November 15, 2003

My Dear Missionaries,

At the end of October after the canonical visitation in Korea I spent a few days with our brothers and sisters in Mongolia. They are coming to grips with a new environment and a new language.

As all of us know the Mongolian project was a result of the Tenth General Chapter (XGC). The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples encouraged this enterprise and the tiny Christian community in Mongolia offered its enthusiastic support. From the time of our initial contact with this country until the first missionaries arrived, three years went by. During this period of preparation there have been good times and bad. Among the happier events I would include the mission given us by Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples in his Pentecost homily in 2002 at the Consolata Sanctuary in Turin. The Cardinal recalled the event of 100 years ago, when our first missionaries left for Kenya and then went on to say: “Asia needs missionaries. The brothers and sisters who take the cross today go forth in the same spirit as those four missionaries who left Italy 100 years ago. They carry with them their faith, the courage of Christ and the holiness of the Spirit that makes them authentic witnesses of love … Go forth to Asia so that the whole world may glorify the God who is our Father, who has sent his Son and given us his Spirit.” One of the setbacks the departing missionaries encountered was Father Paolo Fedrigoni’s health problem. At first this was the cause of confusion and disorientation and then everyone was moved to entrust the whole missionary enterprise to Providence. Providence has always guided our missionary work regardless of our plans or programs. 

As I look back over the history of this Mongolian project I can already see a lesson learned before our missionaries have even begun their work. I will make an effort to describe this lesson. It may possibly answer some of those questions we cannot avoid asking.

1. “Why a new foundation when the Institute is not increasing in number?”

The Tenth General Chapter itself provides the answer to this question.  The Chapter was well aware of the personnel problems confronting the Institute but nevertheless it recommended a second opening in Asia.  This recommendation was prompted by the need to proclaim Christ to all who were not yet Christians.  The Chapter says: “Proclaiming the Gospel to peoples and populations not yet evangelized – especially the more needy and neglected – is a priority among our objectives” (Cf. Const. 17). In this context the Chapter paid special attention to Asia.  It is the most densely populated continent and the least Christian. In Asia one encounters the great world religions and the most desperate poverty. The Church too has made Asia a top priority for its missio ad gentes (Cf.  RM, 43-44) consequently the Chapter stated “the General Directorate should study the possibility of an opening in Asia during its first three years … during its second three years it should proceed to making this foundation” (Cf. Acts XGC, p.50).

There is yet another equally valid reason for this undertaking that derives from the very nature of our missionary vocation. Our Father Founder articulated this further motivation when he envisioned missionaries moving constantly around the world to proclaim the Gospel: “The work is His; the Lord has blessed it; and just as we have succeeded in Gikuiu so we will succeed in Kaffa. I may not live to see it but one day you will go to Japan and Tibet. Like St. Francis Xavier who wished to travel from China to Russia and Germany and convert the whole world” (Conf. I, 610).

As was the case with St. Paul travel is always an indispensable part of the missionary’s life. He arrives, preaches, creates a community and then departs for new shores and frontiers in search of new people to bring to Christ. There will always be new people. Travel is likewise an essential element in the life of every missionary institute. To remain true to their ideals missionary institutes must ever look to new horizons. Once missionaries have done their job they must be ready to withdraw or downsize their presence and move on to other areas. The harvest is not theirs to reap.

It is always instructive to read the prophetic words of the great missionaries of the past. One hundred and fifty years ago Msgr. Marion Brésillac, founder of the Society of the African Missions (SMA) wrote: “Apostolic missionary – you are neither the pastor nor the bishop of the place you administer. The longer you remain in one place the more you must humble yourself before God – it is a sign that God has not blessed your endeavor. This may not be your fault, but you cannot exempt yourself from reproof. Blessed is that missionary who founds a church and the moment it is established moves on to found another! This sort of missionary is not called an apostle in vain; the opposite can be said of those missionaries who seek to establish themselves and reign in a given territory” (Cf. I Grandi Testimoni del Vangelo, Rome 1992, p. 244-245). Blessed Paolo Manna echoes his words: “It is said that missionaries are now and have been in the past, very few. But has anyone taken into account the fact that the many missionaries scattered throughout the world today are doing work that belongs to parish priests? If missionaries concentrated on being missionaries and not parish priests they would not be so few” (Cf. Osservazioni sul metodo moderno di evangelizzazione).

2. “Why are we going to Mongolia when there are no Christians there?”

For a missionary this sounds like a joke or an exaggeration. And yet more than one of our confreres has asked this question with a certain amount of bitterness and astonishment. They seem to be saying – why go some place where there are no Christians when we have elsewhere numerous Christian communities which are fervent and eager for our ministry in other places; actually there is more work than we can handle.

