Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
FMA
Rome (Agenzia Fides) - Tomorrow, November 14, 2024, the three-year preparation for the 150th anniversary of the 1st Missionary Expedition of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians (FMA) begins. On this day, the many deceased missionaries will also be remembered, especially those who first brought the Salesian Charism to the different countries of the world.
"Pope Francis, during his visit to us, Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, on October 22, 2021, reminded us 'not to forget the grace of the origins, the humility and smallness of the beginnings that made God's action transparent in the life and message of those who, full of wonder, began this journey' - Sister Ruth del Pilar Mora Velazco, General Councilor for the Missions Sector of the FMA, tells Fides. “This is precisely what we want to celebrate with gratitude, the gift of a God who continues to be present in our smallness and who invites us to be a presence that brings life, joy and hope to all, together with so many children, young people, women, educators who recognize themselves in the charism of our founders, Don Bosco and Mother Mazzarello,” taken from the monthly magazine of the Mother General Mother Chiara Cazzuola.
“Let us live this moment with a look full of gratitude to the Lord and to Mary Help of Christians, who in the lives of so many of our sisters and members of the educational communities, today dispersed in 98 countries of the world, have opened, through education, paths of life and future for and with many young people, women and men of diverse cultures, with courage and great creativity,” continues Sister Ruth.
Furthermore, we feel particularly driven by the missionary passion that we breathe today in the Church under the guidance of Pope Francis. We would like to be part of that people of God who live, together with so many, the joy of belonging to Christ, of recognizing in each person a brother or sister with whom to walk together to cultivate the culture of caring for everyone, for each person and for our common home.”
“The Salesian charism, being a gift of the Spirit, is a living reality, capable of incarnating itself in different cultures and times – explains the General Councilor. The review of our history confirms how our sisters have been able to be signs and bearers of God’s love to young people in the forests, in the metropolises, in schools, universities, oratories, vocational training centers, parishes, in times of war and in times of peace, in places of open or disguised religious freedom, in factories and on the streets. Today, in times marked by scientific and technological development and at the same time by so many social inequalities, we continue to seek ways, together with all those who believe in a new humanity, to make visible the Lord's love for each person, favoring the path of closeness, of our faith in the resources of young people and walking together so that everyone is recognized for their dignity and rights."
"Our hope - emphasizes Mother Chiara Cazzuola - is to reawaken the fire of missionary spirit, a peculiar characteristic of our charismatic identity, welcoming once again the invitation of Pope Francis: "In our day Jesus’ command to 'go forth', echoes in the changing scenarios and ever new challenges to the Church’s mission of evangelization, and all of us are called to take part in this new missionary “going forth”." (Evangelii gaudium, 20).
The event will be officially inaugurated at the Generalate in Rome by Mother Chiara Cazzuola, Superior General of the FMA Institute.
The Daughters of Mary Help of Christians around the world, who currently number 10,200 with 250 novices, want to commemorate today the history since November 14, 1877, when Sister Angela Vallese (23 years old), Sister Giovanna Borgna (17 years old), Sister Angela Cassulo (25 years old), Sister Angela Denegri (17 years old), Sister Teresa Gedda (24 years old), Sister Teresina Mazzarello (17 years old), together with Fr Giacomo Costamagna and the group of Salesians of Don Bosco who were leaving for the third missionary expedition, inaugurated a new stage in the life of the nascent Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians: the missions. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 13/11/2024)
FMA
