World Mission Day - October 20

20 Oct 2024 | Liturgical Year

World Mission Sunday October 20, is celebrated in every Catholic community in the world. All the baptised are missionaries and we participate in Godï¿½s mission by bringing the Good News that God is with us here and now and desires to give everyone abundant life.

Go and invite everyone to the banquet (Mt 22:9)

\'The theme I have chosen for this yearï¿½s World Mission Day is taken from the Gospel parable of the wedding banquet (cf. Mt 22:1-14). After the guests refused his invitation, the king, the main character in the story, tells his servants: ï¿½Go therefore to the thoroughfares, and invite to the marriage feast as many as you findï¿½.

It is timely for all of us, as missionary disciples of Christ, during this final stage of the synodal journey that, in the words of its motto, ï¿½Communion, Participation, Missionï¿½, seeks to refocus the Church on her primary task, which is the preaching of the Gospel in todayï¿½s world.\'

Pope Francis Message 2024.

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How are we to interpret this?

Pope Francis explains:

ï¿½Go and invite!ï¿½

Mission as a tireless going out to invite others to the Lordï¿½s banquet.

ï¿½To the marriage feastï¿½

While the world sets before us the various ï¿½banquetsï¿½ of consumerism, selfish comfort, the accumulation of wealth and individualism, the Gospel calls everyone to the divine banquet, marked by joy, sharing, justice and fraternity in communion with God and with others.ï¿½

ï¿½Everyoneï¿½

This is the heart of mission: that ï¿½allï¿½, is excluding no oneï¿½ The mission for all requires the commitment of all. We need to continue our journey towards a fully synodal and missionary Church in the service of the Gospel.

Read the complete message from Pope Francis HERE

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Prayer for missionaries

Help us, Lord, to be missionaries wherever we are. Teach us to see You in our sisters and brothers ï¿½ regardless of race or language. Help us to live our lives in such a way that our actions and words proclaim You as Christ, the Lord. Amen.

More information

MissioNZ website gives you information about projects

https://missio.nz/mission-sunday-2024/

Donate to Missio Aotearoa here: https://missio.nz/donate/

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