Fidei donum priests sent on mission to Asia
Rome (AsiaNews) – Asia “is a horizon which cannot be overlooked” by Italian Churches. This is why Fidei donum priests should be guided “there, where Christianity first arose”.
This is the invitation contained in a note from the Commission for the evangelisation of peoples and co-operation between Churches of the Italian Bishops Conference, published yesterday to mark the 50th anniversary of the encyclical letter Fidei donum, in which Pius XII re-launched the urgency of missionary activity and exhorted diocese throughout the world to send priests and lay people to announce the Gospel “to the peoples”.
The note, issued for the missionary month of October, recognises “the obstacles of culture and language” which often make missions in Asia difficult, but it also underlines how this is “a horizon that cannot be ignored by our Church”. Above all, writes the Commission, contact with the Asian communities, “creates precious osmosis, helping us to feel part of the universal Church and placing us in touch with cultures and traditions of vast dimensions, which all to often appear to be ‘exotic’ and distant”.
Since the Letter was published in 1957, an average 1900 priests have been ‘donated’ by Italian diocese to the world, of which 11 have died announcing the Gospel, among them don Andrea Santoro, martyred in Turkey in 2006. The note adds that “if it is true, according to the words of Tertullian, that the blood of the martyrs rather than being a sign of death is in fact the seed from which new Christian’s spring, then we can be certain that none of these lives have been offered in vain”.
The Commission “hopes that this fiftieth anniversary encourages Italian diocese that have no Fidei donum to opt for this choice, and those who honour the Italian Church which such generosity to continue along this path with increased renewal”.
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11/09/2019 18:09
