Fresh News from the Worldwide Network of the Xaverian Missionaries – 10.12.2024
THE VICAR GENERAL, FR. MAURO LODA AND GENERAL COUNCILLOR FR. FELIPE DE JESÚS OROZCO LÓPEZ WILL VISIT USA DELEGATION
On Friday, October 18th, 2024, Frs. Mauro Loda and Felipe de Jesús López Orozco will set out for a visit to the confreres of the USA Delegation. Fr. Mauro Loda will return to Rome on Thursday, October 31st, 2024. As for Fr. Felipe de Jesús López Orozco, on Saturday, November 2nd, 2024, he will head to Mexico to meet the confreres in that Region till Saturday, January 4th, 2025. They will also join the Xaverian Assembly, where all will gather in Holliston from October 27 – 31. The Assembly will prepare for the Jubilee of Hope that begins in December.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11th, 2024: XAVERIAN MARTYRS’ DAY
The second Friday of the month of October is dedicated to the memory of our confreres and Xaverian sisters who gave their lives to those who still do not know and love the Lord Jesus, in fidelity to His Gospel, through the Xaverian charism.
MESSAGE FOR THE 98TH WORLD MISSION DAY (October 20th, 2024): “Go and invite everyone to the banquet” (Mathew 22: 9)
“In the king’s command to his servants we find two words that express the heart of the mission: the verbs “to go out” and “to invite”. As for the first, we need to remember that the servants had previously been sent to deliver the king’s invitation to the guests (cf. vv. 3-4). Mission, we see, is a tireless going out to all men and women, in order to invite them to encounter God and enter into communion with him. Tireless! God, great in love and rich in mercy, constantly sets out to encounter all men and women, and to call them to the happiness of his kingdom, even in the face of their indifference or refusal. … The Church, for her part, in fidelity to the mission she has received from the Lord, will continue to go to the ends of the earth, to set out over and over again, without ever growing weary or losing heart in the face of difficulties and obstacles. …
“I take this opportunity to thank all those missionaries who, in response to Christ’s call, have left everything behind to go far from their homeland and bring the Good News to places where people have not yet received it, or received it only recently. Dear friends, your generous dedication is a tangible expression of your commitment to the mission ad gentes that Jesus entrusted to his disciples: “Go and make disciples of all nations” (Mt 28:19). We continue to pray and we thank God for the new and numerous missionary vocations for the task of evangelization to the ends of the earth.”
SHINMEIZAN – JAPAN: XVI INTERRELIGIOUS PRAYER MEETING FOR WORLD PEACE
On Sunday, October 6th, 2024, the XVI Interfaith Prayer Meeting for World Peace was held at the Shinmeizan Centre. This biennial event represents a milestone in the panorama of interreligious dialogue, bringing together Shinmeizan’s closest partners for a common commitment to peace.
Representatives of nine different religious denominations took turns to offer a ‘prayer’, each according to their own tradition. This common plea for peace is made even more urgent and powerful today by the dramatic situation afflicting too many war-torn countries.
The meeting not only underlined the importance of dialogue and mutual understanding, but also strengthened the bonds of friendship and solidarity between the various religious communities who participated. In an increasingly fragmented world, events like the Interfaith Prayer Meeting for World Peace are crucial to building bridges of peace and hope. (Claudio Codenotti s.x.)