Latest news with #PontificalInstituteforForeignMissions
Herald Malaysia
13-07-2025
- General
- Herald Malaysia
Pope Leo XIV: Embrace 'marvelous adventure' of following Christ more closely
Pope Leo XIV invites members of several religious congregations holding their General Chapters to take part in the "marvelous adventure" of following Christ more closely. Jul 13, 2025 Pope Leo XIV receives participants in General Chapters of several religious institutes at Castel Gandolfo (@Vatican Media) By Deborah Castellano Lubov Embrace the marvelous adventure of following Christ more closely. Pope Leo XIV gave this exhortation to religious men and women on Saturday morning in Castel Gandolfo, where he is staying for his summer vacation. While Popes generally hold few encounters during their stay in the lakeside town southeast of Rome, the Holy Father welcomed participants in the General Chapters of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (P.I.M.E.); Religious Teachers Filippini; Religious Teachers Venerini; Daughters of the Church; Salesian Oblate Sisters of the Sacred Heart; and Franciscan Sisters of St. Angela (Angeline Franciscans). The Holy Father began by thanking them for their work and "faithful presence" in so many parts of the world, noting their Founders and Foundresses, "docile to the action of the Holy Spirit, have left you a variety of charisms for the building up of the Body of Christ." Love of God for humanity The Pope observed that their respective Institutes "embody complementary aspects of the life and mission of the entire people of God," naming in particular "the offering of self in union with Christ's Sacrifice, the ad gentes mission, love for the Church preserved and handed on, and the education and formation of young people." These, he said, are different paths all animated by the one eternal reality, namely, "God's love for humanity." "As is customary," the Pope recognized that each of their Congregations has identified particular perspectives through which to reread the legacy received, in order to renew and make its content relevant for today," and he invited them to do this with deep prayer and mutual listening." Benedict XVI's reminder The Holy Spirit, Pope Leo said, quoting Benedict XVI, recalled that it is the Spirit who, "through the contribution of many under the guidance of the Pastors, 'helps the Christian community to walk in charity toward the full truth.'" In this context, the Pope underscored the importance of renewing an authentic missionary spirit, adopting the sentiments 'that were in Christ Jesus,' rooting their hope in God, keeping alive in their hearts the flame of the Spirit, promoting peace, and fostering pastoral co-responsibility within local Churches. Marvelous adventure of following Christ more closely "To place these side by side and recall them together at this moment," Pope Leo marveled, "helps us to appreciate the richness of our being a community—especially as religious—engaged in the same marvelous adventure of 'following Christ more closely.'' "May this renew and strengthen in all of us the awareness and joy of being Church," the Pope said, expressing his hope that this in particular encourage them, in their Chapter discernment, "to think boldly as unique pieces of a design that transcends and involves you beyond your own expectations." God's plan of salvation That design, Pope Leo XIV noted, is "the plan of salvation" by which God desires to bring all humanity back to Himself, as one great family. Like small lights, he urged them to help the light of Christ, "which never fades," spread throughout the earth. Before imparting his Apostolic Blessing, Pope Leo XIV invited those present to join him "in asking the Lord together to make us docile to the voice of His Spirit, who 'teaches all things,' and without whose help—in our weakness—we do not even know how to pray as we ought.'"--Vatican News
Herald Malaysia
09-07-2025
- General
- Herald Malaysia
Fr Francesco Rapacioli, new PIME superior general
Fr Francesco Rapacioli, 62, a missionary in Bangladesh, is the new superior general of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) Jul 09, 2025 ROME: Fr Francesco Rapacioli, 62, a missionary in Bangladesh, is the new superior general of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME), the missionary institute that publishes Asia News . The institute elected him this morning during its 16th General Assembly, underway since 22 June at the International Centre for Missionary Activities in Rome, focused on the topic "All and only missionaries: identity, responsibility and freedom in the common missionary vocation". Fr Rapacioli takes over from Fr Ferruccio Brambillasca, who has led the institute since 2013. After completing a second six-year term, he was no longer eligible for re-election. PIME's new general administration was also elected for the next six years. Hitherto the regional superior for Southern Asia, Father Rapacioli was born in Paris in 1963 but grew up in the Italian diocese of Piacenza-Bobbio. He entered PIME after graduating in medicine and becoming a priest in 1993. His first destination was the seminary in Pune, India, where he carried out his ministry until 1997, when he was transferred to Bangladesh, a largely Muslim country, working mostly in Dhaka. After a six-year hiatus (2012-2018) as rector of the PIME International Seminary in Monza (Italy), he returned to Bangladesh where he set up groups for alcoholics and drug addicts in the capital in 2020 to help them take back control of their lives. This was a concrete response to a major need in the country. 'Many of those who attend the groups are Muslims, but there are also Christians, Hindus and Buddhists,' he said in an interview with Mondo e Missione. "Many participate because they feel the need to be among people who do not judge and who are interested in understanding. One comes across many difficult situations, devastating sometimes. But it is also beautiful to see that some manage to rebuild a life of relationships, work, study, and find peace. 'It is a true blossoming. I believe it is an authentically missionary project,' Fr Rapacioli explained. 'It touches something profound in people; it is a true spiritual experience. And even if it never becomes part of religious discourse, it is truly an inner journey.' PIME was founded by Bishop, later Patriarch Angelo Ramazzotti in 1850, out of the experience of the Lombard Seminary for Foreign Missions. Pope Pius XI reset it in 1926 as the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, uniting it with the Pontifical Seminary of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul for Foreign Missions, established in Rome in 1871 by Mgr Pietro Avanzini. PIME currently has about 400 missionaries from 17 different nationalities who carry out their ministry in 20 countries in every continent. The latest endeavour, created in cooperation with other institutes set up in mission with the same charism as PIME, is taking its first steps in the Diocese of Tanjung Selor, Borneo (Indonesia).--Asia News
