Why Mission

1
Why Mission?

• Promoting the universal mission spirit of the
  Church and the renewal of the Church called by
  John Paul II.

2
Why Mission?

• The Churchs universal mission is born of our
  faith in Jesus Christ, as stated in our
  Trinitarian profession of Faith. I believe in
  one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,
  eternally begotten of the Father For us men and
  for our salvation He came down from heaven by
  the power of the Holy Spirit He became incarnate
  from the Virgin Mary, and was made man (Pope
  Paul II).

3
A Pastoral Statement on World Mission

• To the Ends of the Earth
• Two main purposes
• An instrument for mission animation.
• To affirm missionaries in their efforts to
  proclaim the Gospel and promote the reign of God.

4
The Basic Issue of the Document

• There is one faith, faith in Jesus Christ, the
  Son of God, sent by the Father as a unique Savior
  for the entire human race.
• Pope John Paul II alerts us to various tendencies
  that could distract us from the mission ad gentes
  to the re-evangelization efforts.

5
Pope John Paul II reminded us

• From the Redemptoris Missio Faith is
  strengthened when it is given to others.
• He said that we need to be renewed in our faith,
  in which we were first formed.
• It is the Propagation of the Faiths primary
  responsibility to promote the universal
  missionary spirit of the Church.

6
Why mission of Christ?Why mission of the Church?

• For the early Church the answer was clear
• There is no salvation through anyone else, nor
  is there any other name under heaven given to the
  human race by which we are saved (Acts 412).

7
Mission for Peter and the Apostolic Church

• For Peter and the Apostolic Church, Mission was a
  matter of salvation.
• Jesus was sent by God to save the human race.
• Jesus came to save people from death spiritual
  and physical.
• By his death and resurrection he came to give
  life.
• The mission of the Church was inseparable from
  the Gospel, the Good News of salvation.

8
Mission is a matter of salvation for the whole
human race

• God promised to Abraham that in his offspring
  all families of the earth shall be blessed
  (Acts 325).

9
Mission for the Early Christians

• Mission was a matter of following Jesus Christ,
  who humbled Himself and was obedient unto death,
  even death on a cross (Philippians 228).
• Mission means following Christ Jesus, whom God
  greatly exalted, and bestowed on Him the name
  that is above every other name (Philippians
  28-9).

10
Christ the Lord of All

• Mission is a matter of
• following Christ, the
• Lord of all, (Acts 1036)
• that every tongue
• might confess that
• Jesus Christ is Lord, to
• the glory of God the
• Father (Philippians 211).

11
To Speak of the Name is to Speak of the Person

• In the New Testament, the name is equivalent to
  the person communicating a persons very being
  and identity.
• To speak of the name of Christ is to speak of His
  person.

12
To Proclaim the Name of Christ

• To proclaim the name of Christ is to
• proclaim His very person, the Son of
• God, born of a virgin, crucified One who
• rose from the dead, the Gospel incarnate,
• Good News of great joy for all people
• (Luke 210).

13
To be Saved by the Name of Christ

• To be saved by the
• name of Christ is to be
• saved by the person of
• Christ, the Savior who
• is Christ and Lord
• (Luke 211).

14
Mission Proclaiming the Kingdom of God

• For the early Church, mission was a matter of
  proclaiming the Kingdom of God, a kingdom above
  every earthly kingdom, transcending the kingdom
  of Israel (Acts 16-7) and even the Roman Empire
  to embrace the ends of the earth (Acts 118).

15
In Sum Mission is

• A matter of being a Church
• Of following Christ
• Of continuing Christs mission
• And proclaiming the Kingdom of God in deed and
  word.

16
Proclaiming the Kingdom

• The early Church proclaimed the kingdom by its
  very being, in the name of Christ, in the person
  of Christ as a sacrament of salvation, as a
  sacrament of the kingdom to the ends of the
  earth.
• That is the way it was in the very beginning.
  That is the way it has been through the
  centuries, going on two thousand years.

17
Two Thousand Years of Mission Experience

• At first in its formative years the Church was
  intimately associated with the Jewish people.
• Later the Church was allied to the Roman Empire
  embracing many peoples, kingdoms and nations.
• At the height of Christendom, the Church was
  associated with various nations Spain,
  Portugal, France.

18
Peering into a Vast Eastern World

• From its birth at Pentecost, the Church set its
  gaze beyond Jerusalem and Judea, beyond the Roman
  Empire itself, to Mesopotamia and ancient Iran,
  to the far frontiers of the Parthian Empire, even
  to the confines of India.

19
In the Age of Discovery

• In the Age of Discovery, the Church followed the
  European empires to baptize all peoples in the
  name of Christ, the Lord of all, inviting them
  into the Kingdom of God.

20
Exercising Christ-given Mission

• There have been periods of profound change in the
  world political, economic, demographic, and
  cultural change disrupting old patterns and
  transforming the setting in which the Church
  exercised her mission.
• At times, such periods could be disorienting for
  the Church and its mission.

21
Columbus Discovery of America - 1492

• Columbus discovery challenged the prevailing
  worldview and dramatically altered the map of the
  world.
• Columbus discovery transformed the Churchs
  vision of the ends of the earth.
• So did Magellan, while circumnavigating the
  world, and many others.

22
The Churchs Mission in Light of New Horizons and
Situations

• Throughout history, periods of change have called
  the Church to refocus its mission in light of new
  horizons and situations.
• In periods of profound change in the world, the
  Church must find the way to follow Christ in
  faith.

23
To Faithfully Proclaim the Kingdom of God

• In periods of profound change in the world, the
  Church must find a way to faithfully proclaim the
  Kingdom of God by its very being, in deed, and
  word, as a sacrament of salvation, as the
  sacrament of the Kingdom of God to the ends of
  the earth.

24
To the Ends of the Earth

• There have been many periods of change in the
  life of the Church.
• The Church needs to refocus its mission in light
  of new situations.
• That is what the Catholic Bishops of the United
  States did in their Pastoral statement on world
  mission To the Ends of the Earth.

25
To the Ends of the Earth Purpose and Context

• The purpose of the pastoral was to provide a
  theological and pastoral instrument for mission
  animation.
• To affirm missionaries in their efforts to
  proclaim the Gospel and promote the reign of God.

26
Sources of Inspiration Guidance

• The Bishops were inspired and guided by
• Vatican Councils Decree on the Missionary
  Activity of the Church (Ad Gentes)
• Pope Paul VIs Apostolic Exhortation on
  Evangelization in the Modern World (Evangelii
  Nuntiandi)

27
Giving a Broader Ecclesial Missionary Context

• The Bishops wanted to give a broader ecclesial
  and missionary context for their other pastoral
  statements
• The Challenge for Peace
• Economic Justice for All

28
Unity with the Church Throughout the World

• In writing the pastoral, the Bishops were very
  aware of their unity with the Church throughout
  the world.
• The pastoral letter presents the challenge to
  the Church in the United States with regard to
  world mission.

29
The Churchs Missionary Nature Challenge

• The Bishops were also
• very conscious of their
• unity with Pope John
• Paul II, who reminded
• the Church, over and
• over again, of its
• missionary nature and
• challenge.

30
Evangelical Spirit

• In writing the pastoral, the Bishops wanted to
  inspire new dedication on the part of all
  Catholics to the universal mission of the Church.
• The tone of the pastoral had to be very
  evangelical, as Vatican II was.

31
Jesus was a Missionary

• As the Word of God, Jesus is the light of all
  nations (Lumen Gentium).
• As the Word made flesh, Jesus brought Gods own
  life in our midst (see John 11-1012,16).

32
Before Returning to the Father

• Christ sent the Church to continue the mission
  given Him by the Father, and empowered her with
  His Spirit As the Father has sent me, so I send
  you (John 2031 see also John 1718).

33
Inspired by the Gospels, the Letters of Paul
Vatican II

• Jesus is a missionary of the
• Father. Each Christian is
• His witness. Let His voice
• proclaim the Gospel
• through us as we bring the
• Good News of salvation to
• the ends of the earth.