EUROPE/ITALY - "Baptized and sent": "Mission is a divine action witnessed by men and women"

Saturday, 26 October 2019 extraordinary missionary month   pontifical mission societies   missionary animation   evangelization  

Rome (Agenzia Fides) - "Without hesitation, let us ask the Lord that the baptism we have received bears all its fruit in fullness, without half measures, without calculation, without fear. The missionary nature of our baptism will thus be translated into a testimony of holiness that gives life and beauty to the world". This is what Father Ernesto Viscardi, a Consolata missionary and Vicar of the Apostolic Prefecture of Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia reports to Agenzia Fides in an interview with Agenzia Fides, commenting on the theme suggested by "Missio - Italia" for the last Sunday of the Extraordinary Missionary Month of October 2019 , focused on the expression "sent".
"Where does Jesus send us? There are no boundaries, there are no limits - explains Father Viscardi - the Gospel is for everyone and not for some: baptism has its root in mission, so all men and women are called to live as missionaries".
In fact, on the fourth Sunday of the month, October 27th, all the faithful are invited to reflect on the announcement of joy and sharing of the Gospel. The missionary dimension, therefore, is not delegated only to some, but it belongs to every Christian: "We must respond to our own baptismal vocation with great humility - notes Father Ernesto - the mission is above all hospitality: therefore, it is important to foster a mutual exchange of knowledge with and towards each other and to establish a dialogue made of understanding and respect, as we do in Mongolia".
For the Apostolic Vicar who lives his mission in Mongolia, "the relationship with God is above all to untie the knots that we carry within and that prevent us from relating to Him and to others". Therefore, before learning to speak, we need to educate ourselves to listening: "Listening is the privileged channel of the relationship of man with God, faith always comes from listening", he points out. Here is the double dimension of the missionary spirit: "On the one hand - he reports - we must give ourselves as a gift through the witness of the Gospel; on the other, we must be ready to receive, healing our closures, our isolation, opening ourselves to others and eliminating all barriers". "In this way - he concludes - we learn that the Gospel is the good news and the ultimate secret of a story animated by the love of the Father". (ES) (Agenzia Fides, 26/10/2019)


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