The Pope's missionary prayer intention for December: “That the Incarnation of the Son of God, which the Church celebrates at Christmas, may help the peoples of Asia recognise Jesus as the One sent by God, the only Saviour of the world ” Comment by Fr. Vito Del Prete, PIME, Secretary general of the Pontifical Missionary Union (PMU)

Monday, 3 December 2007

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - Our mission is to re-propose the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God and son of man, to the world, for a future of peace, love and justice. With these words pronounced a year ago Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Archbishop of Naples and former prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples opened the First Asian Mission Congress in the theme: “Telling the Story of Jesus in Asia: a celebration of faith and life ”. This is the Church's mission in Asia.
In the face of doubts and hesitation expressed by some people who say there is no place for Christ in Asia, it is necessary to affirm that Asia is a privileged place for God and that in Asia Christianity is not new not can it be said to be foreign to Asian culture and religious sentiments. In fact God loved Asia so much says -Cardinal Ivan Dias - that it was in Asia that he wished His Son to be born. Christianity was planted in Asia by the Apostles themselves. Down through the centuries many Asian Christians and Christian communities have suffered persecution and martyrdom because of their faith in Christ. It was in Asia the prophetic apostolic methods were tried out, anticipating by centuries the modern method of evangelisation which came from a deeper a deeper Christological and ecclesiological understanding of Vatican II. Now is the time for all the Churches in Asia to undertake on their own and in solidarity with the other Churches the missionary mandate to preach the Gospel, searching for the signs of the times, which opens new forums for missionary activity in dialogue with other religions and with Asia's heritage of wisdom, “may He be found and adored by all peoples”.
No one is unaware of the difficulty encountered to announce Jesus at a time when Asia itself is experiencing a cultural crisis due to rapid changes in society lifestyles. A new world is being born. This demands new inculturation of the faith, grafting the seed of the Gospel onto Asia's cultural roots. The Catholic Church in Asia in this field is not unprepared, indeed it can be a credible example for the Church all over the world. In fact for years she has used dialogue with other religions and preference for the poor as the two main forums for her evangelising activity. However she is called to make present in a manner suitable for the Asian context, not structures, but the Lord. To do this she must continually listen attentively to the Holy Spirit, who enables her to tell the story of Jesus. We must allow the story of Jesus speak to and touch individuals and peoples. This proclamation is a major challenge to justice and peace and demands holiness. The proclamation of the unicity and centrality of Christ Universal Saviour, with respect for and dialogue with cultures and religions, and the liberation of the masses of poor and marginalised people are the two forums for evangelisation in Asia.
Asia's Catholic communities must demonstrate their Christian identity with dialogue of life, not forgetting charity, the soul of mission. Mission is love and to be a missionary is to love God to love God passionately. In this lies apostolic fecundity, because especially in Asia, prayer, fraternal dialogue with other cultures and religions, and holiness of life speak to people more eloquently than reasoning.
We pray the Father may grant Asia's Catholic communities the desire and the wisdom to proclaim the fathomless and touching mystery of the Incarnation of his eternal Word, the highest expression of His eternal love for humanity. That they may be always anxious to share with the Asian brothers and sisters the immense gift received, the love of Jesus the Saviour who mission of love and service they wish to continue, that all the people living on this immense continent may have "life and life in abundance” (Jn 10, 10). (P. Vito Del Prete, PIME) (Agenzia Fides 3/12/2007, righe 43, parole 646)


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