Priests have the keys "to open" the missions
(Blessed Paolo Manna)
The special duty of priests for missions

From the Acts of the Apostles

Then the angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, “Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.” So he got up and set out. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, that is, the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury, who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home. Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. The Spirit said to Philip, “Go and join up with that chariot.” Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” As they traveled along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water. What is to prevent my being baptized?” Then he ordered the chariot to stop, and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water, and he baptized him. 
When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, but continued on his way rejoicing.
Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.  (Acts 8: 26-31a, 36-40)

From the Magisterium of the Catholic Church

“Priests, [...] are consecrated to preach the Gospel and shepherd the faithful and to celebrate divine worship, so that they are true priests of the New Testament. Partakers of the function of Christ the sole Mediator, on their level of ministry, they announce the divine word to all.” (Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, 28)

“For those ministers, who are endowed with sacred power, serve their brethren, so that all who are of the People of God, and therefore enjoy a true Christian dignity, working toward a common goal freely and in an orderly way, may arrive at salvation.” (Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, 18)

“The task of proclaiming the Gospel everywhere on earth pertains to the body of pastors, to all of whom in common Christ gave His command, thereby imposing upon them a common duty.” (Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, 23)

“Since no one can be saved who does not first believe, priests, as co-workers with their bishops, have the primary duty of proclaiming the Gospel of God to all. In this way they fulfill the command of the Lord: ‘Going therefore into the whole world preach the Gospel to every creature’ (Mk 16:15), and they establish and build up the People of God.” (Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, Presbyterorum Ordinis, 4)

“The spiritual gift which priests receive at their ordination prepared them not for a sort of limited and narrow mission but for the widest possible and universal mission of salvation ‘even to the ends of the earth’ (Acts 1:8), for every priestly ministry shares in the universality of the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles. The priesthood of Christ, in which all priests really share, is necessarily intended for all peoples and all times, and it knows no limits of blood, nationality or time, since it is already mysteriously prefigured in the person of Melchisedech. Let priests remember, therefore, that the care of all churches must be their intimate concern.” (Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, Presbyterorum Ordinis, 10)

“Priests [...] should fully understand that their life is also consecrated to the service of the missions.” (Second Vatican. Council, Decree on the Mission Activity on the Church, Ad Gentes, 39)

“Priests are called by virtue of the sacrament of Orders to share in concern for the Church’s mission: ‘The spiritual gift that priests have received in ordination prepares them, not for any narrow and limited mission, but for the most universal and all embracing mission of salvation ‘to the end of the earth.’ For every priestly ministry shares in the universal scope of the mission that Christ entrusted to his apostles.’” (John Paul II, Encyclical Letter on the permanent validity of the Church’s missionary mandate, Redemptoris Missio, n. 67)

“All priests must have the mind and the heart of missionaries - open to the needs of the Church and the world, with concern for those farthest away, and especially for the non-Christian groups in their own area.” (John Paul II, Encyclical Letter on the permanent validity of the Church’s missionary mandate, Redemptoris Missio, n. 67)

From the Writings of Blessed Father Paolo Manna

“The key to the missionary problem is in the hands of the priest, for he alone can and is responsible for animating, promoting and leading the great missionary movement among the unbelievers.” (P. Manna, Per una Unione Missionaria del Clero, Milan 1916, p. 9)

“There is no better or safer way to bring a truth to the minds and hearts of the faithful than through the priest, who alone has the authority to teach, and the influence as well. When he preaches and persists in inculcating an idea it is sure to be accepted by the faithful as a rule of conduct. Suppose that a hundred, a thousand priests espouse this cause of God and give regular instructions upon the missions: imperceptibly their spirit and their zeal will be caught up by the faithful, and we will have a hundred, a thousand more communities ready and willing to work with the Church in the interest of the apostolate. The weak point in the work of evangelization is not in the missionaries nor in the pagans nor even in the faithful… the weak point is to be found in the pulpit. When the missionary idea will have taken possession of the pulpit we shall have made great progress in missionary co-operation.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, translated and adapted from the Italian of rev. Paolo Manna,  M. Ap. by rev. Joseph F. McGlinchey, d.d., Boston, Society for the propagation of the Faith 1921, p. 189)

“The people have not been instructed upon the great problem of the Church’s apostolate to the heathen, upon the progress and needs of missions in general. This instruction the priests at home can and should give, for since they are the ministers of the Gospel they are the natural ministers for such preaching. For this it is not necessary that they have visited the missions. No priest who preaches on heaven, purgatory, or hell has ever been there, and yet what eloquent sermons some can deliver on these subjects!” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 190)

“Of course, a priest inflamed with zeal for the propagation of the Faith is needed. He will frequently speak of it to the faithful and especially to the young men. He will spread mission literature. He will pray and get others to pray for the conversion of infidels, and for the multiplication of evangelical workers. He will transplant his spirit into the souls of those whom he directs. Would it be difficult for such a priest to discover among his parishioners some young men pre destined one day to become apostles of Jesus? (...) It is true that vocations come from God, but they are discovered and nurtured by human means which have been placed in our hands.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 223)

Questions for Reflection

• How much do I feel responsible for missions?
• In my pastoral work, do I spread the mission literature? Do I collaborate with the Pontifical Mission Societies? Do I lead any missionary groups?
• How committed am I to missionary formation and animation among those I serve?

