St. Matthew tells us that on the very day of His Ascension, just before rising to Heaven, Our Lord gave His apostles this solemn missionary order: Go, teach all nations, and baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.
Dear Friends and Benefactors,
St. Matthew tells us that on the very day of His Ascension, just before rising to Heaven, Our Lord gave His apostles this solemn missionary order: Go, teach all nations, and baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.
Conforming to this command of the Savior, the Apostles spread out in order to preach the Gospel. History tells us that St. Matthew died on the shores of India, and St. Paul preached Jesus in all the Mediterranean basin, going all the way to Spain before confessing the unique Savior of the world in a common martyrdom with St. Peter.
Since then, Holy Mother Church, sharing with her Divine Spouse His infinite, merciful love for souls, has sent abroad millions of apostles: bishops, priests, monks and laymen in order to make His name known and adored. We known the names of Augustine, Methodius, Ricci, Francis, Columbus, Zumarraga, Jogues, de Smet, and Lefebvre for their courage and adventures in the seas, plains and woods.
There are also the millions of unknown souls who prayed, sacrificed and suffered for the missionaries, obtaining for them graces of fortitude, intervening before God for them. St. Therese of the Child Jesus, without leaving her Carmel, became the Patron Saint of the Missions. It is not necessary to go far to be a missionary; it is not even necessary to go anywhere, because the power and the extension of prayer are as infinite as God is.
It is just to mention also the billions spent for the missions. Benefactors, rich and poor, families and states, foundations, trusts and charities have been solicited throughout the centuries to come and help the missionaries in their travels, installations, teaching and works of mercy.
The SSPX is proud of its missions. They are the heritage of its founder’s heart. This concrete dimension of the Catholic Church is made possible every day because of the tireless spiritual and material support that you all give here in the United States to our missionaries spread throughout the world.
This Regina Coeli Report issue will give you a glimpse of the works of our missionaries. It is an honor for us to celebrate these daily heroes of our times who labor in these new rows of the Lord’s vineyard. This issue wants also to be a token of gratitude for all the friends and benefactors of the SSPX missions who, by their support and help, collaborate in this essential part of the Church’s faithful answer to Christ’s order.
In this month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, let us make the extra mile and imitate Him in this special charity, let us bend our hearts over the miseries of our brothers and sisters in Christ, these multitudes who do not know Him, do not love Him and wait in their blindness for our charity to make a change.
May He inspire and bless your answer,
Fr. Arnaud Rostand