The parishioners of Saint Joseph Parish in Hosanna, Ethiopia are ready to celebrate because it is World Mission Sunday -- a day set aside for Catholics worldwide to recommit themselves to the Church's missionary activity through prayer and sacrificial giving. The funds collected on World Mission Sunday for The Society for the Propagation of the Faith are crucial in over 1,150 mission territories in Asia, Africa, remote parts of Latin and South America, and the Pacific Islands.

Bishop Seyoum Fransua of Hosanna notes that even amidst the daily demands of human conflicts, natural disasters, and the challenges they bring, The Society for the Propagation of the Faith is a dependable partner in meeting the needs of his people. He lists the support of children's education and nutrition, the faith formation of catechists, and the construction of rural chapels as ways that The Society has changed the very fabric of life in Hosanna.

Following landslides in the Gofa Zone, an area where less than one in five families is food secure, the Church has been called on to feed the hungry and shelter the internally displaced, all while carrying on her evangelizing mission through her outward signs of solidarity.

With the help of donors like you, The Society for the Propagation of the Faith helps Bishop Seyoum come to the aid of his people, lifting some of the burdens of the crosses they bear daily.

This World Mission Sunday, answer the universal call that the choir at Saint Joseph Parish sends out, asking for support as they build their church materially and spiritually. And remember, because it is World Mission Sunday, parishioners in Hosanna will take up a collection from what little they have to support the work of The Society for the Propagation of the Faith, helping to make it possible for everyone to be invited to the banquet of the Lord!

Join your gift with theirs today! Go online to www.propfaithboston.org, today!

Boston's archdiocesan celebration will be held at Saint Agnes Parish in Arlington on 10/20 at noon -- all are welcome!



- Maureen Crowley Heil is Director of Programs and Development for the Pontifical Mission Societies, Boston.