Before His Ascension into Heaven, Jesus told His disciples: "All power in heaven and on earth have been given to me. 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. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age" (Mt 28: 18-20). This commission by Jesus to His Church has defined the Church's activity for 2,000 years. This Sunday, World Mission Sunday, provides us with the opportunity to reflect on the missionary character of the Church, as well as her mission of evangelization.
The Second Vatican Council, in Ad Gentes Divinitus, the Decree on the Church's Missionary Activity, declared: "The Church on earth is by its very nature missionary since, according to the plan of the Father, it has its origin in the mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit" (no. 2). Rooted in the mystery of the Holy Trinity, in the dynamic relationship of love in which the Father sent the Son into the world, and the Father and the Son send forth the Holy Spirit, the Church is sent at the command of Jesus to proclaim the Gospel to people of all nations. Thus, the Church is always missionary, always pursuing her mission-the task of evangelization — to the ends of the earth.
When we consider the missionary endeavors of the Church, we think of those territories far away, remote, undeveloped lands in which people have never heard the Name of Jesus. We think, as well, of those areas of our country " the home missions " which are found in scarcely populated, rural areas where there are many poor people. Wherever the Gospel is to be proclaimed, the Church goes forth, constantly spurred on by the command of Jesus. The Church serves this mission in so many ways, particularly by the ministry of missionary priests, deacons and religious, as well as through the efforts of lay men and women who volunteer for missionary service.
The Collaboration of Religious in the Mission of the Church
Pope Benedict XVI identified the theme of this 80th World Mission Sunday as "Charity: the Soul of the Mission." Any consideration of the Church's missionary endeavors necessarily involves the acknowledgment of the charitable outreach involved in mission and must recognize the tremendous contribution and collaboration of Religious priests, sisters and brothers in these charitable works. Recently, the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life provided to Bishops some amazing statistics of the various works done by Religious. While the statistics are a global picture, they also include works which are being accomplished in the missions of the Church. These services involved the education apostolate, health care, and care for children and young people.
In the education apostolate, for example, there are, throughout the world, 63,073 nursery schools operated by Religious which serve 6,300,000 children. There are 91,090 primary and elementary schools operated by Religious in which almost 28,000,000 children are educated. There are 38,000 secondary schools which educate over 15,800,000 young people. Also, Religious operate 1,210 colleges and universities in which almost 4,490,000 people pursue higher education.
In the area of health care, throughout the world, Religious operate 5,246 hospitals, 17,224 clinics and 648 leprosaria. In addition to these health care facilities, Religious staff 14, 900 nursing homes for the elderly and for persons with disabilities.
Services to children and youth provided by Religious throughout the world include 10,163 institutes for abandoned children; 10,932 day care facilities and nurseries; 13,866 family counseling services; and 30,531 centers of formation, education and social recuperation for minors at risk (e.g., "protectories"). The Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life summarized that, including these examples and many others forms of assistance and social promotion, there are 114,000 charitable and apostolic works performed by Religious. For all of these amazing works, the Church rejoices in the dedication of the Religious sisters, brothers and priests who are prime collaborators in the mission of the Church.
A special expression of gratitude must be offered as well to the cloistered Religious who by their commitment and dedication to prayer sustain the mission of the Church. Their prayers and sacrifices for the Church's mission are typified by Saint Therese of the Child Jesus. Although she never left the Carmelite monastery in Lisieux, Saint Therese has been proclaimed the co-patron of the Church's missions, for her largesse of heart, her prayerful support and loving solicitude for the mission of the Church reached to the ends of the earth.
While we realize that these statistics reflect the global reality, we must understand as well that a considerable portion of these works are performed in the missions of the Church. Much of these works are supported by the prayers and generosity of the faithful. World Mission Sunday, the Church's celebration of her missionary identity, also places before us the needs of those who engage in the mission of the Church and how that mission is expressed in charitable service, in education, in providing for the poor, and in compassionate care for the elderly, the disabled, the sick and the dying. The World Mission Sunday collection allows all of the faithful to participate in the missionary nature of the Church by supporting these forms of outreach and evangelization.
This World Mission Sunday, then, invites us to understand that the Church perseveres in her mission, bearing the Gospel of Jesus " actively, adamantly, faithfully and geographically " to the ends of the earth. The Church's missionary nature beckons us to participate in the work of evangelization, through prayer, through sacrifice, and through charity, the greatest and enduring gift which makes the Name of Jesus known and the Face of Jesus to shine in every corner of the world.
