Everyone has a vocation. All of us are missionaries by our Divine call to share God’s love with others in the concrete conditions we are in. We are reminded of this in a special way this October as we celebrate Mission Month and World Mission Sunday on October 23.
In thisage of social media and the growing applications of Artificial Intelligence, communication might actually become more complex, rather than simpler, and the search for the authentic self in God could be diluted with the tendency to seek instant, push-button solutions, instead of one going through the process of discovering God’s Presence in a deeply intimate way.
We are at a point where we must examine what are other significant ways by which we could evangelize the Good News. What traditions are we meant to uphold and what are old ways that we could consider opening up to more flexible and possibly Spirit-led directions?
I would like to share two specific virtual exchanges I had. One was with a permanent married deacon who studied in a seminary in the Philippines and who continued his studies abroad. His ordained ministry took more than 20 years to materialize, but he had felt God’s continued guidance and provision in the years leading up to his ordination. He already has one son with his loving wife. We have no permanent married deacons in the Philippines. It is more prevalent in Europe. He was suggesting that this be up for discussion here because a taste of being in both worlds, ordained and married at the same time, as the Church allows it, brings with it charisms that penetrate realities of having a family while preaching the Word of God and supporting the priesthood.
Another conversation I had started with an invitation to facilitate a youth workshop in response to how some young people find that some homilists do not seem to connect with them. In the spirit of synodality, these young people wanted to explore more dynamic ways in which the Word of God could be shared.
For example, an area of consideration is the unique manner in which a priest, a nun and a lay person came together to discuss how the extremely huge Korean BTS movement could be integrated into spirituality.
World peace is very volatile these days, not just with the Russia-Ukraine War, but the conflict between China-Taiwan and the US. In between these, we have OFWS who are getting affected, and our own safety as a nation is at risk. How could the Church continue to respond to the dire needs of the individuals directly involved, strengthening their Faith, attending to their humanitarian needs and interceding powerfully for the heads of state?
We are all exhorted to follow the Spirit’s directives in significantly making God’s love a powerful force wherever we are called, particularly through our witnessing. Docility and continued discernmentare key to remain connected to where people are actually coming from.Pope Francis, in his message for World Mission Sunday 2022, reminds us, “In evangelization, then, the example of a Christian life and the proclamation of Christ are inseparable.”
