Pope’s Message for World Mission Day 2024

Go and invite everyone to the banquet (cf. Mt 22:9)

Dear brothers and sisters,

The theme I have chosen for this year's World Mission Day is taken from the Gospel parable of the wedding banquet (cf. Mt 22:1-14). After the guests refused his invitation, the king, the main character in the story, tells his servants: "Go therefore to the thoroughfares, and invite to the marriage feast as many as you find" (v. 9). Reflecting on this key passage in the context of the parable and of Jesus' own life, we can discern several important aspects of evangelisation. These appear particularly timely for all of us, as missionary disciples of Christ, during this final stage of the synodal journey that, in the words of its motto, "Communion, Participation, Mission," seeks to refocus the Church on her primary task, which is the preaching of the Gospel in today's world.

 1."Go and invite!" Mission is a tireless going out to invite others to the Lord's banquet.

In the king's command to his servants, we find two words that express the heart of the mission: the verbs "to go out" and "to invite".

As for the first, we need to remember that the servants had previously been sent to deliver the king's invitation to the guests (cf. vv. 3-4). Mission, we see, is a tireless going out to all men and women, in order to invite them to encounter God and enter into communion with Him. Tireless! God, great in love and rich in mercy, constantly sets out to encounter all men and women, and to call them to the happiness of His kingdom, even in the face of their indifference or refusal. Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd and messenger of the Father, went out in search of the lost sheep of the people of Israel, and desired to go even further, in order to reach even the most distant sheep (cf. Jn 10:16). Both before and after His resurrection, He told His disciples, "Go!" – thus involving them in His own mission (cf. Lk 10:3; Mk 16:15).

Faith in Action: The Church's Social Advocacy

Dr John Singarayar

A growing number of liberal Catholics in Latin America were committed to confront social injustice, motivated by the urgency of their personal experiences. In addition to being a movement within the Church, it offered its leaders a significant chance to re-evaluate and recast their mission in a world severely marred by injustice and suffering.

A compassionate and transformative response is necessary to the wounds of our time, which are heard in the cries of the oppressed, seen in the faces of the impoverished, and noted in their pleas. Jesus proclaimed, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor" (Luke 4:18). This mission is emphasised in Pope Francis' encyclical Evangelii Gaudium, which states, "The Church, guided by the Gospel of mercy and by love for humanity, hears the cry for justice and intends to respond with all her might" (EG # 188). Reiterating this, St Augustine exhorts the Church to pursue justice in addition to acts of charity, saying that "Charity is no substitute for justice withheld."

 What is Advocacy?

In the modern world, advocacy is a potent and strategic tool that involves purposeful acts meant to sway decision-makers to support laws that deal with social, legal, and political issues. Basically, advocacy is about giving voice and protection to those who lack it, especially the underprivileged, disenfranchised, and marginalised people. This mission can take on multiple forms, ranging from collaborative efforts within communities to address systemic issues to direct intervention in individual cases.

Talasari Mission - on the threshold of its Centenary

Fr Andrew Rodrigues

In 1923, the Franciscan Brothers travelled by Western Railway, and got down at Bhilad station. They pitched their tents near Zaroli Village. The local tribals were exploited by their landlords who had come from the west of the railway stations of Dahanu, Sanjan and Bhilad. Upon seeing these brothers in white cassocks, the Adivasis began fleeing from their habitations to secure forest areas. Their mindset was "all outsiders are looters." The tribals were all bonded labourers, and their forest land was owned by landlords.

Gradually, on June 9, 1926, rendering their philanthropic services such as medicines and literacy, they advanced towards Uplat, Dhodadpada village in Maharashtra. The Franciscan Brothers celebrated the first Mass there after erecting Christ the King Church which is in use even today.

Through their prayers, persistence and courage, they succeeded in getting followers for Christ from Uplat, Sambarpada, Savaroli, Dhamangaon, Kharajgaon, and Shishne. To liberate the Adivasis from superstitions, illiteracy and bonded labour was not an easy task.

In 1956, the Jesuits were entrusted with the Talasari mission by Archbishop Lima. They opened eleven primary schools in various villages. They upgraded them till Std VII in Uplat, Varkhanda, Zari, Nagzari; the middle schools were converted to high schools. The Vasai Diocese later converted the primary schools to high schools, and a Junior College of Arts in Gangangaon. To run it, Bishop Thomas Dabre collected Rs 63 lakhs through various fund-raisers.

