John Moffett meets nursing and midwifery students
at the Catholic Health Sciences Institute in Wau, run
by Solidarity with South Sudan. Photos: Courtesy of
Misean Cara. Mission Sunday is an opportunity to “show the amazing amount of impact and work that our congregations continue to undertake in exceptionally increasingly difficult circumstances,” said Misean Cara CEO John Moffett to The Irish Catholic, speaking on behalf of the non-profit, which works with 77 member organisations across Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The goal of Mission Sunday, which takes place on Sunday October 18, is to share the successes of these 77 member organisations with the Irish public, as well as the successes of fellow missionary organisations AMRI and Missio.
This year’s Mission Sunday broadcast by RTÉ will have a different format, explained Mr Moffett and Misean Cara Chairperson Philip O’Brien. In previous years the broadcast has taken place at RTÉ studios, but this year it will take place at the Cathedral of Assumption in Thurles, where Archbishop Kieran O’Reilly will celebrate Mass. During Mass, the production will also broadcast images and stories from the field.
AMRI and Missio will also be present, which will give the organisations a chance to collectively showcase “the expansion and scope of the mission support from Ireland,” said the Misean Cara CEO.
While the three missionary organisations all have different methods of operation, they share the same goal of supporting livelihoods in the Global South. “I think that there’s a growing awareness and recognition that this is a task for all of us together, and that there is need for deeper collaboration on issues like this,” said Misean Cara Chairperson Mr O’Brien to The Irish Catholic.
Misean Cara, AMRI and Missio all share the unique quality of Irish missionary organisations, which Mr Moffett explained as the “ability to find ways to work with the people who are the most disadvantaged, the poorest, those that are being left out of social safety nets and really provide them with support. And their willingness to go to the hard to reach places that others would find very very difficult to operate in.”
“Not just as CEO of Misean Cara, but as an Irish citizen, I’m really proud to be associated with the congregations and the work that they do.”