fourth
Mission Mystery: Jesus offers the gift of life
When a Samaritan woman came to draw
water, Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” She said, “What? You are a Jew and
you ask me, a Samaritan, for a drink? “Jesus replied; “If only you knew what
God is offering and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink’, you
would have been the one to ask, and he would have given you living
water…whoever drinks this water will get thirsty again. But anyone who drinks
the water that I shall give will never be thirsty again.”…. “Sir”, the woman
replied, “Give me some of that water so that I may never get thirsty”. (John.
4:7-10; 14-15)
As we meditate on this fourth
mystery, we remember the peoples of Oceania and their intentions. Let us also
remember the missionaries working there.
We pray: that all the many remote
Christian communities may play their part in the universal Church; and for
Catholic communities which are small minorities.
Fifth
Mission Mystery: Jesus teaches us how to pray
You should pray like this, “Our
Father in heaven, may your name be held holy, your kingdom come, your will be
done, on earth as in heaven”. (Matt 6:9-11)
In baptism Jesus calls everyone to
be a missionary, to share in the mission of revealing the kingdom of God.
Missionaries (all the baptized faithful) are sent out into the world to
evangelize, to spread the good news that God reigns. We do not need to go to
other lands to do mission work. There are many ‘worlds’ around us, many
‘worlds’ in our families and in our communities that need to hear the good
News. For some with the specific missionary vocation, that mission will take
them to far-off lands.
As we meditate on this fifth
mystery, we remember the peoples of Asia and their intentions. Let us also
remember the missionaries working there.
We pray: that Asia may open to the
Good News of Jesus; for peace between the different faiths and that the poor be
given their rightful place in society.
Hail Holy Queen…
St Joseph, Patron and Protector of
the Universal Church, pray for us
St Therese, Patron of worldwide
Mission, pray for us
St Francis Xavier, Patron of
missionaries, pray for us
