In 1925 Pope Pius XI canonized St. Therese of Lisieux and named her co-patron of the missions. How could a nun who never left her Carmel be considered a missionary? The founder of my religious congregation, Fr. Thomas Judge, C.M., saw this as particularly apt. His motto was every Catholic is called to be an apostle. We live out or apostolic vocation not by going to foreign lands but by being missionaries in the providence of everyday life. When Jesus sent out the 72 disciples into mission his instructions were pretty simple: don’t bring your own baggage, offer people peace, be a healing presence, let them know good news is coming, and leave success of the mission up to God. We can all become missionaries like that!
