Belize
Summer Mission

Our mission in San Ignacio has finished, but our mission in life re-launches now!

For Christ, With Christ, and Like Christ!

Day 14: Coming Home

May 31st

After two weeks of entering into the school of life, prayer, and mission that is the summer mission, the missionaries are back ready to continue setting the world on fire!

It is with much joy that we left San Ignacio knowing that though we leave, God stays, watching over his flock.

Day 13: “It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard”.

May 30th

After two weeks on this mission, we feel blessed for the immense privilege of being witnesses of the work of God in so many people. We had a turnout of almost 90 people on the last night of the retreat. 80% of them are not practicing their faith. The testimonies, the prayers, the singing, the preaching, all led to an unforgettable moment, a breakthrough in their lives. The comment was that they had never lived something like this in their whole lives. The topic of the night: Community. Now it is their job to keep the fire alive during the year.

Farewell San Ignacio! Until the next one! God has plans for you beyond what we can imagine.

Day 12: Let it Rain, Let it Rain! Open the Flood Gates of Heaven!

May 29th

Today was another wonderful daying full of serving, praying, learning, and growing here in Belize!
As usual, we began our morning with a personal meditation on the Gospels, then together we celebrated the Holy Mass before coming back to Headquarters for the rest of our morning.
Today’s Formation was focused on the Spirit of Sacrifice, and Sr. Chiara led us in a very informative talk that we can apply to our days here on Mission, as well as beyond.

In the afternoon, our team split up to enter our zones to continue seeking out families and cultivating bonds with the people of San Ignacio. It even rained quite a bit, which a lot of people have been praying hard for here in Belize!

As for the second night of Retreat- it was a beautiful evening. One woman turned to me when she was leaving, and said "Tonight was even better than the first night!” with a smile. We love to see our Lord at work in this town.

We ask for continued prayers as we begin to say goodbye to all our new friends tomorrow, following our final night of retreat!

Thank you all and God Bless!

Day 11: He sent us knocking and now the door has been opened

May 28th

The Lord sent us to knock or clap at the doors of his children in San Ignacio. Today, we were able to receive his children as we opened the first night of the retreat. We began with songs of praise before our masters of commentary swept it away. Then we ended with an invitation to open their hearts and pray. Though it may only be the beginning stories were shared and tears were shed so, lord thank you for carving the way so that when we knocked… or clapped they were ready and the path was already made.

Day 10: I came to serve

May 27th

In today’s gospel, Jesus encourages us to serve like Him, because He came “not to be served but to serve.” We learned about the virtue of charity and how our lives can be directed towards service and love of God. The missionaries had the chance to live out this key teaching of Christ through chores, house visits, prayer, and community time. Belize is a school of life and of mission!

Day 9: Back to Mission!

May 26th

Today the missionaries jumped back into missioning. Having rested yesterday, we began the day with a new energy, vigor, and a full day’s schedule before us. The morning consisted of the usual meditation, Mass, chores (our kitchen clean up is getting more efficient every day!), ministry work time, and an awesome formation about having a big-picture worldview from Father Ivan. The Children’s Ministry Team had their own agenda for the day, as well; a special team went out to visit schools and share the Gospel in the morning. They were great visits!

In the afternoon the missionaries missioned for about three hours, with the Children's Ministry hosting a Children’s Night back at the parish. Today was the final day for first-time visits with the people; after this, we will be focusing more on following up and checking in on the friends we’ve made, and, of course, inviting to our retreat. Please pray for us and for the people we are inviting!

We ended the night with a silent visit to the Blessed Sacrament, another delicious dinner provided by Erwin, the local Belizean who has been voluntarily cooking for us consistently here, and finally, an intellectual discussion on C.S. Lewis’s view on The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment. All in all, another great day of being a missionary in Belize!

Day 8: Come and rest awhile

May 25th

As you read in yesterday’s post, today was our rest day on the mission.

We learned about the importance of resting in order to fulfill the mission well. Our retreat nights begin in just a few days, but that is exactly what makes resting worthwhile! So, we had Mass, ventured to the river, had lunch, and enjoyed time in nature before returning home, sharing good conversation (and ice cream), and ending the night in prayer, as always.

It has been a day of deepening connections with each other and entering more intentionally into what the Lord is speaking to us.

Day 7: The joy of Pentecost

May 24th

Today we got to join the whole community from San Ignacio and its surrounding towns for their Confirmation Mass! We got to see a lot of our friends from the Delta Missions, and over 90 students were confirmed. What a gift! Later in the day we visited homes once again, with some mission groups beginning their second visits and going deeper with the people they met in their zones.

Tomorrow is our rest day! We will have a morning of retreat, followed by a time of leisure and rest at the river. Please pray for us on this important day so that we may rest in order to serve the people of San Ignacio more fully.

