The 159th anniversary of the foundation of the SMA was marked by the opening of the extraordinary jubilee of mercy. This event did not take place by coincidence but remains providential for our missionary society.

Indeed, mission and mercy are two terms that we cannot under any circumstances separate. In a clear manner, in Misericordiae Vultus, Pope Francis emphasized that the missionary vocation of the Church is to announce the mercy of God. Mission According to the Pope is understood and lived in terms of mercy. However, « the Church has for mission to proclaim God’s mercy, baeting heart of the Gospel, that it must send to the heart and mind of all. The Bride of Christ adopts the attitude of the son of God who reaches out to all, without excluding people » (art.12).

Mission comes from mercy. It is born out of the compassion that one feels about the spiritual and social reality of men. Mercy from its etymological sense means to be touched from the heart by the misery of others. The story of the Exodus is a perfect illustration. God said to Moses : « I have surely seen the affliction of my people (…) I have come down to deliver them » ( Ex. 3 : 7-8). Two movements characterize the action of God through this sentence. The first one is the attention paid to the human suffring. He allows himself to be touched from his heart by the misery of his people. God is deeply upsets from within by the suffering. He sympathizes emotinally with the painful experience that man is facing. However, he does not limit himself simply to sympathize emotionally but acts : « I have come down to deliver them » . He comes out of himself and goes to meet man in order to offer him freedom symbol of his salvation. Christ in his saving activity will do the same. He will be full of compassion for sinners, for the poor, for the anguished and all those who are physically, spiritually and culturally held prisonners. To show how much his heart is moved by the suffering and human misery, he cries the death of his friend Lazarus ( Cf. Jn 11 : 35). Christ does not therefore stop only at the level of compassion but acts. He heals the sicks, feeds the crowds, raises up the dead and announces years of benefits an freedom for the captives.

From this perspective emerges the fundamental essence of missionary activity. It essentially involes the openess to others, to allow one self to be touched by the conditions of miseries, of spiritual, physical and moral suffering of people, in order to go to the suburbs, to cross the boders, to face the climate and cultural obstacles, to go where all the miseries are, to offer freedom, peace and joy that only the gospel of Christ proclaimed and lived with zeal can fully offer. The history and the missionary vocation of the Society of African Missions reflects very well this approach. SMA is born from the refusal of his founder bishop Marion de Brésillac to close his heart to the silent cries of all these people, particularly Africans, who still lie in the shadow of darkness, because haven’t received the light of the Gospel. The painful experience of the founder in India could have hardened his heart, but such was not the case. Touched from within by the spiritual and social conditions of African people, he decided to face climate challenges, cultural hostilities, lingustic dam, at the risk of his life, to offer to the African people, living in the most remote erea of the continent, joy to encounter Christ. Ultimate encounter that transforms existence by giving to it meaning and consistency.

159 years later, the work continues. Many are the missionaries SMA who full of compassion and affection for the people to whom they are sent, who are often like « sheep without shepherds » (Mt 9 : 36) since abandoned by everyone, government, pastors, because they are poor and live in the most remote hamlets of the continent, continue to face obstacles to bring to them the Gospel of Christ which is liberation and salvation. The fondamental vocation of SMA is the mission of primary evangelization, mission to the most abandoned people both spiritually and socially. We are called out of our internal and external confort to reach the most needy. One thing must remains clear in our hearts, Christ by sending us on mission has not promised us a peaceful life, promised to always be with us wherever we go and thus until the end of time. What remains fundamental is to know that at the heart of our mission and at th source of our hope is Christ. We must always keep as a flame lit the certainty that Christ is at work in the world where we have been sent on his behalf. For this reason, we must learn to cherish and live those values that have always been dear to our founder which are, the sense of detachment and sacrifice, the love of the cross, self- donation and hope in divine providence which is actually faith in God’s mercy.

Fr. Donald ZAGORE, SMA