c COMMISSION VI - Report 1997-1998

Pierre Schouver, CSSp

 
1. Commission VI

This Commission also goes under the name of Mission Commission. This year, 15 to 30 people took part, members of Councils and Generalate services of missionary institutes of the USG and UISG. It provides missionary institutes with an opportunity to share their experiences. The meetings take the form of sharing in small groups or in general assembly after an exposé or a panel. As those taking part are chronic travelers, the number who participate on a regular basis is small. There is a small committee which provides a president and a secretariat.

2. Some themes that were considered in 1997-1998.

Hinduism: general presentation, common ground with Christianity, moving from Hinduism to Christianity. The Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for America (North and South): a report was given by a Superior General who had taken part, concerning the way the Synod functioned and the dominant themes. In the face of the difficulty of innovation, the Bishops had a common approach - encourage pastoral solidarity, stress the positive signs that give hope, go forward patiently but firmly. Experiences of situations of conflict and violence in the region of the Great Lakes and in Algeria. Feelings of hopelessness, the decision of missionaries to remain with their people, the importance of clear directives from the Bishop and Superior (of the missionary group or the Institute), care for confreres who are suffering from the effects of violent experiences, lessons learnt from such experiences for the future of mission (take time to evaluate, putting the accent on being close to the people and Christian communities, not relying on the power of the Church but on the confidence of the people, discussion and collaboration). Financial help in the context of the real needs of the Church: the need of prayer, of spiritual formation, of taking responsibility for one’s actions, the need for helping positive actions for formation and animation. Presentation and discussion of the document of the "Commission for religious relations with Judaism" on the Shoah (disappointing aspects and positive signs). The Synod for Asia: a presentation by two Superiors General who took part, followed by a discussion. Few new ideas in the proposals, the Synod affected by different "agendas", the Synod centered on pastoral considerations, the positive results that came from the meeting of very different Episcopal Conferences.

3. Evaluation

This was done by the participants. Although the meetings have no great pretensions, they are welcomed by those taking part as a help to reflection on events that concern mission and on new situations and challenges. Above all, they give a chance to missionary institutes to share their experiences, their plans and their questions.

A list of new subjects, and others which keep recurring, was presented for 1998-1999.