Day 6: Thirst for God

May 23rd

Thirst is a reality that comes alive for us during these days of mission under the intense Belize sun. This helps us in turn to meditate upon what it means to thirst for God, especially as we prepared our hearts for Pentecost: we were able in a special way to ask for the Holy Spirit’s life-giving water as we hosted the Vigil Mass here in San Ignacio and Fr. Ivan and Fr. Maximo led a powerful Effusion prayer for the community here.

Day 5: Delta mission

May 22nd

Today the missionaries returned from their Delta mission in the more remote villages, said goodbye to their host families, and returned to San Ignacio after a beautiful 24 hours of mission! My group was in a small town called Sancta Familia, and we were all very moved by the people’s generosity. Specifically, our host family gave up their own beds so we could sleep in them! What an amazing witness of the Lord’s generosity that was shown to us.

After coming back to headquarters, we had a quick turn around before a night of encounter for the youth. We played some games, had some great witness talks, a time of small group, and a powerful prayer moment of Adoration. Please continue to pray for us as we visit homes in San Ignacio and have a special night of prayer for the vigil of the Feast of Pentecost!

Miller

Day 4: United in Christ

May 21st

Today we celebrated Mass and learned how to live out the virtue of generosity more fully. The group split up into the Delta Missions which are designed for further outreach into four more remote villages: Cristo Rey, Kontiki, Sancta Familia, and Bullet Tree. The different groups stay with their host families for the night to build relationships there. Tonight, a mini retreat was hosted by the missionaries in their respective missions tonight.

Back at headquarters, a group of missionaries stayed in San Ignacio to continue the movement in the community. They met with school children at the school next to the parish and continued to have wonderful house visits where many houses welcomed them in. It was a very affirming experience for the missionaries showing that God is both: using what they have offered Him to share the Gospel with others and is never outdone in generosity.

Day 3: Into the heart

May 20th

After settling in, our third day in San Ignacio led us deeper still into the core of the mission-into the hearts and homes of the people. We launched our first day of house visits, where each group of missionaries visited homes in neighborhoods surrounding the parish. In a house visit, the goal is to encounter people, read the Word of God, and pray for them. Each encounter feels like a path opened from God! In their different adventures, the mission groups experienced the providence of God and how His hand was guiding the visits. The Lord is sending us to the lost sheep!

Day 2: Sent

May 19th

Today was our first day of mission!

The missionaries started with time dedicated to preparing the space in which we are living for these next two weeks. Sr. Anunciata led the team especially in preparing our personal chapel.

We were joyfully sent into the streets of San Ignacio to meet the people with zeal and lots of flyers for the events and retreats during this time! Then, all of the missionaries walked in small groups of 2 or 3 into their designated “zones” of the city to more intentionally connect with their people. This is a special moment because it is when the missionary takes on Christ’s call to his apostles to go in pairs to share the Good News! The room was full of story telling and sharing upon return.

Pray for us!

Day 1: Settling in

May 18th

Day 1 of the mission is complete! Today we traveled down to Belize-- many of us woke up at 4:30am and headed to the airport early. We all made it on our first flight (with some running!) and had a layover in Miami. Our group is 42 total with 20 Catholic University students, 9 American University students, 7 volunteer missionaries, 2 priests, 2 seminarians, and 2 sisters-- a full team!
After landing in Belize, we took a bus to San Ignacio where we will be missioning and staying. Our host, Gene, is amazing! Very considerate and making sure we have everything we need. Our accommodations are just a few blocks down from the local Catholic parish.
Today as we settled in, we celebrated the Mass, spent time praying in adoration, and ate dinner (cooked by Gene’s family) together as a group. We are resting and preparing well for tomorrow as we will go out and meet the people of San Ignacio!
Overall, the spirit of our missionaries is very joyful and ready to serve. Gene and his family mentioned how good it is that we are here, serving with joy and generosity. We are excited to have our boots on the ground here in our mission zones!

Kim

A VISION FOR THE MISSION

May 13th

Let’s answer the most basic question: Why Summer Missions?

Pope John Paul II said once, “Evangelization is the CORNERSTONE of all pastoral action, the demands of which are primary, preeminent and preferential”. Together with the rest of the Church we set out to answer to this call and bring the good news to the ends of the earth, until everybody knows of His resurrection.

Summer Missions are also an opportunity for college students to experience the Gospel literally. Each day in the mission is a page of the Acts of the Apostles that is brought to life. Summer Missions are a school of prayer, a school of life, and a school of mission we say. The lessons learned on mission go far beyond those two weeks; they are applicable to the rest of our lives.

FOR CHRIST, WITH CHRIST AND LIKE CHRIST, VAMOS!

On this blog you will find daily updates with written news and pictures. Come along, join us on mission, and please pray for us!