“Great is the generosity you showed me today. May the Lord reward you generously for what you have done.” — 1 Samuel 24:19-20
My dear people,
By baptism, all Catholics are called to participate in the mission of the church, called to share their faith as missionaries.
World Mission Sunday gathers support for the pastoral and evangelizing programs and needs of more than 1,150 mission dioceses in Africa, Asia, the Pacific Islands and remote regions of Latin America. This is a day set aside for Catholics worldwide to recommit themselves to the church’s missionary activity through prayer and sacrifice. The funds gathered on World Mission Sunday are distributed in the pope’s name as a common fund of solidarity by the Society of the Propagation of the Faith, our local Mission Office.
Every year, the needs of the Catholic Church in the missions grow as new dioceses are formed, as new seminaries and convents are opened to answer the growing number of young men and women being called to a religious vocation, as areas devastated by war or natural disasters are rebuilt and as places and people who have been waiting to hear Christ’s message can now rise up to build God’s church.
Many of you may know that for 11 years I served as bishop of the Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska, the last officially designated mission diocese in the United States. The Diocese of Fairbanks received funding support from the annual World Mission Sunday collection. Each year the diocese received about $35,000 to be used for evangelization of the native parishes and assistance for the catechetical programs in these village parishes.
As bishop in Fairbanks, I quickly grew grateful for the support and generosity of those who gave of their treasure for the missionary work of the church in Alaska.
Please consider again a contribution to the world missions through your parish collection or through the envelope in The Visitor. Your assistance for the Diocese of Fairbanks and the other 1,150 mission dioceses is as needed as ever.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
+Donald J. Kettler
Bishop of St. Cloud
“World Mission Sunday gathers support for the pastoral and evangelizing programs and needs of more than 1,150 mission dioceses in Africa, Asia, the Pacific Islands and remote regions of Latin America.”