SIGNPOSTS FOR MISSION TODAY

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SIGNPOSTS FOR MISSION TODAY

• THE WHY, WHO AND WHERE OF MISSION

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MISSION BEFORE VATICAN II SAVING SOULS AND
ESTABLISHING THE CHURCH

• Before Vatican II the first motivation for
  mission was the salvation of individuals through
  baptism.
• The second motivation for mission was the
  establishment of the institution of the church in
  mission lands.

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MISSION DEFINED IN VATICAN II PARTICIPATION IN
THE MISSION OF THE TRIUNE GOD

• The Trinity is the center and origin of mission.
• The Church is to be in communion with Gods
  triune life and its life is destined to be a sign
  and instrument of Gods presence in creation.
• The church is missionary by its very nature.
• The church doesnt have a mission, but the
  mission is the church.
• The church is the pilgrim people of God. Its
  mission is to point and witness to Gods reign.
• Other religions and philosophies are preparation
  for the gospel.
• Christians should enter with prudence and charity
  into discussion and collaboration with members of
  other religions.

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MISSION DEVELOPED BY PAUL VI LIBERATING SERVICE
OF THE REIGN OF GOD

• Pope Paul VI published On Evangelization in the
  Modern World where he anchors the mission of the
  church in the earthly mission of Jesus and his
  preaching of the kingdom or reign of God.
• Only the kingdom is absolute and is linked with
  salvation which Jesus makes available to all
  those he meets on condition that they undergo a
  radical conversion, a profound change of mind and
  heart.
• Salvation involves liberation from everything
  that oppresses man. It must not be reduced to
  merely temporal activity.
• Evangelization is the vocation proper to the
  church. She exists to preach and teach, to be a
  channel of the gift of grace, to reconcile
  sinners with God, and to perpetuate Christs
  sacrifice of the Mass.
• The very roots of culture itself must be
  evangelized.
• The encyclical focuses on integral
  evangelization and integral salvation.

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MISSION AS REFINED BY JOHN PAUL II PROCLAMATION
OF JESUS CHRIST AS UNIVERSAL SAVIOR

• Pope John Paul II published the encyclical On
  The Permanent Validity Of The Church's Missionary
  Mandate in 1990 where he states that the primary
  motive for mission is the proclamation of Jesus
  Christ as universal Savior.
• Pope John Paul II acknowledges that people can be
  saved outside the church. However, while
  interreligious dialogue is an essential element
  of mission, the Church is the ordinary means of
  salvation, and she alone possesses the fullness
  of the means of salvation.
• It is important to incarnate the gospel in all
  peoples cultures.
• The Kingdom cannot be detached either from Christ
  or from the church.
• Mission goes beyond frontiers of race and
  religion, and works in areas of communications,
  peace, development, human rights, ecology,
  scientific research, and international relations.

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THE WHY OF MISSION

• Mission is the basic and most urgent task of the
  church, because to be Christian is to become part
  of Gods life and Gods vision of the world.
• We need to do mission to carry on the work of
  Jesus. As a community and as individuals, the
  church is not to be closed in on itself rather,
  it prolongs who Jesus Christ is and what he did
  for the breaking in of the reign of God.
• Christ is the one Savior of all, the only one
  able to reveal God and lead to God.
• All people have a right to the fullness of truth,
  and so the church must be in mission.
• Mission is a pressing matter because the majority
  of humanity does not know this or no longer
  believe.

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THE WHO OF MISSION

• The whole church is missionary, and the work of
  evangelization is the basic duty of the People of
  God.
• The whole church receives the mission to
  evangelize, and the work of each individual
  member is important for the whole.
• Missionary activity is the work of all dioceses
  and parishes, church institutions and
  associations.
• Laity, catechists leaders of prayer, song and
  liturgy leaders of basic ecclesial communities
  and bible study groups those in charge of
  charitable works administrators of Church
  resources leaders in the various forms of the
  apostolate and religion teachers in school are
  charged with the work of evangelization.
• Some ordained, religious, and laity are
  identified as missionaries.
• Missionary societies and organizations engage in
  long-term mission.

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THE WHERE OF MISSION

• Before Vatican II, mission was defined
  geographically with the primary mission-sending
  area consisting of Western Europe, North America,
  and Australia.
• The mission-receiving peoples basically lived in
  the rest of the world.
• Vatican II redefined mission in terms of Gods
  mission, which cannot be limited to and confined
  within humanly determined territory boundaries.
• Since Vatican II, the understanding of mission
  expanded to explicitly include justice,
  liberation, interreligious dialogue, the dynamic
  interaction of gospel and culture for every
  country, and re-evangelization.
• Missionary activity moves beyond the frontiers of
  race and religion and needs to address situations
  of massive urbanization and poverty, and what is
  called the modern equivalent of the Areopagus.

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THE WEDDING BANQUET AS A PARABLE OF MISSION

• Jesus and the early church often used food and
  table fellowship to talk about the reign of God
  and mission. The parable of the wedding feast
  (Mt 222-3) illustrates this.
• In terms of motivation for mission the parable
  illustrates the three models of mission of our
  century
• Our triune God in mission calls people to the
  wedding feast of his Son, the Messiah and Savior.
• Those invited represent the Jewish people who
  didnt believe in Christ. Today these strong
  words extend much broader.
• The invitation is extended to sinners, to the
  Gentiles. Gods mission knows no boundaries nor
  categories.

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QUESTION FOR DISCUSSION

• What one particular question related to mission
  challenges you, your parish, or the church in
  general?