Holy Cross Brothers open the Year of Mission in Bangladesh

On August 28, the members of the Congregation of Holy Cross in Bangladesh inaugurated the Year of Mission in the presence of Brother Paul Bednarczyk, Superior General of the Order, in Dhaka.

This special year commemorates the anniversary of Blessed Basil Moreau sending the first Holy Cross missionaries beyond France in 1840 and coincides with the establishment of the Congregation’s new Holy Family Mission in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea.

The inauguration ceremony took place at St. Joseph Technical School Campus, graced by the Brothers of the Dhaka Regional Community, hostel students, and Holy Cross aspirants.

During the ceremony, the Year of Mission logo was jointly unveiled by the Superior General and Brother Ripon James Gomes, Provincial Superior of St. Joseph Province, followed by the lighting of the ceremonial candle.

Immediately after, Bednarczyk declared the opening of the Year of Mission for the Congregation worldwide.

A special adoration was held, offering prayers for the success of this missionary year.

The Superior General then addressed the gathering, inspiring all with his reflections on the meaning of the mission today.

The Year of Mission is an opportunity for the members of the congregation to ponder over their mission and to renew missionary zeal, he said.

“While our mission, like our charism, remains the same, we need to refashion or adapt it at times to revitalize it, considering the Church’s and society’s needs,” said Bednarczyk. “We cannot just rely on what we have always done before. We in Holy Cross must discern new pathways in fulfilling our mission.”

The theme of the year-long celebration is “Hope Beyond Borders,” which draws its inspiration from the congregation’s Constitutions: “Our mission sends us across borders of every sort” and “We must be men with hope to bring” (2:17, 8:118).

“During the Year of Mission, the members of Holy Cross renew their commitment to cross not just the physical borders that separate nation-states, but also all those other borders that separate people into groups of us versus them. We pledge to join in deeper solidarity with “men and women of grace and goodwill everywhere in their efforts to form communities of the coming kingdom’,” said Bednarczyk.

Gomes also shared words of encouragement and renewed commitment to the missionary spirit.

The program concluded with a heartfelt vote of thanks delivered by Br. Rocky Gosal, representing the St. Joseph Technical School community.

“May this Year of Mission ignite a deeper zeal within us all to continue crossing new borders in faithful service to God and His people, said Gosal.

The Congregation of Holy Cross, abbreviated CSC, is a Catholic clerical religious order of pontifical rights for men founded in 1837 by Basil Moreau in Le Mans, France.

The members of the Holy Cross work in Bangladesh, India, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Ghana, Haiti, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, Peru, Tanzania, Uganda, and the United States.

In 1951, the Dicastery for Evangelization, which is also known as Propaganda Fide (propagation of faith), the Church’s missionary work, asked the Holy Cross congregation to work in East Bengal (which included a part of India and Bangladesh then).

When Bangladesh became independent, in 1971, the members of the Holy Cross continued to expand their work in education, social work, and mission.

In 1949, Notre Dame College in Dhaka was founded. It is a premier institution in a Muslim-majority country. The congregation also manages a dozen high schools and technical educational institutions and rehabilitation centers.

The members also work among marginalized communities, indigenous people, and fishermen; run cooperatives; and build an orphanage and schools for them.