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Mission  
   
proclamer la bonne nouvelle The word “mission” does not appear in the gospels. It is for the best, because this word relates to a situation of proselytism and colonialism, all things for which we feel today repugnance. The word used is: “ Send” or “Go” “As the Father sent me to the world, I also send you…(Jean 17, 18). “Go to all the world and proclaim the Good News to all creatures…” (Mark, 16, 15).
 
   
If we are sent it is to do something, what is it? We could go back into the mistakes done in the past if we follow literally what Mathew wrote: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptize them… in teaching them to observe all I prescribed to you” (Mathew 28, 19-20). We will make followers, baptize them and teach them the morals. We all know what kind of excess have been perpetrated and considered to be justified by these words in Mathew (28, 19-20) such as forced baptisms, mandatory behaviour and enforcement of a western civilisation style assumed to be superior…etc. This sort of “missionary action” have re-enforced an image of a dominating and alienating God.
If we examine in the Gospel other sentences of sending, we can see that the mission can be a quite different matter. It is a question of proclaiming the Good News and the proximity of the Kingdom of God, and how to proclaim it? Not really just in words but also in actions.
 
   
la bonne nouvelle aux pauvres “And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils (Mathew 10, 7). And again “ He sent them to proclaim the reign of God and to heal the sick” (Luke 9, 2). Jesus himself considered his role and his mission in the same way. When John the Baptist in his jail asked him if he is really the one who is to come or if we have to wait for another one, Jesus answered by showing what he was doing: “the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and (it is the way) the gospel is preached to the poor” (Mathew 10, 2 and following).
 
   
To follow this sending addressed to all the disciples of Jesus, we have to identify for today all the blindness that makes obstacle to the people lucidity, all the deafness who prevents people to listen, all leprosy that alters the face of people. What is preventing us to go ahead and of which we need to be liberated? What is making us sick and send us to death of which we have to be healed and raised up? First we have to liberate ourselves before expecting to do the same to others.  
   
Today, to proclaim the Good News, it is to believe in life, it is to become more human, it is to promote the dignity of every one by fighting against any domination and exclusion, it is to oppose to violence and war.
croire en la vie
 
   
To proclaim the reign of God, it is to promote the freedom of thinking and action and to remove all that can be an obstacle to this goal. It is to support our brothers and sisters trying to go towards a better way of living together and to participate to the building of a society of justice and peace. This is the “mission” we have in charge, perhaps it will give us the joy to say: ”yes the kingdom of heaven is at hand”.