“He Sent Them Two by Two” – Retracing Our Missionary Identity

by Fr. Tony Okolo C.S.Sp., V.F.  |  08/17/2025  |  Weekly Reflection

Beloved Parishioners,

In the last two weeks I said in all the Masses that beginning from the month of September we would embark on missionary outreach and evangelization in our parish. It is a call Jesus gives everyone of us as a Christian and Catholic to step out and invite someone to come to him. This motivates the topic for today’s Pastor’s Corner.

Let me ask you, what if you woke up tomorrow and heard Jesus call you by name—and send you out? No detailed map. No suitcase. Just one instruction: “Go. Bring peace where there is unrest. Bring hope where there is despair. Bring Me into the lives of others.” In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus does just that: “The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.” (Luke 10:1). This image is not just a historical account; it is a living invitation and an expression of one major character of the Church. The Church, in every age, is sent. And so are we.

Emphatically, mission is at the Heart of the Church, and our call is rooted in Baptism. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is clear: “The whole Church is missionary, and the work of evangelization is a basic duty of the People of God.” (CCC 849). It continues by asserting that “By Baptism, the laity are made sharers in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly functions of Christ...they have the special vocation to make the Church present and fruitful in those places where only they can become the salt of the earth.” (CCC 897–899). Pope Paul VI reiterated this in his landmark encyclical Evangelii Nuntiandi: “Evangelizing is in fact, the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity. She exists in order to evangelize.” (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 14). Each baptized person is called to embrace the missionary dimension of our faith—not as an optional extra, but as part of our very identity. Whether we are laypeople, clergy, religious, young, or elderly, the mission field is around us—in our homes, workplaces, neighborhoods, and even in the silence of our witness. Jesus sends us not necessarily to foreign lands, but to familiar hearts that hunger for kindness, truth, and peace.

Pope Francis, emphasizing that same missionary spirit in Evangelii Gaudium urges us: “I dream of a ‘missionary option’, that is, a missionary impulse capable of transforming everything...for the evangelization of today’s world rather than for her self -preservation.” (Evangelii Gaudium, 27). Let us take those words seriously. It’s tempting to see the Church only as a place of comfort—a haven from the storms of life. And indeed, she is. But she is also a vessel sailing outward, not inward. We are not just invited to sit in the pews but to step out of them, carrying the peace of Christ to those who feel forgotten, unseen, unloved. What this means, dear friends, is that your ordinary life—your work, your family, your acts of patience and generosity—can become holy ground, a place where Christ is made visible.

There are a few simple ways to embrace the mission. I gently offer you a few invitations this week: First, begin with prayer. Ask the Lord each morning, “Where are You sending me today? Who needs Your peace?” Second, try as much as possible to be a quiet witness, a silent preacher. Strive to bring Christ to others through your small acts of charity, patience, and faithfulness. Third, share your story. Let others know how your faith sustains you. It doesn’t require eloquence—only honesty. Remember that modern man listens to witnesses more than evangelizers. Fourth, invite others in. If someone is searching or hurting, invite them to Mass, to coffee, or simply to a listening ear. This simple act will go a long way in lifting their loads. We offer coffee and donuts every Sunday after Mass for people to share with one another. Fifth, support the Church’s mission through giving your time, talents, and treasure. Help the Church “go forth.” Remember that some give to the missions by going while others go to the missions by giving. To be continued next Sunday.