October Missionary 2021: France, Switzerland and Spain

Preparations are underway in France in view of World Mission Week, October 17-24, 2021, to which a section is dedicated on the website https://www.opm-france.org/semaine-missionnaire-mondiale-17-24-octobre-2021/. It is with a new song of praise and an impressive music clip, filmed at the top of the Saint-Sulpice church in Paris, that the Pontifical Mission Societies of France interpret and spread the message of Pope Francis for World Mission Week 2021. Thanks to this clip, directed by Marc Déclais and Vincent Drisch on a song composed by Léonard du Payrat and performed with Vinz le Mariachi, the French PMS send a message of hope: all are called to go out to announce the Gospel and spread the love of God! It is therefore an invitation to generosity for all Christians to cooperate in the mission, through prayer and sharing, both spiritual and material, so that the Church is alive everywhere in the world. An animation device has also been created: people are invited to find out who is hiding behind one of the seven portraits of great missionaries. If they solve the puzzle, they receive a personalized mission (a prayer, an invitation to share the game and a donation proposal) 

In Switzerland, the journey that leads the Swiss dioceses on World Mission Day to meet a local church from another continent continues, taking care of its needs. After the church of Guinea in 2020, it is now the turn of the church of Vietnam. A missionary animation folder was created and a common prayer was written with the Christians of Vietnam translated into ten languages, because the church in Switzerland is multicultural. For those who wish, a leaflet with prayer, information and a postcard is made available to send a word of brotherhood to the Christians of Vietnam; The Holy Father's message, a message from the Swiss Bishops' Conference and a manifesto are also offered. Everything is accessible on the website https://www.missio.ch/it/chiesa-universale/ottobre-missionario

In Spain, World Mission Day is known by the acronym Domund (http://domund.es) and reminds us that we are part of the universal family of the Church and that we are all missionaries. Among the objectives of Domund: to explain the evangelizing work that the Church carries out in the mission territories; to make known the life of the communities that make up the young Churches; promoting missionary vocations, as well as the formation and prayer of all the people of God; seek financial aid to support the poorest churches; to make known the Pontifical Mission Societies as the Pope's instrument for the mission. Father José María Calderón, National Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Spain explains: "This year's Domund 2021 is a proposal to return to the roots of our missionary being: "We cannot stop talking about what we have seen and heard" (Acts 4:20). From the personal encounter with the Risen Christ comes that expression of the apostles in the book of Acts. The evangelizer is the one who has allowed himself to be touched by the loving finger of God, capable of rebuilding what has been destroyed in his life. The missionary is the one who recognized his Lord in the breaking of the Bread and cannot, does not want to live without loving him. The apostle of Christ is the one who has discovered that Jesus is that hidden treasure, that precious pearl, that friend, traveling companion, for whom it is worth leaving everything and surrender ... they cannot stop talking about what the Lord managed to do in their life".