Welcome to the Pontifical Mission Societies

Letter from the Executive Director

Life today is a daily challenge as we struggle with a global pandemic. In one way or another, all of us have been touched by illness, death, isolation, economic struggles, food insecurity, and fear. At the same time, these struggles are even more acute in the lives of our vulnerable brothers and sisters in the Mission Lands. Faced with our own struggles, how do we answer the call to care for the least of our brothers and sisters?
One way is to look to St. Joseph as a role model, an inspiration and an intercessor. When Pope Francis proclaimed 2021, the Year of St. Joseph, he said this:

…every poor, needy, suffering or dying person, every stranger, every prisoner, every infirm person is “the child” whom Joseph continues to protect. For this reason, Saint Joseph is
invoked as protector of the unfortunate, the needy, exiles, the afflicted, the poor and the dying. Consequently, the Church cannot fail to show a special love for the least of our
brothers and sisters, for Jesus showed a particular concern for them and personally
identified with them. From Saint Joseph, we must learn that same care and responsibility.

In Hosanna, Ethiopia, food insecurity is real. Drought and violent ethnic conflicts, along with natural disasters and now exposure to the coronavirus, have made starvation a frightening reality. But there is hope. Local priests and Sisters are responding through food programs and with pastoral care, bringing the comforting presence of the Lord to remind them that no one who suffers is ever abandoned by God.
St. Joseph was an ordinary man, called to take on an extraordinary role. I invite you to do something extraordinary by making a Lenten gift to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. In doing so, you can help missionaries in Ethiopia, and in so many places throughout the Missions, to bring tangible resources and the healing power of hope to those in dire need. Through your prayers and support, a mission family may come to know the saving hope of the Resurrection.
Anything you give will be a blessing for the life-saving work of missionaries. Enclosed is a brochure to help you reflect on how you can “show a special love for the least of our brothers and sisters” in the Mission Lands.

Thank you for your prayerful consideration and God bless!

– Reverend Monsignor Terrance L. Fleming

                            Lent 2021