The Holy See
back up
Search
riga

PONTIFICIUM OPUS A SANCTA INFANTIA
 

THE MISSIONARY CHILDHOOD:
THE CHURCH’S RESPONSE TO CHILDREN TODAY
 

INTERVIEW WITH SECRETARY GENERAL OF
MISSIONARY CHILDHOOD, FR. PATRICIO BYRNE, S.V.D.

 

1. Do you think The Missionary Childhood Society is still important today, so many years after its foundation?

It is true we have a long history: 161 years have passed since our Society was founded. I think it is essential to continue to work for love of children. The difficulties remain the same: exploitation of children, wars, violence. To overcome these problems we try to follow the example of our founder Bishop Forbin Janson who was filled with love and compassion. In this sense I am sure Holy Childhood Society is important today because unfortunately there are still many children in the world in difficulty or victims of injustice. Our goal is to respond to these challenges. For all these reasons I believe the Society is still very necessary for our times.


 

2. Do you think it should be adapted to the world of today ?
I think one way of adapting it is to use the means of communications offered by modern progress, computers, print media, spoken news, etc. as do many of our National Directors in different parts of the world already. The International Secretariat intends to make use of these means to make our Society ever more widely known. This is why at the International Secretariat we warmly encourage National Directors of the PMS to use these modern means.

3. In a world marked by violence do you think the Missionary Childhood still has something to say to people?
Yes, I am certain it has something to say and that something is the Word of the Gospel. We work only within the context of the Gospel of the Word of God, a word of justice, peace and love. We have much to say to people. The question is to what extent are they willing to listen in a world where there is so much violence?. It is often discouraging to see growing violence, growing numbers of abandoned children, growing numbers of people who choose to ignore this problem which is ever more serious. Nevertheless we will continue to communicate the word of the Gospel in the face of all these crises.

4. Would you say that support for the Missionary Childhood has increased in recent years?
I think so; we note a small increase. Although the financial situation is rather difficult at the moment even in Europe and North America, and despite the problems mentioned already, people are still very generous. Support has increased but not a great deal.

5. Why should children join Missionary Childhood rather than another organisation?
We have always underlined the missionary dimension. There are many organisations within the Catholic Church but not all of them unfortunately have a missionary horizon: they are not interested in the rest of the world, they are closed in a parish or diocese. This is why children should join Missionary Childhood where they learn that the world is big, that the world needs us and needs the word of Jesus Christ as only children and their animators know how to offer it.

6. Does the Missionary Childhood offer children and collaborators a model of life different from the “normal” Christian model of life? Are there certain aspects to which it gives priority ?
It is not a question of an alternative model of life. I think the answer lies in the second part of your question. We give priority to certain aspects because, as I said earlier, for us what counts is the missionary dimension. Because our model is the life of Jesus Christ, his way of living the Gospel, a model which is for all Christians. Sad to say many Christians give bad example. They are only Christians in name because the compassion of Jesus Christ, his reaching out to those who suffer is not present in their life.

7. Does the Missionary Childhood focus on knowledge of the world or knowledge of God?
Both. We cannot put people in separate compartments. The child and the animator must know God personally, they must have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Otherwise their life will be deprived of a basis, a foundation. At the same time we realise that the child and the animator must be familiar with the geography of the world. A child in the United States or the United Kingdom should know where to find Sudan, Rwanda and Burundi, countries where the people, children especially, have suffered greatly and still suffer. This is why it is important to know what goes on in the world, to read the newspapers, listen to news reports, have a planetary heart, open to the reality around us. This calls for knowledge of the world and of God.

8. A few closing words for children ?

I would ask children to remember what the Holy Father said to Missionary Childhood children in Colombia: « You are my great little collaborators ». I would ask also priests and animators to keep these words in mind and to realise that children are our greatest treasure. I would tell children that we ask much of them and that we regret the abuse to which some people subject them.

We hope that everyone with responsibility for children will work for the good of the child and be totally dedicated to the child’s spiritual and material wellbeing .


 

top