Honour St Xavier’s Love for Goa – Protect Goa’s Identity

Melanie J. Mascarenhas

St Francis Xavier, the revered missionary, is known not only for his missionary work across Asia, but also for his deep and abiding love for Goa. This small state, nestled between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats, became a second home to the saint during his missionary travels. His work and influence in Goa were profound, and his connection to the people and land remains legendary. So much so that before his death on Shangchuan Island in China in 1552, he wished that his body be brought back to Goa, the place he cherished. His body, which remains enshrined in the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa, is a symbol of his enduring legacy and love for the Goan people.

St Francis Xavier's death and the subsequent return of his body to Goa are steeped in reverence and significance. After his death, his body was miraculously found incorrupt, an extraordinary phenomenon that has drawn the faithful for centuries. The annual feast held in his honour, and the decadal Exposition of his relics, are major religious and cultural events in Goa, drawing pilgrims and visitors from across the globe.

However, this deep bond between St Francis Xavier and Goa was not without challenges. Even during the turbulent times of Goa's Liberation from Portuguese rule in 1961, when Portugal faced the loss of its colony, the Portuguese authorities made attempts to take his body back to Portugal. This, however, did not succeed.

St John Paul II: A Great Pope of The Modern Era

Dr Fiorello Mascarenhas SJ, DMin

On the occasion of the Feast day (October 22) of Pope St John Paul II (JP2), I share a few thoughts about his truly great leadership of the Church, and also humbly suggest that he be named "the Great," as in the case of a few earlier popes (Pope St Leo XIII, Pope St Gregory, etc.). This is because during his long leadership as pope (26 years), he led the Church with extraordinary wisdom and courage, and of course, personal holiness, to a new understanding of its role and mission in today's world. He also exercised a great influence in world politics, helping to free his country Poland from Soviet domination.

The old Missal, in its alternative Collect for Pentecost Sunday, prayed, "Lord, send forth your Spirit with the force of a mighty wind, to broaden the horizons of our minds…!" That prayer was beautifully answered in the life of JP2. Inspired by the Documents of the Second Vatican Council, he took the Catholic Church out of its centuries-old ghetto and narrow world views, and dumped us all willy-nilly into the 20th and 21st century. Of course, much still remains to be done, since the Church and the Vatican move with a cautious pace. Pope Francis is gallantly trying to speed things up!

Jesus Himself taught that there must be a growth in human knowledge, and that "things both old and new" must enrich our action. Hence, Catholics were taught and encouraged by JP2 to embrace and become part of the aggiornamento (bringing up-to-date for modern times) that good Pope St John XXIII ardently prayed for, and that the Holy Spirit continues to make happen in today's Church. We too, in this post-modern 21st century, need the Holy Spirit "to broaden the horizons of our minds" if we are to proclaim the Good News meaningfully to our ultra-secularised peers.

Vandana Mataji: 100 Years! (Part II)

Sr Thelma Gonsalves, RSCJ

(The first part was printed two weeks ago in The Examiner, Oct. 05-11, 2024 issue, page 10)

 For a better understanding of Christians, Mataji was quick to clarify what personal God-centredness entailed. She spoke of the Yama-Niyama of the Patanjali Yoga Sutras as the "Ethical foundation for meditation." Yama: Five social disciplines: ahimsa - non-violence (love); Satya - truth; Asteya - unnecessary possessions; Brahmacharya - self-control (celibacy); Aparigraha - accumulation for future use. Niyama: Five individual disciplines: Sauch - purity (body, mind, heart); Tapas - asceticism/self-discipline; Santosh - contentment with what one has and is; Svadhyaya - study of oneself and the Scriptures; Eeshwarpranidhan - surrender of self to God. She also clarified misconceptions regarding the discipline of Yoga, showing that Hatha exercises led to Raj Yoga - meditation and that to the summit - Samadhi i.e. permanent union with God or unceasing God-consciousness - all of this being totally compatible with the Christian faith. In this ambience, Vandana embraced Sanyasa - renunciation. It implies the eschewing of worldly pursuits, desire for progeny, name and fame, while offering Abhaya and Shanti to all, for the benefit of the world.

 Her pioneering spirit was in search of a place where she could live out her experiences in an open community where all were welcome. She got permission from the then Anglican Bishop Robinson of Bombay to re-open the Christa Prema Ashram started by an Anglican Pastor in Pune. This was both ecumenical as well as an inter-faith ashram at Shivajinagar, Pune. Fr Lederle SJ was a close associate of this ashram. At this time, she also bore the responsibility of Provincial of the Indian Province of the Society of the Sacred Heart. It was at CPS Ashram that the presence of Sw. Abhishiktananda and H.H. Sw. Chidanand (called the Francis of Assisi of Rishikesh) impressed on her the need to move North, to the Hindu heartland. She chose Rishikesh, since she already revered H. H. Sw. Chidanand.