he
laden tale which Xaverian Missionaries have lived through, and still do, in
Sierra Leone, the Congo, and Burundi, forces us to question the basis of our
missionary action. Fr. Francis
Marini, s.x., Superior General of the Xaverians, on his return from a visit to
the Congo and Burundi, has written: “… the circumstances are such that
our missionaries in central Africa, in the recent past, and perhaps for quite
some time still (or years?), will find themselves in a situation of emergency.
And this profoundly changes both our relationship with the people and
among ourselves, as well as our way of announcing the Gospel.
Aren’t our missionaries in Africa, perhaps, the ‘flag bearers’ of
this new way of doing mission for the next decades of the 21 century?”
In a later letter written to all Xaverians, Fr. Marini reflected on
the meaning of the missionary presence now questioned by the dramatic, and often
tragic, events of Sierra Leone and other countries.
He affirms that missionaries stand within the sphere of what is sacred in
the different cultures and that for this reason they have a very important role
to play in the building-up of a new humanity.
Fr. Marini writes:
he
extraordinary character of the events that have taken place in Sierra Leone
demands that we turn to them once again. Some
Xaverians have been kidnapped, the life of many of them was in jeopardy; at
present they are all out of the mission, and practically all church properties
and works have been plundered. The
prospect of a stable peace is very frail; instead, there are reasons that make
us think that the disorder, the violence and the misery, in other words, the
inhumanity, will continue. And
missionaries in other continents are experiencing similar sorts and moments.
What
does this situation say and mean for the Congregation itself? Everyone tells us
to start again. But how,
concretely? The evils that have
befallen our people are very grave and pregnant of consequences.
With what kind of presence should we enter in order to alleviate such
suffering and propose a solid reconstruction?
The last “General Congregation” of the Jesuits has offered a program which
presents a three-pronged pastoral action, closely relating the social aspect
with the cultural and the religious, and that is evangelization, dialogue
with other religions, Inculturation and promotion of justice.
In fact, social problems are tied not only to economic factors, and development itself is the result of a series of factors most of which are cultural, as for example, the rational approach to nature, the pattern of acting in a communal and organized manner, the readiness to foresee and be prepared for the future, constancy in tasks even if secondary and repetitious, respect of things of public domain, observance of strict regulations in their use the taste for things done well… So, it is not enough to invest money for development in a region, it’s necessary to trigger the conditions which make it possible and to conserve it, (and those conditions are mostly not economic).
Cultural changes, however, take time and are complex. And every culture, of course, seeks to resist change: as every person itself, it seeks to defend its identity. Culture is closely bound to religion which is, at it were, its very soul. Through religion are expressed and strengthened those symbolic bonds that unite a person to a group, to the world, to life and to the meaning of all this. In other words, the best way to make a mark on a culture is to touch its religion.
We have in our hands the Gospel, a message of faith. It is so powerful this instrument and so ‘upsetting’ because of its possible and profound repercussions that it can be even dangerous if used improperly. (It goes without saying that, in the past, it has been used abusively and we can easily surmise that also today, at least in some cases, it is used abusively) We are most efficient not when we directly engage ourselves in social works but exactly when we safeguard what is specific to our mission, which is the religious aspect. Having the Gospel as incentive and finality, our every action (even the public action in favor of the dispossessed) rightly becomes missionary and uplifting of humanity. The Gospel offers the most precious contribution toward making us more human, provided that it leads us to our fullness and the development of all our potentials.
Evangelization of which there is need and of which we can be agents, will not be, therefore, a mass activity, will not rely on easy incentives which tickle curiosity, nor will it be tied up to spectacular initiatives…, but it will pass through the discovery of the newness and the fullness of the Gospel and the pride of being its bearers, joyous and disarmed.
To start evangelization anew in a novel way means to put our trust and thrust in the feeble strength of the Word, together with the disarmed witness of a community which lives the charity it announces and celebrates.
Sincerely Yours,
(From Xaverian Mission Newsletter)