“Charity (Love) in Truth, to which Jesus bore witness by his earthly life, especially by his death and resurrection, is the principle driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity”. Caritas et Veritate (Love in Truth) Pope Benedict XVI

TMC 2010 Conference - February 12-1

“You Will Be My Witness”

The TMC annual Mission Conference, which will be held at the Basilica of San Juan, near the Texas-Mexico Border on February 12-14, 2010, will offer a special program to help us understand how we can live our Baptismal promise to be witnesses of the Gospel in the conditions that  today’s real world demands.

The objective of the 2010 Texas Mission Conference is to reflect on the theme of witness, utilizing the teachings from church documents, presentations on the Mexican Border reality, the pastoral themes of the Latin American Church, and the experiences of witness from mission groups.

Therefore we have chosen as the theme of the 2010 conference: “You will be my witness”, inviting Catholics to examine this commitment to live the life of Jesus which we all received in the form of Sanctifying Grace at the moment of our baptism.

Jesus came to earth with a mission, to be a witness of the Good News of God’s Love for all peoples in all nations. Sharing in the life of Jesus through our Baptism, Jesus calls each one of us to be a living witness of this same Gospel. And it was at the Sermon on the Mount, in the 5th Chapter of Matthew’s Gospel (Mt 5:31-40), that Jesus laid out the conditions which our Baptismal Vows commit us to follow as witnesses of the Good News. 

In this year’s conference, Dr Sharolyn Pollard-Durodola will direct the conference into a deeper understanding of our witness in terms of the priorities of the real world today. While the message itself of Jesus never changes, our witness to it, at home or abroad, must speak to our own time and place as Jesus himself spoke the Gospel in terms of the real world of his time and place. The message of Jesus never changes, but we must be witnesses of it in the circumstances of today’s changing world.

In his recent Encyclical, Caritas et Veritate (Love in Truth) Pope Benedict XVI recognized our duty to live as witnesses of the Gospel of Love with his opening statement:

“Charity (Love) in Truth, to which Jesus bore witness by his earthly life, especially by his death and resurrection, is the principle driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity.”

This conference will lead us through the process of becoming witness both at home and abroad in terms of the priorities of today’s world. To achieve our goal in the search for an authentic spirituality of our mission as witnesses, Dr. Durodola will lead the conference through a process that will help us to know how we can be witnesses at home and abroad in the circumstances of today’s changing world.

We have chosen the Texas/Mexico Border for this year’s conference to illustrate the need for a renewed commitment to be witness to the Gospel in the Texas/Mexico Border because of its cultural diversity, its poverty, and its witness of its faith in these difficult times.

We invite all who wish to deepen their faith as witnesses of the Gospel in the 21st Century, to join the Texas Mission Council at the beautiful Basilica of San Juan for an inspiring gathering of modern day Christians who will continue the mission of Jesus and his Apostles to be witnesses of the Good News to the world today.

MARYKNOLL MISSION TALES

When I went to northern China to teach English at a university, I was told that I had to respect the government’s rules: I could not work as a missioner, could not offer Mass in public nor serve in a parish or preach. On Sunday I went to Mass with the people in the cathedral in Qingdao (which incidentally was packed for the two Masses). I resolved that if asked, I would answer truthfully, but not once was I asked what I did before I came to China.

I enjoyed the fellowship of the professors and the students whom I invited to come to my apartment once a week to share a meal. We never discussed religion, but simply enjoyed wonderful rapport and camaraderie. Therefore when I was leaving, I was greatly surprised to receive a gift of a beautiful painting of the Last Supper. My work as a missioner was solely my witness to them by my presence. I never preached a word, and yet they knew all along.        Fr. Leo Shea, M.M.