The Rationale Behind the Vision
by Fr. Justin Huang
The Eucharist is Jesus Himself, God with us. He is the source of our life and being, and the mount to which we ascend. This is where we get all of our energy and love, and this is what the saints died for to protect.
Think of modern-day saints, JPII and Mother Teresa were two who were profoundly Eucharistic, and they were also the most human, courageous and apostolic missionaries in the world. These are two of our models.
For months, we’ve realized that God is calling us to an intimate encounter with Him, to personally meet Him in His transcendence at Mass, but also in His humility and true presence during Communion and at adoration.
We make no bones about who we are: Jesus Christ, the Lord and centre of the universe, is the Lord and centre of our hearts and community.
To be a saint is both deeply intimidating but deeply inspiring, because this is the ultimate goal of every person. To be a saint is to be:
1) truly human (fully alive);
2) Christ-like;
3) Someone who does God’s will;
4) the best version of ourselves (hungering for excellence);
5) someone who fulfills his/her vocation/destiny (each person is different);
6) perfect in love;
7) at the height of contemplation;
8) an evangelist.
To be a saint is the will of God, so let’s put this at the front of everything we do.
As a community, we want to emphasize that we're forming interpersonal relationships, at Mass, when greeting, on the phone, in the office, and especially in our delivery of formation, with accompaniment, through Alpha, Faith studies, and at our elementary school.
Our goal is to bring people to Jesus. If we fail at this, we fail as Christians/disciples, and clearly are not saints. The Gospels are full of examples of how God used servants to bridge the gap between people and Him. We are answering this call to rebuild His broken family. We want everyone in the world to be reunited with their Father, to be part of the Catholic family.
The first half of the vision is about holiness and is one side of the same coin. The second half of the vision is about the other side of the coin: Mission. We’re sent out by Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit that unleashed His power and dynamism on the Church and changed the world. Through Him, the community was one in mind and heart.
We desire to love like Jesus in every way: in our daily hidden lives, in obedience and forgiveness, in serving and healing others, in preaching the dignity of human life, and in a particular, helping those in need: the poor, the lonely, the stranger. We pray that people encounter Jesus when they encounter us.
In our times, we need to specify this evangelical thrust, where we are active and missionary, and multiplying. We wish to speak more boldly about Jesus Christ, and pray and look for opportunities to speak about Him. We want to shout from the rooftops, but also in our daily meetings, at work and home or while travelling. There should be no occasion where we are not proclaiming Him and seeking to evangelize, because this is our identity and mission.