The answer is obvious – it is part of missiology 101! We are going to Mongolia precisely because there are no Christians there! Our Institute was founded to evangelize non-Christians. This is why each one of us became a Consolata Missionaries. The Institute’s hundred years of life have opened up a wide range of apostolic options in the Christian world. The sowing that occurred in the early days in so many African countries has now brought an abundant harvest.  To help Churches in need – especially in America – we have assumed pastoral responsibilities in many Christian communities. Gradually what was meant to be temporary has become our normal missionary activity, so much so that we are astonished when the Institute returns to its proper work among non-Christians.

The last General Chapter has this to say about going back to evangelizing non-Christians:  “Article 17 of the Constitutions lists those activities that constitute our missio ad gentes;  first on the list is  ‘Proclaiming the Good News to those who have not yet been evangelized.’ This is an essential part of the Institute’s primary purpose. We are sent to the frontiers of the Church, to those populations who do not know or have not yet accepted Jesus Christ. Along with today’s “new pagans” these populations are the raison-d’être of our Institute.  Our Founder said this clearly, “We are for non-Christians.” This is the primary motivation of all those who enter the Institute. This is the fundamental inspiration of our vocation work, mission promotion, formation, organization and apostolic activity.  This has been the life’s breath of generations of missionaries. Some of whom have earned distinction – Msgr. Filippo Perlo and more recently, Msgr. Cavallera, who after strengthening the Church of Nyeri, began all over again under a tent with those who had not yet heard the Gospel” (Cf. Acts XGC, p.46-47).

There are little more than 100 Christians in Mongolia, but the primary concern of our missionaries will be to proclaim the Gospel to those who do not yet know it. Initially this will be their exclusive focus, the primary goal of their every apostolic effort.

3.  “Why a foundation together with the Consolata Sisters?”

The Ninth General Chapter had many beautiful things to say about the communion and collaboration that should always exist between us and the Consolata Sisters. These statements were included in the appendix to the Acts of the Chapter.  The Tenth General Chapter had less to say but was more forceful.  Its thoughts on this subject can be found in the chapter on our identity. We read: “The purpose, spirit, characteristics of the Institute and our common Founder are valid and profound reasons for union with the Consolata Sisters. They are our sisters. They share our charisma and our spirit. Our common Founder wanted the missions to be a male and female enterprise. By establishing the Consolata Sisters he envisioned a fruitful complementarity that would promote the Gospel, the family spirit and the common goals he saw for our mission” (Cf. Acts XGC, p.26).  In other words the Chapter is telling us that we can no longer plan present or future activity without a serious effort to make our enterprise both “male and female.”  Our project must reflect those characteristics our Founder hoped to see.  Complementarity is a precious legacy that is part of our very identity; we must do all we can to preserve it.  This is what Blessed Allamano would have wished.

Our Mongolian project shows that this goal is both possible and realistic if we follow certain guidelines.

-         Each project should be agreed upon and planned in common;  we should work together in all its phases;

-         The genuine equality of both Institutes must be respected at every stage of planning and development;

-         An effort should be made to achieve and preserve complementarity;

-         We must think constantly of our common values and charisma.

Our Founder must be happy that this project is being planned and carried out in mutual agreement between his sons and his daughters.  He would be  pleased to see his missionaries turning his charisma into reality by reading the signs of the times.  These signs  may require methods and measures unknown or unused in the past.

4. “What is the sense of a small group of missionaries in this faraway place?”

Undoubtedly Mongolia represents a new chapter in the missionary history of our Institute. In all those Churches where we are currently engaged we are working in the midst of lively, flourishing Christian communities. 

The Church in Asia instead requires a mission made of small numbers; aware of its own numerical insignificance and lack of power; open to dialogue, encounter, hospitality; conscious that its only strength is the authenticity of its message and its faith in Christ.

Mongolia shows us new ways to be missionaries, ways different from what we have done elsewhere or in the past. Its significance is reflected in the Gospel parable of the seed that falls to earth and dies to produce life, or the leaven that disappears into the flour but makes the dough rise. The Church is an insignificant minority in Mongolia. But if we look at it from a Gospel perspective this is a position of privilege. This is something we cannot find in those other places and continents where we work. The Asian situation forces us to concentrate  attention on the quality of our life and apostolic work rather than on numbers. It requires the maximum effort from each of us; we must be the salt that gives savor and the seed that gives life.

If Asia is the missionary continent of the twenty-first century – and a host of Church documents claim this – then it follows that we will have to adapt to this new method of missionary activity. Gradually our Institute must come to grips with this sort of situation. 

