Pope: The Immense Task of Mission in Troubling Times
(21 May 10 - RV) Pope Benedict XVI received the participants in the annual meeting
of the Superior Council of the Pontifical Mission Societies this Friday. The Pontifical
Mission Societies are a group of four dedicated missionary organizations operating
under the auspices of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. They are:
The Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith; The Pontifical Society of
St. Peter the Apostle, which is dedicated to the formation of clergy and the maintenance
of seminary facilities; The Pontifical Society of the Holy Childhood, which encourages
children to sanctity and attunes them to missionary vocations; and, The Pontifical
Missionary Union, which exists to promote an awareness of mission and a spirit of
unity, prayer and generous sacrifice among priests, religious and laity.
In
remarks to the participants in the annual meeting of the umbrella organization’s governing
body, Pope Benedict XVI on Friday said, “Evangelisation "is an immense mission", the
Pope told them, "especially in our own time in which humankind is suffering from a
certain lack of reflection and wisdom, and we are seeing the spread of a humanism
that excludes God. For this reason, it is urgently necessary to illuminate emerging
problems with the unchanging light of the Gospel".
Preaching the Gospel
"is a priceless service the Church can offer humankind on its journey through history",
the Holy Father told the members of the Pontifical Missionary Works, whom he described
as "an eloquent and living sign of the catholicity of the Church, which takes concrete
form in the universal scope of the apostolic mission 'to the ends of the earth', and
'to the end of the age', so that no people or environment may be without the light
and grace of Christ. This is the meaning, the historical trajectory, the mission and
the hope of the Church", he said.
"The mission to announce the Gospel to
all peoples" involves making "critical judgement on the global transformations that
are bringing substantial changes to the culture of humankind. The Church, present
and at work on geographical and anthropological frontiers, carries a message which
enters into history as she proclaims the inalienable values of the person, announcing
God's plan of salvation made visible and operational in Christ. The preaching of the
Gospel is the call to freedom of the children of God, for a more just and united society".
Those
who participate in Christ's mission must inevitably "face trials, contrasts and suffering
because they clash with the powers of this world", said Benedict XVI. Like the Apostle
Paul "we have no arms other than the Word of Christ and His Cross". Thus the "ad gentes"
mission requires the Church and missionaries "to accept the consequences of their
ministry: evangelical poverty, which gives them the freedom to preach the Gospel courageously
and frankly; non-violence, by which they respond to evil with good; and willingness
to give their life for the name of Christ and the love of mankind".
"It
is from the Holy Spirit that the Church's announcement and apostolic ministry receive
authority", the Pope explained. "Evangelisation needs Christians with their arms raised
to God in prayer, Christians aware that conversion to the world of Christ is not something
we produce, but something given to us".
The Holy Father concluded his
remarks by thanking the members of the Pontifical Missionary Works for "stimulating
the missionary conscience of the particular Churches, encouraging them to... form
and send out missionaries and help the young Churches". Hear more: