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The Diocesan Mission Commssion advocates and supports mission formation and evangelization. God has a plan for each and every one of us! We are all called to be missionary - to enliven and embody a spirit of faith, hope and charity! The Diocesan Mission Commission cultivates this missionary spirit through:
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World Mission Sunday & Extraordinary Mission Month - October 2019
- a solidarity program -
The Holy Childhood program
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Education and Formation programs
WMS & Extraordinary Mission Month October 2019
THE NEXT WORLD MISSION SUNDAY IS: October 20, 2019
Pope Francis has declared for the universal church an Extraordinary Mission Month in October 2019 (EMM 2019). The theme is “Baptized and Sent - The Church of Christ on Mission in the World”. During the month of October we will have opportunities to reflect on the lives of missionary disciples who have gone before us, and to renew our call to announce the Good News of God’s mercy and love for everyone.
The Holy Father indicated four ways to help us prepare for and live out EMM 2019:
1) Cultivating a personal encounter with Jesus Christ alive in his Church: Eucharist, Word of God, personal and communal prayer;
2) Reading about the witness of the saints, the missionary martyrs, and the Confessors of the Faith, who are unique expressions of the churches of the world;
3) Praying with and learning from biblical, catechetical, spiritual and theological formation regarding the missio ad gentes (“mission to nations”); and,
4) Engaging in missionary charity as a material support for the immense work of evangelization and Christian formation in churches that are most in need.
Working with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Fabbro and Bishop Dabrowski hope that this ecclesial initiative (EMM2019) , at both the universal and local levels, will contribute significantly to a renewal in missionary spirit throughout Canada, in the diocese and in the lives of all the baptized.
SEE SUBPAGE FOR DETAILS - EMM2019 !
World Mission Sunday is a day that has been set aside for the whole church since 1926 to pray and support it’s missionaries in the way that Jesus instructed his disciples: "Go and make disciples of all nations" Mt 28:19
Every parish in the world is called to contribute to a worldwide solidarity fund to be distributed according to the needs of the poorest dioceses and parishes. It serves as a tool of justice and fraternity between dioceses enabling Bishops without resources to develop vocations, provide ministries, supply liturgical materials and create places of worship.
The Diocese of London mandates a WMS collection in parishes as per Bishop Fabbro. Every parish receives an information package: Animation Kit and Poster, messages from Pope Francis and the Canadian National Mission Directors, Calendar Prayer cards, Pastoral resources and donation envelopes.
For further assistance, please contact us at (519) 488 - 0846.
Holy Childhood Program
The "Holy Childhood” society" started in 1843 and operates worldwide, even in the poorest faith communities. This is the Holy Father's own mission program for forming a missionary spirit within the church. The motto and logo is: "children helping children".
The school program focuses on learning about other cultures in the world - about their spirituality, their service and their sacrifice. The children get to become missionaries of Christ and the Diocese advocates mission formation in all 5 School Boards in the London Diocese.
Teachers and parish catechists can order material directly from the Holy Childhood Association ( Pontifical Mission Society, Toronto)Education and Formation Programs
Creation began with the "missio Dei" - the mission of God!
And the church provides missionary direction and formation still today!
We have learned that:1) Vatican II document "missioAdGentes" - "Decree on the Church’s Missionary Activity" - "The pilgrim church is missionary by her very nature"
2) 1975 Exhortation by Paul VI - "Evangellii Nuntiandi" - "It (the church) exists to evangelize"3) 1983 Code of Common Law - "The missionary Action of the Church (Cannon 791)
"To foster missionary cooperation in the individual dioceses"
4) Motu proprio 2012 - Benedict XVI - "On the service of Charity"
"The church's charitable acivity at all levels must avoid the risk of becoming just another form of organized social assistance."
5) Pope Francis - "Evangelii Gaudium " - The Joy of the Gospel
"When we live out a spirituality of drawing nearer to others and seeking their welfare, our hearts are opened wide to the Lord's greatest and most beautiful gifts. Whenever we encounter another person in love, we learn something new about God"
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