The Comboni Mission and JPIC in Europe

LETTER TO THE COMMUNITIES

Dear confreres,

Peace and every good thing from the European Assembly of Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation (JPIC) held in the community of Brixen on June 18-21 for the purpose of having a European project of missionary presence that will have JPIC as its core.

These were three days of intense sharing on the European Union (EU) which unfortunately these days is the victim of a dark wave of racism and xenophobia from Hungary to Italy.

Together we analyzed the EU that is currently one of the sustaining pillars of the world’s economic-financial system with the enrichment of a few and the impoverishment of many. For this reason, this system must arm itself to the teeth and wage wars in order to protect its privileged position and exploitation. The Ecosystem of the Planet Earth that “suffers and moans through its labor pains,” is paying the price. Ours is a system of death killing through hunger, wars and the destruction of the Planet. The consequence is the migration of untold millions of men and women (it is no longer an emergency, but the very structure of the system) that Europe rejects by projecting our borders into Turkey, Libya and Niger.

Sadly, at least 34,361 migrants have died in the Mediterranean (according to the Guardian we know their names). We as missionaries cannot accept all this, because it clashes against all that we believe in: the God of life who gave us Jesus so that we may all have “life, and life in abundance” not only in Heaven, but already here on earth. This is why we missionaries are bound to denounce the current world system to which Europe is giving flesh. For us Europe is mission land, with a mission that must incarnate a serious commitment to Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation (JPIC). Our Chapter says that much: “JPIC is an important way to requalify our missionary presence” (CA 2015, 45, 3&5) in Europe as we do mission. This assembly strongly underlines that this is what our being mission in Europe must be.

However, in all this it is not enough to denounce the pervading injustice, the enormous military expenses with ever newer wars and the grave ecological crisis. We, ourselves, must live as communities that are alternative to the system and must commit to help the creation of communities that are, in turn, an alternative to the system and are life giving.

As the European Assembly, we wish to ask the following of the Comboni communities in Europe:

a) Communities living a life that is simple, poor, sober and near to the poor and the   emarginated, as Pope Francis asks;

b) Communities that are ready to face serious questions in the financial field, such as in which banks they keep their money (we cannot have deposits in banks that finance weapons, or play financial games and hoard their profits in financial paradises).

c) Communities aligned against the huge military expenses, against all wars, but favoring a culture of active non-violence;

d) Communities that will put into practice the “Laudato Si’” in order to save the Planet Earth, making their own all the suggestions found in Pope Francis’ Encyclical.

e) Communities particularly involved with migrants. This Assembly wants to thank the Lord for the many communities, especially in Italy and in Germany, that have opened their doors to welcome migrants. The Assembly is grateful to the Lord because the London Province has taken up a parish in Roehampton, London, to work with migrants and for the Province of Portugal for the commitment in the parish of Camarate for the same reason. The Assembly encourages the Province of Spain, after the failure of an inserted community in Almería, to look for another place where to concretize this project and to think of it also as an inter-provincial project.

f) Communities cooperating with all the other missionary Institutes working in their region or country in order to create a unit that will contribute to Africa-Europe Faith and Justice Network (AEFJN) in Brussels.

g) Communities that will foster in their country the birth of the USA Sanctuary Movement (Churches and institutions that declare themselves places of refuge and political asylum for migrants facing expulsion or death), as it was done by the community of Nuremberg in Germany.

h) Communities involved in giving greater voice to the position of missionaries in the public debate on the acceptance of migrants in Europe;

i) Communities that will favor a greater involvement of the laity in being missionaries in Europe;

j) Communities able to walk hand in hand with popular movements in areas of JPIC.

Finally, we ask all the communities to support the campaign “Welcoming Europe” which needs to collect over one million signatures in seven UE countries to be taken to the European Parliament in order to decriminalize solidarity, secure passages for migrants and protection for the victims of abuse (www.wearewelcomineurope.eu).

For us missionaries this is an epochal moment, a kairos, a fundamental time of great changes: new things are coming!

Let us get busy that life may win.

Brixen, June 21, 2018

Fr. Munari Giovanni, provincial in charge
Bro. Haspinger Bruno; Bro. Soffientini Antonio; Fr. Akpako Théotime Parfait; Fr. Arlindo Ferreira Pinto; Fr. Clark John Robert Anthony; Fr. Pérez Moreno José Rafael; Fr. Turyamureeba Roberto; Fr. Weber Franz; Fr. Zanotelli Alessandro; Fr. Zolli Fernando.