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World Mission Sunday – “So that all nations might hear the Gospel”

October 03, 2004
On the weekend of October 23-24, Catholics around the globe will celebrate World Mission Sunday. That celebration will center on prayer and sacrifice, offered at the Eucharist. It will focus on the missionary task: of the priests, sisters, brothers and lay catechists who are helping people to know the love of Christ in villages, schools, medical outposts, refugee camps and orphanages throughout Africa, Asia, the Pacific Islands and regions of Latin America.

In his message for World Mission Sunday 2004, Pope John Paul II stated, “In the Eucharist, we relive the mystery of the Redemption culminating in the Lord’s sacrifice...Christ died for all; and for all is the gift of salvation which the Eucharist renders...” He reminds all the faithful that the theme of World Mission Sunday this year, “clearly emphasizes that ‘Eucharist and Mission’ are inseparable.”

Every year the needs of these missions grow. This year, there are more than 1,100 mission dioceses worldwide. Through the Sacrament of Baptism, Catholics are called to offer prayers and generous financial sustenance through the Propagation of the Faith, the basic means of support for the Catholic Church’s worldwide missions.

The offerings from Catholics in the United States are combined with donations from Catholics internationally. The needs of each mission diocese are then matched with the funds gathered each year. These monetary resources support catechetical programs, seminaries, the work of religious communities, communication and transportation needs, and the building of chapels and churches.

Bishop Patrick R. Cooney has called on the people in the Diocese of Gaylord to “give as generously as your means allow” and to pray for the Church’s missionary work “in union with the sufferings of Christ on the Cross for the salvation of the world.”

As Catholics, we know what our faith means to us, especially in times of distress. It is the response of our discipleship to be as generous as possible in helping others to share in Christ’s great gifts.