Reflection 224 Previous reflections Resolution The 16 Documents of Vatican II
Based
on the Vatican 2 document:
On the Mission Activity of the Church
Ad Gentes - 5
One point from this rather long-winded and somewhat repetitive article:
To
carry out its mission of spreading the Gospel,
the Church must walk the same road as Jesus:
a road of poverty,
obedience, service and self-sacrifice
Poverty: my heart grieves when I see that the main annual activity of many Hong Kong parishes is a lavish evening banquet in an expensive restaurant....at a cost that many ordinary parishioners cannot afford....at a time when so many people go hungry in the world.
Blessings on those parishes that have a simple buffet in their parish hall immediately following the feast day Mass....where everyone is welcome and can mix together
As
HK' s Cardinal Tong said two years ago in his Christmas message:
rather than a lavish banquet for say, a 35th anniversary, let a parish (or
school) set a target of finding 35 new Christians!
Jesus, please help us walk the road of poverty with you