EUROPE/SPAIN - “This is the hour of mission and missionary commitment,” says national Director Pontifical Mission Societies Archbishop Pérez. “We must work harder to achieve God’s plan and to meet the many needs of the world today”

Tuesday, 5 October 2004

Madrid (Fides Service) - “It is time for your missionary commitment”: is the slogan chosen by the Church in Spain for World Mission Day 2004. In a dossier prepared for the occasion, a copy was sent to Fides, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies PMS Archbishop Francisco Pérez explains the choice of the slogan: "This year our aim for Mission Sunday is to underline the importance of missionary commitment in the life of the Church and concretely in our Church in Spain. This is the hour of mission and missionary commitment and this commitment is twofold. First it must work to achieve God’s plan in the history of humanity and secondly it must be commitment to attend to the needs of others."
Specific PMS goals identified for this month of mission include: promote missionary animation to increase awareness among the faithful of the missionary duty received with baptism; increase material cooperation to support missionaries in need; help people to prolong participation in Sunday Mass with concrete works of missionary commitment because “from the Eucharist stems the duty of every Christian to cooperate for the good of the community”; make every effort to ensure that Mission Sunday 24 October is celebrated with prayer, sacrifices, collections and a call for missionary vocations. Archbishop Pérez urges the faithful in Spain to live Mission Sunday “giving up something and putting it at the service of the poor, a deed more precious than gold, an act of authentic love for God and others".
PMS Vice National director in Spain Father Anastasio Gil García told Fides that in September the PMS organised days of missionary reflection for diocesan Mission Councils to organise activities for the month of October. To help revive and re-launch the missionary spirit in dioceses the PMS national office distributed material including a handbook with suggestions for the celebration of Mass with a concrete intention for each week such as: prayers for the missions, sacrifices, collections, missionary vocations. The material included slogans and posters, catechesis for children and young people, guides for teachers of religion, a liturgical guide, a triptych of information, a drawing for children to colour, mission money boxes and a CD with a missionary hymn and several interviews.
On the occasion of Mission Sunday the PMS in Spain published latest figures with regard Spanish missionaries in the world in all 20.000 (55.81% women and 44.19% men), distributed as follows: 73.27% in America; 13.35% Africa 7.72% in Europe; 5.48% Asia; 0.16% in Oceania. Castilla-León is the community with the most missionaries abroad 32.33% of the total number, followed by Navarra with 10.13%. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 5/10/2004; Righe 35; Parole 465)
For more information see: http://www.omp.es/Domund/Jornada.htm


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