PRAYER

Lord, you wanted to save men and women and therefore you founded the Church as a community of brothers and sisters united in your love. Do not stop visiting us and calling those you have chosen to be the voice of your Holy Spirit, the leaven of a more just and fraternal society.

Obtain for us from our heavenly Father the spiritual guides our communities need: true priests of the living God, who, enlightened by your Word, will know how to speak of you and teach others to speak with you.

Look, O Lord, upon all humanity and have mercy on those who seek you through prayer and righteous living but have not yet met you: reveal yourself to them as the Way that leads to the Father, as the Truth that sets us free, as the Life that has no end. Grant, O Lord, that we may live in your Church with a spirit of faithful service and total dedication, so that our witness may be credible and fruitful. Amen.

If God takes the first place, God Himself can use us to do beautiful things
(Blessed Paolo Manna)
The missionary aspect of consecrated life

From the Acts of the Apostles

Then the angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, “Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, the desert route.” So he got up and set out. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, that is, the queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury, who had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was returning home. Seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. The Spirit said to Philip, “Go and join up with that chariot.” Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” As they traveled along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water. What is to prevent my being baptized?” Then he ordered the chariot to stop, and Philip and the eunuch both went down into the water, and he baptized him. When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, but continued on his way rejoicing. Philip came to Azotus, and went about proclaiming the good news to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.  (Acts 8: 26-31a, 36-40)

From the Magisterium of the Catholic Church

“Religious, for their part, find in their consecrated life a privileged means of effective evangelization. (...) By their lives they are a sign of total availability to God, the Church and the brethren (...) silent witness of poverty and abnegation, of purity and sincerity, of self-sacrifice in obedience, can become an eloquent witness capable of touching also non-Christians who have good will and are sensitive to certain values.” (Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization in the Modern World, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 69)

“The task of devoting themselves wholly to "mission" is therefore included in their call; indeed, by the action of the Holy Spirit who is at the origin of every vocation and charism, consecrated life itself is a mission, as was the whole of Jesus' life. The profession of the evangelical counsels, which makes a person totally free for the service of the Gospel, is important also from this point of view. It can therefore be said that a sense of mission is essential to every Institute, not only those dedicated to the active apostolic life, but also those dedicated to the contemplative life.

Indeed, more than in external works, the mission consists in making Christ present to the world through personal witness. This is the challenge, this is the primary task of the consecrated life!

 (...) Thus it can be said that consecrated persons are "in mission" by virtue of their very consecration, to which they bear witness in accordance with the ideal of their Institute.” (John Paul II, Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Consecrated Life and Its Mission in the Church and in the World, Vita Consecrata, 72)

The specific contribution of consecrated persons, both men and women, to evangelization is first of all the witness of a life given totally to God and to their brothers and sisters, in imitation of the Saviour who, out of love for humanity, made himself a servant. (John Paul II, Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Consecrated Life and Its Mission in the Church and in the World, Vita Consecrata, 76)

“The members of every Institute should be able to repeat this truth with Saint Paul, because the task of the consecrated life is to work in every part of the world in order to consolidate and expand the Kingdom of Christ, bringing the proclamation of the Gospel even to the most far-off regions.” (John Paul II, Post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Consecrated Life and Its Mission in the Church and in the World, Vita Consecrata, 78)

From the writings of Blessed Father Paolo Manna

“This zeal for the salvation of non-Christians must be a part of the life of every consecrated soul who loves Jesus Christ.” (P. Manna, Donne senza paura, Naples 1977, p. 8)

“Oh, if all the religious women in Italy, who can exert so much beneficial influence around them, especially among the youth, had the cause of non-Christians at heart, how much they would hasten the coming of the Kingdom of God” (P. Manna, Donne senza paura, Naples 1977, p. 8)

“The work of the sisters, which until yesterday, was recognized as greatly useful to the apostolate, today we must say it is necessary and indispensable. It can be said that the missions without the contribution of the sisters would be incomplete today.” (P. Manna, Donne senza paura, Naples 1977, p. 12)

“If the Sisters, (...) are inflamed with missionary zeal in their colleges, academies, schools, and other institutions, if they are devoted to the work of the missions, by spreading a knowledge of their needs, by collecting the pennies, the nickels, and the dimes of their pupils, by encouraging vocations, what an immense service they will render to the Church!” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, translated and adapted from the Italian of rev. Paolo Manna, M. Ap. by rev. Joseph F. McGlinchey, d.d., Boston, Society for the propagation of the Faith 1921, p. 204)

Questions for reflection

• How much do you feel responsible for missions?
• In my daily service, am I able to give a missionary witness?  
• According to my possibilities, do I spread the mission literature? Do I collaborate with the Pontifical Mission Societies? Do I lead any missionary groups?
• Am I interested in the missionary life of the Church? Do I support with my prayers the work of the Pontifical Mission Societies and people serving in mission territories?

