By FMA Vietnam

"Those who follow Christ closer must have qualities of evangelization" (Pope Francis)

Ho Chi Min, Vietnam, November 14th, 2015 - Responding to the call of Holy Father for World Missionary Message in 2015 and pacing with the General Chapter XXIII, Province of Daughters of Mary Help of Christian in Vietnam held on Missionary Day with the theme: "Expanding vision, linking all hearts " on November 14th, 2015.

To make Missionary Day meaningful and thoughtful, sisters of Team of Missionary Animation was engrossed in practicing entertaining items, decorating places and preparing liturgy of the hours. On Friday afternoon November 13, sisters spent silent hour in front of Jesus following guides of Sr. Concetta, Vice Provincial. This helped sisters sense more intensely their missionary identity and be strengthened to evangelizing mission of Salesian charism following Father John Bosco and Mother Mazzarello.

On early Saturday morning November 14th, sisters celebrated laud in St. Joseph chapel. Around 8 am, sisters joyfully welcomed Bishop Alfonso Nguyen Huu Long – Assistant Bishop of Hung Hoa Diocese and President of Evangelization Committee in Vietnam, Fr. Dominic Ngo Quang Tuyen – General Secretary of Evangelization Committee, Sr. Rosa Vu Thi Kim Lien – the Provincial, parents of 23 sisters who are ad gentes missionaries and FMAs from different communities.

To open the encounter, sisters of the Assumption of Mary community warmed up missionary enthusiasm of participants through a short item that showed the urgency of becoming bearers of salvation for the world today. Then Sr. Rosa shares with participants experience of a Salesian who has devoted his life to missionary field for 25 years. That leaves in him the motto: “Suffering is the way God express his Love”. With that, she invited people to open their hearts to guidance of Holy Spirit in order to become missionaries of joy and hope.

Next, Bishop Alfonso greeted sisters, parents and thanked them for their warm welcome with bright smiles on their faces. For the first time he visited VTN Province, he was impressed by a joyfulness of happy people and he experienced here has been permeated with the call of Holy Father "Where the religious are, joy is there”. In his speech, he invited each person to open his/ her heart to cries of different forms of poverty with a profound sense of Holy Spirit’s activity, learn from Jesus to become missionaries in word, joy and witness of life. With humor, he called sisters to go out... to the land of Hung Hoa. During discussions with Bishop Alfonse and Fr. Dominic, participants were opened their visions through guide lines and concerns of Evangelization Committee in order to keep pace up with the Mother Church in missionary field in Vietnam.

The climax of the encounter was celebration of the Eucharist in St. Joseph chapel. With subtlety and great depth, Fr. Dominic concluded Missionary Day with song: “Expanding vision” accompanied with music “linking hearts”. Ending the Mass, rite of sending out was celebrated with symbol of sowing seeds on the grounds which have expected our presence.

The joy of communion followed by fraternal lunch inserted with entertaining items. Ending Missionary Day, everyone eagerly went out with strong assertion:

"Be courageous since Jesus has gone with us, told us, breath with us, work with us and live with us in evangelization service"(Pope Francis).

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