Not long before his death this past April, Pope John Paul II issued the annual papal mission catechesis. In that message for this year?s World Mission Sunday, Catholics are reminded: ?We who nourish ourselves with the Body and Blood of the crucified and risen Lord, cannot keep this ?gift? to ourselves; on the contrary we must share it. Passionate love for Christ leads to courageous proclamation of Christ; proclamation which, with martyrdom, becomes a supreme offering of love for God and for mankind. The Eucharist leads us to be generous evangelisers, actively committed to building a more just and fraternal world.?

In the Diocese of Malindi in Kenya, Bishop Francis Baldacchino has introduced this phrase to his people: ?We have to look out of the window.

?Our communities,? he says, ?must find ways of penetrating into the villages where the Church is not present.? The diocese is a poor one, but the people have found unique ways of reaching out to share their faith. Catholic youth have invited non-Christians to play soccer. ?The non-Christian youth see the love the Catholic teens have for one another and become interested in learning more about this Jesus they talk about so much,? observes Bishop Baldacchino. ?It is amazing to see how many young people have left the soccer field to come to religious education classes so that they may be baptised and then receive Holy Communion.?

Throughout the Developing World, missionaries proclaim Jesus? message of peace and love to those who suffer with devastating poverty and the violence of war.

This year?s World Mission Sunday message encourages us to reflect on the impact the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ has for each of us as individuals and on humanity as a whole: ?In our day human society appears to be shrouded in dark shadows while it is shaken by tragic events and shattered by catastrophic natural disasters. The Eucharist is not merely an expression of communion in the Church?s life; it is also a project of solidarity for all of humanity.?

Father Chritiah Onyigbuo, rector of Queen of Apostles Seminary in Enugu, Nigeria, worries about supporting vocations in the future. Nigeria has suffered from a weak economy and several major storms that have ruined crops. He says, ?The maintenance of our seminarians poses a Herculean task as the present economic situation badly affects the Church and her faithful. But our young men have a faith that is strong and commendable.?

Father Joe Ezechi, ordained just a year, is one such priest of sacrifice and faith. Already, he has served at the parish where he grew up. ?The parish is very poor, but we have the Eucharist, so we are incredibly rich in faith and in love for each other,? says Father Ezechi. ?It is such a privilege for me to offer the sacrifice of the Mass and to share the Body and Blood of Christ with my people.?

In this year?s papal message for World Mission Sunday, we read: ?United with Christ it is possible to meet the deepest longings of the human heart. Jesus alone can satisfy humanity?s hunger for love and thirst for justice. He also makes it possible for every human person to share in eternal life.?

In the parishof St. Mathias, in Tanga, Tanzania, the people must get by with very little. But as their bishop, Anthony Banzi, says, ?Every year there seems to be a deeper understanding of their obligations and contributions toward the participation in this universal feast.?

This year the people of St. Mathias came up with a novel approach to raise money ? they sold the pastor?s pig! After receiving $50 for the pig initially, the pig was then bought and re-sold more than ten times to realise at the end of the day 300,000 shillings, or $300. With joy, the parishioners of St. Mathias brought the donations to the Church ? delighted most especially that they were able to help further spread of the Gospel. As one man said, ?As members of the Mystical Body of Christ, we who are poor, can still reach out to those even less fortunate than ourselves ? those who have yet to feel the powerful love of Jesus Christ in their lives.? The Church is universal. So is its mission. And so is World Mission Sunday. The celebration of World Mission Sunday this year also marks the close of the Year of the Eucharist, as well as the conclusion of the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. That celebration reminds each of us who eat Christ?s Body and drink His Blood that we are sent to continue Jesus? mission to the world. In this year?s World Mission Sunday message, we are told: ?In His name, missionaries all over the world proclaim and witness the Gospel. Through their efforts there resound once again the words of the Redeemer: ?I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will never be hungry; he who believes in Me will never thirst.? They too, become ?bread broken? for their brothers, some even to the point of sacrificing their lives.? On World Mission Sunday we join the Catholics of the world at the Eucharist in celebrating our common mission vocation. We offer prayers for the Church?s missionary efforts in more than 1,150 dioceses throughout the Developing World, and too, we offer our financial help to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith to support all those who day after day bring the Good News of Jesus Christ to all nations and peoples.