MISSIONARIES OF AFRICA
At the Service of
JUSTICE and PEACE – INTEGRITY OF CREATION
And
ENCOUNTER and DIALOGUE

 

What are human beings that you spare a thought for them?

The greatness and love of God and the dignity of Humanity are at the centre of the Biblical Tradition and of Christianity. The psalmist, looking at human beings in comparison to all creation, on earth, in the sea and in the sky, and considering the care and love that God has for them, could not but be left in great amazement! “What are human beings that you spare a thought for them, or the children of Adam that you care for them? … Lord our God, how majestic is your name throughout the world!” (Ps 8: 4.9) Moreover, God’s awesomeness in the work of Creation with Man and Woman as its climactic masterwork is no less expressed in Genesis by: “God saw all he had created, and indeed it was very good!” (Gen 1:31)

Our mission as believers, Christians and missionaries has a sole objective: God and Humanity; to preserve and promote the “Glory of God and the life and dignity of Humanity”. These two are inseparable.

However, if the glory of God is inseparable from the life and dignity of Humanity, the latter is also inseparable from a healthy “Mother Earth”, as long as Humanity endures on this planet. Furthermore, Creation is another sacrament in which God’s glory is revealed! “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” (Ps. 19:1). It is therefore our daily duty to care for our “Mother Earth” for our own good and for the Glory of God.

***
“The Glory of God is Humanity fully alive” (St. Irenaeus)

***
“Take care of the earth and it will take care of you.” (Popular wisdom)

***

‘I am a man, and injustices towards others revolt my heart’

Missionaries of Africa: we are what we are because of God’s call, which was first addressed to our Founder, Charles Cardinal Lavigerie. Our commitments in promoting Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation (JPIC) and Encounter and Dialogue (ED) are a legacy and a responsibility received from him. His life and instructions remain for us the foundation and source of inspiration.

***

“I am a man, and nothing human is foreign to me (Terence).
I am a man, and injustices towards others revolt my heart.
I am a man, and oppression offends my nature.”
(Charles Cardinal Lavigerie)

***

Together we can!

The work of promoting Justice, Peace, the Integrity of Creation and Encounter-Dialogue (JPIC-ED), cannot and will never be successfully accomplished by a single person or a single group of people. It cannot be monopolised by any one person. It is the work of all and excludes no one worthy of the name of human being and Christian. Its success, therefore, can only be achieved by the joint collaboration of everyone.

We therefore seek to collaborate with all, excluding no one. We also seek to involve ourselves more in those activities of Encounter and Dialogue between people of different cultures and religions that aim at creating more Justice and Peace in our society as well as preserving and promoting the Integrity of Creation.

****

“Kidole kimoja hakivunji chawa” (Swahili)
(One finger cannot kill a louse).

***

A commitment for the Society and all its members

JPIC-ED are constitutive elements of our missionary identity and therefore our commitment in this field is for all the Society’s members, each in his particular situation where he lives and works. There is no member who is not concerned with this commitment, taking into consideration that we are all called to live it in our communities. Our common denominator in this commitment, though not the least important by far is prayer on its behalf. The prayer of Moses on the hilltop and the victory of the Jews over the Amalekites is a good parable for us on this point, (Exodus, 17: 11-12).

Because of the importance and urgency the Society gives to this commitment, the 2010 General Chapter decided to create a post of Coordinator whose overall objective is to ensure its follow-up and to foster it at all the levels: Society, Provinces, Sectors, communities and individual members.

***

“Our commitment to JPIC would be incomplete were we to forget that we are called to live out that commitment in own communities.
We make the effort to have just and charitable relationships amongst ourselves.
Vulnerable or fragile confreres and those living in difficult situations are our brothers who have the right to our brotherly concern.
We uphold the rights of those who work with us.
In our communities we adopt a lifestyle that is respectful towards the environment.”
(Capitular Acts, XXVII General Chapter, p. 34)
***
“To ensure that we are to live Justice and Peace and Encounter and Dialogue fully
as constitutive elements of our missionary identity,
we have decided to create a post of Coordinator for JPIC and Encounter and Dialogue.”
(Letter of Superior General, in Capitular Acts, XXVII General Chapter, p.13)

Fr. Richard Nnyombi Coordinator for JPIC and Encounter and Dialogue
Contact : Email