A centre in Sentosa to groom missionaries

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SIBU: The Catholic Church here has set up a training centre in Sentosa for the grooming of missionaries under Mill Hill priest Rev Fr Ivan Fang.

“I’m looking forward to seeing a missionary group formed locally to coordinate with mission related activities,” Fr Fang said in his presentation ‘Towards a Missionary Church’ at Sacred Heart Cathedral recently.

At the function, he introduced Missionary Community of Corpus Christi (MCCC) to some 70 members of the various lay movements of the church.

Fr Fang was the priest who initiated MCCC eight years ago.

He hoped MCCC could have a unit formed in Sibu soon.

He said MCCC started as a parish mission group and it facilitated mission through unit formation and sending out missionaries abroad.

Emphasising the responsibility of all baptised to continue the mission of Jesus, Fr Fang told his audience that it was very important to give priority to the missionary dimension in all church related activities.

His presentation was aimed at creating awareness among Christians that they were called to the mission of Jesus by virtue of their baptism and discipleship of Jesus, and that they needed support from the church community to carry out the mission.

He expounded his suggestion on steps needed to be taken to make the church move towards becoming a missionary church so that it may grow towards maturity.

“Missionary outreach is a clear sign of the maturity of an ecclesial community.

“Each community is ‘mature’ when it professes faith, celebrates it with joy during the liturgy, lives in charity, proclaims the Word of God endlessly, leaves one’s own to take it to the ‘peripheries’, especially to those who have not yet had the opportunity to know Christ,” he pointed out.

He stressed that the proclamation of the Gospel is part of being a disciple of Jesus.

“Be generous with your lives. Offer yourselves as missionaries. You sacrifice, the Lord will give you more. If you are willing to give the little you have, more will be given you,” Fr Fang exhorted.

Added he: “Don’t look at your own community only. There are greater needs elsewhere. Send people out even when you don’t have enough. It must be seen as a gain, not a loss.”