Extraordinary Month of Mission – October 2019

October is Mission Month. This year’s theme, ‘Together We Are Mission’, is asking us to move away from the idea that mission work is solely the work of priests, sisters, catechists, and lay missionaries. We are asked to consider the part we all play. It is because of the prayers and generosity of people that hope, love and joy, can continue to be shared with the suffering and neglected.

In his World Mission Sunday address, Pope Francis writes,

I am a mission, always; you are a mission, always; every baptised man and woman is a mission.

This goes to the heart of our baptismal call to be part of God’s mission in the world. ‘Together We Are Mission’ is a statement that highlights the part every one of us play in mission work.  Through our faith we are called to be missionary, to support and care for those in need, not just those near us, but also our brothers and sisters in our wider church family. Mission month is a special time that allows us to act on our baptismal calling through our gifts and prayers.