VATICAN - Archbishop Dal Toso: "Mission belongs to every baptized person: lay people and missionary families are on the rise"

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - "The profound meaning of World Mission Day (WMD) is to keep the meaning of mission in all the baptized alive. In this historical moment, the element of the universality of the Church, which concerns the whole world, gains more force. As humanity lives through the time of the pandemic, it is possible to understand how deeply we are connected to each other. World Mission Day, at an ecclesial level, wants to help keep alive the element of the universality of faith: no one believes alone, we are all linked by faith in Christ, regardless of where we live". This is what Archbishop Giampietro Dal Toso, Assistant Secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and President of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) says to the Agenzia Fides, in view of the celebration of World Mission Day which will be celebrated on Sunday, October 18, 2020.
The Archbishop remarks: "We are grateful to the Pope because, in his Message entitled “Here I am, send me”, he highlights the aspect of the responsibility and the response of each baptized person, stressing that the vocational aspect never fails. We need people who dedicate their lives to proclaiming the Gospel and in particular to the missio ad gentes. We hope and pray that the Holy Spirit arouses in young people a specific vocation to proclaim the Gospel in mission lands. World Mission Day is also a day of prayer. Let us keep in mind, in our prayer for the missions, also to always ask for new "workers for the Lord's vineyard", who are ready to give their lives for Him.
An important aspect, which will also be underlined in the Special Dossier that Agenzia Fides will publish on October 16, on the occasion of World Mission Day, is the growth in the number of lay missionaries and missionary families. "This is a very comforting fact, not only from a numerical point of view, but above all because it indicates that everyone - and not only priests and consecrated persons - feel responsible for the evangelizing mission of the Church". Mgr. Dal Toso reports the following episode: "Last week, the PMS Direction in Vienna, awarded some missionaries. Out of three, two of them were missionary families. There are great realities within the Church which send entire families on mission, such as the Neocathecumenal Way, because the family itself bears witness to the faith and evangelizes. This is an important fact because it fulfills what was said in the motto of the Extraordinary Missionary Month, celebrated last year: “Baptized and Sent”. It is baptism that makes us Christians and, as Christians, we are witnesses and proclaimers of Christ".
World Mission Day is also the moment of global fundraising destined for the Universal Solidarity Fund through which the Pontifical Mission Societies support the young Churches. "The universal collection is part of World Mission Day. To the prayer for the missions is added the charitable aspect. As every soul needs a body, Churches need structures and personnel and this requires an economic commitment. Recently, the Pope set up at the Pontifical Mission Societies, a special fund in favor of young Churches affected by Covid-19. Despite the difficulties of this historic moment, we appeal to the generosity of the faithful. Thanks to the commitment of the National Directions of the Pontifical Mission Societies, it will be possible to go beyond the Sunday collection and use, for example, forms and methods of economic donations through the Internet". (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 13/10/2020)

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