The missionary situation in Asia is marked by modest and humble endeavors and this highlights another important aspect of our evangelization and our charisma as Consolata Missionaries:  the communion with the Church. Our Father Founder called it “love for the Pope”; “sentire cum Ecclesia” is defined by the document Vita Consecrata which brings to mind an ancient Patristic expression; “passion for the Church” is another expression that in all ages the great apostles and missionaries have cultivated. When we are not the sole  controlling force in a missionary enterprise we are spontaneously led to build bridges with all the living forces of the Church – the Bishop, the local clergy, religious, lay people, in short, the whole people of God.  In their company we can experience a Church that is rich and vibrant with a variety of charisma but always constituting a single body. What we lack in personnel or means we can find in other ecclesial forces or elements. We will gradually develop a mentality that reflects communion and openness. We will be led to exclaim with St. Paul: “as long as only Christ is proclaimed!”

5.  “What strategy do we have for so diverse a missionary enterprise?”

We must admit that faced with the mystery of Mongolia we are genuinely at a loss – “empty-handed” as a missionary documentary of a few years ago would have it. In Asia our Institute has only the limited experience of Korea; we know absolutely nothing about Mongolia. Our heart tells us that this can be an advantage. We can undertake this mission with humility; we tread lightly as people who may well be “empty-handed,”  but are eager to learn. Our missionaries will discover their strategy a little bit at a time, side by side with all the other living forces of this small Church. Devising a missionary strategy should not be their principal concern at this point in time. It is much more important to get off on the right foot by concentrating on the quality and style of our life along with attitudes that will help us to grow in what might be considered a missionary spirituality for Asia. There are two dimensions I would like to see as areas of special concentration:

1.  Careful and thoughtful observation

This will enable us to see clearly that the Lord has prepared this mission for us.  It is He who has guided our steps towards this country and this people.  Consequently we must continue to ask the Lord – through prayer and community discernment – for help to determine the path we must follow if we are to achieve what He is expecting of us.  Careful and thoughtful observation will allow us to interpret the “signs” that surround us and that reveal His design and His will.  Certainly this path will be arduous;  we will be forced to abandon so many certainties to make room for “solus Deus”, to create that patient silence before God so characteristic of eastern mysticism. Paradoxically this faith in God will lead us to rely on those who have trod this path before us, on the local Church and on all those with more experience than we possess. More than any other mission area Asia makes us aware of the fact that we are never protagonists in the missionary enterprise but always and only collaborators.

2.  Openness to dialogue

Dialogue is the foundation of missionary spirituality today;  it is operative in every corner of the planet; it links the individual with the Word every day and ensures that the individual is never alone but always involved in a vital relationship with the Other.  This primary and fundamental form of dialogue counters the selfishness and self-absorption that can occur in missionary life. Dialogue can open us up to the world around us. The Asian Church considers dialogue the indispensable prerequisite for evangelization or activity on this continent.  For the Asian Church three aspects of dialogue are especially important:

-         Dialogue with the poor involves more than solidarity with the needy; it implies recognizing in the cries and protests of the dispossessed the very Word of God the Liberator who calls us to conversion. No one involved in the Asian apostolic work can ignore the fact that the majority of people on this continent are destitute and outcast.

-         Dialogue with culture involves more than intellectual appreciation; the missionary must live in sympathy with the peculiarities of the country in which he finds himself: language, food, human relations, family customs, folklore, literature, philosophical and mystical traditions. This commitment must be life-long.

-         Dialogue with religions brings us to the very heart of our mission in Asia.  It involves more than a knowledge  of the religions professed by those around us.  We must recognize the Word of God in these religions – God speaks to everyone. Living our Christian faith in depth involves living it in an atmosphere of sincere and fraternal openness towards those with other religious convictions.  We must strive to encounter God in these brothers and sisters of ours; we must rejoice at the wisdom of their sacred books;  we must respect every man’s diverse worship of God …

In closing let me admit that what we can learn from our Mongolian experience goes far beyond the few insights included in this letter.  We are still trying to make sense of the first chapter of our Mongolian adventure. I invite everyone to follow this new enterprise with sympathy and prayer. It is something new in our missionary family – may it grow wisely and gain in strength. I call upon the missionaries in Mongolia to communicate regularly with their confreres on other continents – their experiences will enrich everyone. Telling the story of this mission will not only contribute to vocation and mission promotion, it can be a vehicle to transmit new values that will benefit the whole Institute.

Fraternally in Our Lady, the Consolata

Father Piero Trabucco, imc

       (Father General)