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The Joy and Courage of the Mission
By Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle 

“The mission begins in the heart,” we were told by Pope Benedict XVI. Recently, at St. Peter’s Square, when reflecting on missionary work and on the theme of this year’s World Mission Day, which is, “Charity, Soul of the Mission,” Pope Benedict emphasized that missions, "if not driven by love, are reduced to a philanthropic and social activity."  Christian missions, in contrast to other secular social aid projects, must be inspired by the words of St. Paul, “the love of Christ impels us (2 Cor 5:14)."

     Pope Benedict pointed out that the beginning of this missionary work “is what happened 800 years ago to the young Francis of Assisi in the chapel of St. Damian, which was then a ruin. From the height of the Cross ... Francis heard Jesus tell him: 'Go, repair My house, which as you see is in ruins'."

     The “house” that Jesus told Saint Francis about was first Francis' own life, which he had to 'repair' through a true conversion of heart, Pope Benedict explained. Second, “it was the Church, not built of bricks but of living people, in constant need of purification.”  And third, Pope Benedict added, “it was also the entirety of humanity, in which God loves to dwell." Saint Francis began his missionary work in a profound way. Now, 800 years later, Saint Francis’ charism is very much alive through his prayer for peace that is prayed regularly.

     Blessed Teresa of Calcutta was driven by love.  She knew about this essential element of a missionary’s heart long before Pope Benedict stated recently that love is the driving force, the pure component necessary to reach other souls through the mission. Blessed Teresa taught her sisters that without love, a deep prayer life and time with Jesus who is love, in the Blessed Sacrament, they would be mere social workers and not Missionary of Charity nuns.

     How does the average Catholic do missionary work in his or her walk of life? Our missionary work should really be part of our every day life. It should permeate our pores! We begin with a conversion of heart.  Our own hearts need to be evangelized with the gospel before we can offer the gospel to others. We deepen our prayer lives and come closer to Jesus. Missionary work is not only performed in distant parts of the world-it begins in our own homes and spills out into the workplace and the community. It is something we are all capable of. It can happen in the course of our everyday lives if we allow it to.

     “Christian life is a sacrifice,” we were told by Pope John XXIII. Of course, he always also spoke of the many joys interwoven into our Christian lives.  But, to truly give of ourselves, we must sacrifice. To do missionary work, we must sacrifice our time and talents.  Sometimes, time itself becomes very difficult to give away when we are so busy and feel we don’t even have enough time to accomplish what is required of us.

     We should remember that our dear Lord will grant us the graces we need. We have to ask for them. It is necessary to sacrifice our time to give to others in need. Blessed Teresa said that to truly love someone there must be sacrifice. And Pope Benedict recently reminded us that missionary work has to be rooted in love and driven by it. Therefore, love and sacrifice go hand in hand.

     By praying to be in God’s holy will, we will be putting ourselves in God’s time frame. We won’t need to worry about the lack of time for ministry because we will be living the ministry. There are no coincidences in life. By asking God to use us for His will, we will open ourselves to do His work. By living in a state of grace, we allow God to use us as He may. Our missionary work is not separated from our lives, but rather it is our lives.

     It’s amazing when we are sometimes allowed to see God working through us or others in evangelization and missionary work. While some missionary work certainly entails a lot of effort, at other times, a simple word or gesture can change someone’s heart.

     I know a priest who went into the Church when it was vacant, to get the Blessed Sacrament to bring to the sick. Upon hearing the priest come into the Church, a stranger who was in the Church quickly hid in the Confessional. The priest went about his business, not knowing that someone was watching him. He genuflected before the tabernacle reverently, took out the Holy Communion for the sick and went on his way to the nursing home. Meanwhile, the stranger who was only at the Church because of his curiosity about the Church became profoundly touched. So much so, that he came back to the Church again and told this priest that he wanted to become a Catholic because of what he had witnessed.  What he had seen when this priest bowed down to genuflect before the Blessed Sacrament, was a real love for Jesus and not a show for a spectator. This priest’s gesture of reverence and love for the Lord converted a stranger’s heart.

     One time I just happened to mention the word, “Church” to a neighbor when I was referring to my young daughter’s Church dress that she wore that day. My neighbor’s eyes welled up with tears upon hearing that one word, “Church” and she began to tell me a story about her father’s last wishes on his death bed. This woman felt sad that she hadn’t fulfilled his wishes yet to have her son baptized. She told me that she hadn’t been to Church in many years. After some reassuring words for her, she decided to see our priest and return to the Sacraments. Amazing!

     We don’t know what God plans to do through us, His servants. We do know that if we humble ourselves and pray to come closer to our Lord, “repairing our house” we can help repair the house of the Lord. God in His divine providence has put us where we are.  We need to trust Him to do the work, using us. We must make ourselves available and cooperate with His plan.

     “All baptized people," Pope Benedict said, "like shoots attached to the vine, can thus cooperate in Jesus' mission: ... bringing everyone the good news that God is love and, precisely for this reason, wants to save the world.”

     Blessed Teresa was forever telling her sisters that “joy is a net to catch souls.” She believed that to serve others properly, you must serve them with a smile and real joy of heart. This joy and love converts souls.

     Sometimes the evangelization and missionary work that occurs through us happens only within the walls of our homes, workplaces, or for the Religious, in the rectories and convents. We don’t need to travel to distant lands to evangelize. By being obedient to our state of life, offering our hearts fully to God and asking Him to use us to convert others, miracles will indeed happen in human hearts, by His grace.

     "The mission is, then, a workshop with room for everyone: for people committed to fulfilling the Kingdom of God in their own family; for people who live their professional lives with a Christian spirit; for people totally consecrated to the Lord; ... for people who go out with the specific intention of announcing Christ to those who do not yet know Him,” Pope Benedict said. He encourages us to call upon the Blessed Mother, “May Mary Most Holy help us to experience ... the joy and courage of the mission!"

     Let us all allow the love of Christ to impel us. With Christ’s love, along with joy and courage from the Blessed Mother, we will go out to the ends of the earth and the ends of the household with our nets of love and joy to catch souls!

10/24/06

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