.- Cardinal
Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for the
Evangelization of Peoples yesterday addressed the national Directors of
the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) gathered in Rome for their
ordinary General Assembly. He stressed that “Our missionary activity is
the effort we put in our work to make people know that God is love.”
“It is our main
mission as National Directors of the Pontifical Mission Societies,” he
said, “to bend down, like good Samaritans, over our brothers’
necessities, especially over the poor and the needy.”
Referring to new
statutes passed by the PMS, he said that “Today we have a clear and
adequate text to face the many problems and challenges rising from the
present missionary situation in the world. The Pontifical nature of the
PMS is therefore “the expression of their specific ecclesial nature: as
soon as this aspect started to become clear in their path, the
Societies began to enrich their structure.”
Speaking on the
mutual exchange of gifts within churches, which characterizes the
Catholic communion, the prefect stressed that “we must make sure that
the gifts that the Churches share abolish the superiority of the ones
who give and the inferiority of the ones who receive. They must
consider account of the real needs of the Churches and their lives.”
“In this
spirit”, he continued, “all must embark upon a brotherly dialogue,
which needs to be seen as a high form of co-responsibility.”
“I invite you”,
Cardinal Sepe told the group, “to make a special effort to prepare
yourselves gradually for the next 80th World Day of Mission, which will
take place on October 22 and
I am happy
to inform you that the Holy Father has transmitted, a few days ago, his
message for this World Day of Missions, which theme will be “Charity,
the soul of mission.”
The cardinal
concluded his address quoting Pope Benedict XVI’s message:
“Mission, in deed, if not guided by charity, if it doesn’t arise as a
profound act of divine love, takes the risk of becoming a mere
philantropic or social activity. The love that God nurtures for each
person, is in fact the heart of the announcing the Gospel. “
“Our missionary
activity is the effort we put in our work to make known that God is
Love. To be a missionary”, wrote the Pope, “means to love God with ones
whole being, and to give ones life for Him, if necessary. How many
priests, religious and lay, have given, in our time as well, the
supreme testimony of Love as martyrs!”
Main aim of mission groups is to bend down, like good Samaritans, over our brothers’ needs, says Cardinal Sepe
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