Networked missionaries

Rome (Italy). On 12 February 2022, Sr. Ruth del Pilar Mora, Councilor for the Missions of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, and the Sector Collaborators met in online mode with the FMA missionaries who had their missionary formation in Rome, in the FMA Generalate, from 2015 to 2021.

The meetings were held by continents, at three different times of the day, to give everyone the opportunity to be present: Asia and Oceania; Africa and Europe; America. The FMA were connected from numerous countries around the world: Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Timor, Mongolia, Cambodia, India, Benin, Ethiopia, Congo Brazzaville, Madagascar, Kenya, Angola, Italy, France, Lebanon, Paraguay, Malta, Cuba, Venezuela, Brazil, United States, Venezuela, Paraguay, Argentina.

In greeting the missionaries, Sr. Ruth took inspiration from Pope Francis’s homily for the XXVI World Day of Consecrated Life, 2 February 2022, focusing on the Pope’s three questions, “What are we moved by?”, “What do our eyes see?”, “What do we hold in our arms?” and she declined them in the experience of missionaries ad gentes.

In particular, she highlighted the ability to walk with hope, patiently living the time and space that God offers, generating life in silence, in daily fidelity, and in docility to the little things that are received as a gift. “Our missionary capacity,” continued the Councilor, “is measured by the possibility of letting God work within us to continue weaving this missionary network, walking together in the Institute to build bridges of communion, fraternity, and tear down the walls of separation. We are all called to descend from Cana to Capernaum and ‘With Mary be a presence that generates life’.”

The participants were very grateful for this virtual meeting opportunity. In their lively sharing, they expressed deep gratitude for the experience of interculturality, harmony between cultures, charismatic deepening “at the Center of the Institute”, lived during the year or months of formation and preparation for the mission, inserted in the Community of Mary Help of Christians of the Generalate (RCG).

In conclusion, Sr. Ruth urged them to continue with passion the journey in missionary synodality, at the service of the life of all, especially the poor. At the end of each meeting, all the groups from the different continents expressed their desire to have other opportunities to find themselves online to share missionary life.