RMG – The Rector Major meets the missionaries |
Italy – To proclaim Good News to the poor |
RMG – “Cagliero 11” for missionary promotion |
The Councillor for the Missions appeals to Salesians for the 142nd missionary expedition planned for 2011. In the introduction Klement recalls how since the 26th General Chapter held in 2008, until today there have been 95 Salesians, in formation, Brothers and priests who have left for the “missio ad gentes”. An effort which has also seen Provinces suffering from a shortage of personnel generously offering a missionary each year. The 141st expedition which officially left on 26 September included 17 priests, 5 brothers and 23 young Salesians in initial formation.
His letter, leaving aside formalities, becomes an exhortation for missionaries. “I have asked myself many times: What happens when a particular Church or a Province stops sending more missionaries for the needs of the universal Church? Surely there are some serious consequences: the Church stops growing, looking only inward to its needs leads to a lost of its catholicity, it does not continue on the path of the mission and, in the process, jeopardises the growth of its own faith. Closing oneself to the needs of the universal Church, it also loses the courage to face its own challenges.”
Recalling the celebration of the centenary of the death of Don Rua concluded a few days ago, the Councillor for the Missions observes: “During the 22 years of his ministry as Rector Major he had sent as many as 31 missionary expeditions with 1465 missionary confreres to many starting missions in America, Africa and Asia. In every January issue of the Salesian Bulletin Fr. Rua shared with the Cooperators new developments in our mission and asked their help in the realisation of the daring plans for the year that was about to begin.”
Fr Klement sees it as important that, from initial formation, there should be an opening to the missions: “Without a process of continuous, systematic and updated mission information and training during their initial formation, we cannot expect new missionary vocations.”
The list of the requirements for the 142nd expedition, as well as the full text f the Councillor’s letter are published in “Cagliero 11”, the monthly review of the Missions Department which is available on the site sdb.org.
Published 09/11/2010