PRAYER

Lord, you wanted to save men and women and therefore you founded the Church as a community of brothers and sisters united in your love. Do not stop visiting us and calling those you have chosen to be the voice of your Holy Spirit, the leaven of a more just and fraternal society.

Make your Church and the number of consecrated persons grow, so that they may serve those furthest away. May our communities sing and praise the Eucharist as an offering of thanksgiving for your glory and goodness, and go out into the ways of the world to proclaim joy and peace, the precious gifts of your salvation.

Look, O Lord, upon all humanity and have mercy on those who seek you through prayer and righteous living but have not yet met you: reveal yourself to them as the Way that leads to the Father, as the Truth that sets us free, as the Life that has no end. Let us live, Lord, in your Church with a spirit of faithful service and total dedication, so that our witness may be credible and fruitful. Amen.

S. John Paul II

For the missionary spirit to permeate the entire People of God, it is necessary for the hearts of children and youth to be immersed in it
(Blessed Paolo Manna)
Children and youths

From the Gospel of Mark

“And people were bringing children to him that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this he became indignant and said to them, ‘Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it.’ Then he embraced them and blessed them, placing his hands on them.”  (Mk 10: 13-16)

From the Magisterium of the Catholic Church

“Children also have their own apostolic work to do. According to their ability they are true living witnesses of Christ among their companions.” (Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity, Apostolicam Actuositatem, 12)

“And on the other hand, young people who are well trained in faith and prayer must become more and more the apostles of youth. The Church counts greatly on their contribution, and we ourself have often manifested our full confidence in them.” (Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization in the Modern World, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 72)

“Youth must not simply be considered as an object of pastoral concern for the Church: in fact, young people are and ought to be encouraged to be active on behalf of the Church as leading characters in evangelization and participants in the renewal of society.” (John Paul II, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation on the Vocation and the Mission of the Lay Faithful in the Church and in the World, Christifideles Laici, 46)

“We should recognize that despite the present crisis of commitment and communal relationships, many young people are making common cause before the problems of our world and are taking up various forms of activism and volunteer work. Some take part in the life of the Church as members of service groups and various missionary initiatives in their own dioceses and in other places. How beautiful it is to see that young people are “street preachers” (callejeros de la fe), joyfully bringing Jesus to every street, every town square and every corner of the earth!” (Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation on the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today’s World, Evangelii Gaudium, 106)

From the writings of Blessed Father Paolo Manna

“Our young people are the hope of the missions. We shall consider this question under a double aspect — what we must do to educate our youth in regard to their missionary obligations, and what they themselves can and must do for this great cause.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, translated and adapted from the Italian of rev. Paolo Manna, M. Ap. by rev. Joseph F. McGlinchey, d.d., Boston, Society for the propagation of the Faith 1921, p. 215)

“It is our duty to give to our young people instruction upon the missions. We must teach them that the last will of Jesus is part of our Faith and of the obligations of our life.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 216)

“Childhood is the formative period. At this time the habits that accompany one during his whole life are formed. If a greater missionary spirit is to pervade all Christian people, if this spirit is to become a force for the expansion of the Church, the hearts of our youth must be made familiar with it.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 216)

“Christian teaching without missionary instruction gives the child an incomplete idea of his religion, injures the Church and deprives the little one of a most noble element of education.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 216)

“In the conduct of the various circles, clubs, and organizations of young men and women the missionary idea will prove such a stimulus to fruitful activity that if you want to put new life and action into such gatherings, introduce this question, and the result is assured.” (P. Manna, The conversion of the pagan world. A Treatise upon Catholic Foreign Missions, p. 219)

Questions for reflection

• According to my possibilities, do I spread the mission literature? Do I cooperate with the Pontifical Mission Societies? Do I lead any missionary groups?
• If I am a catechist, how much time do I devote to mission themes during catechesis?
• Am I interested in the missionary life of the Church? Do I support with my prayers the work of the Pontifical Mission Societies and of people serving in mission territories?

PRAYER

God the Father who is caring for children and young people, please help them to find the truth they desire in their lives and not follow the falsehood and hypocrisy of the world. Show them how to prepare themselves through study and work to take on the responsibilities that await them in their lives. Let them enjoy the beauty of the world and rejoice with their youth, trust their parents and educators. Let them feel called to follow your Son’s command to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. Grant that they may commit themselves wholeheartedly to the missionary work of the Church, which lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.