Even though each of the Salesian Provinces celebrates "Salesian Mission Day" at different times of the year at the provincial level (the one in 2022 dedicated to the theme "Communicating Christ Today, #OnlineMissionaries"), World Mission Day offers everyone an excellent opportunity to grow in communion with the entire global Catholic missionary community.
Here are some "insights" on how to animate this annual occasion:
- Read and share the Holy Father's message for WMD2022: "And you will be my witnesses" and his dream for a completely Missionary Church.
- Read and reflect on the Statistics of the Catholic Church 2022: in just one year, the Catholic population grew by 15 million. The increase affects four continents except for Oceania. Priests decrease (-4117, for a total of 410,219 total priests, both religious and diocesan), permanent deacons increased (+397, for a total of 48,635), non-priest religious (brothers) increased (+274, for a total of 50,569), major seminarians, diocesan and religious, decrease (-2203, for a total of 111,855).
- Usually, the best missionary animation is the life of the missionaries themselves, who transmit their life experiences: the invitation is thus to read and spread the interviews with the new SDB missionaries, such as, for example, those presented on the occasion of the 153rd Salesian Missionary Expedition, all always accessible on the ANS website); but also to get to know those present in one's own Province or left from there for other territories: for example, the list of the VIE Province 2022-2023 presents, in addition to the 353 member Salesians, 113 missionaries ad gentes, and 55 missionaries sent to the VIE Province in the last 70 years, that is, since the beginning of the Salesian presence in that country.
- The Catholic community in the world is growing, and it is doing so, particularly on the African continent. It may be appropriate and useful to take a few minutes to understand what kind of vocations and ecclesial institutions are growing in this dynamic part of the world.
- Watch together, in our communities, some videos or footage of interviews with missionaries, such as Fr. Vincenzo Donati, 94 (formerly a missionary in Japan, South Korea, and Sudan, now still active, as a passionate band director, at the Salesian pre-novitiate community in Nairobi, Kenya).
- Think about and act to support with a small gesture of solidarity some missionary work in need, such as "Radio Don Bosco" in Bolivia - the project supported by Salesian Mission Day 2022.
