Mission Ministry

Our mission is to reach those who do not know, have forgotten, or abandoned the Gospel. this often means going to areas where hno one is willing to go, often living in precarious conditions.

Our Missionary Activity includes working in Japan, Central America, India, Africa and beyone. Our mission includes:

• Evangelizing and teaching the Catholic faith

• Establishing new churches and dioceses

• Encouraging, forming, and training local vocations as brothers and priests.

• Reaching out to the poor and hungry, to widows and orphans, and to so many

suffering from HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases.

From early in our history in the United States, the Capuchins have seen missionary work as part and parcel to our service to the church locally.  This is rooted in our history: eight centuries ago Francis of Assisi wrote his first Rule, becoming the first Founder of an Order to place "mission" in his Rule; and the first Capuchins incorporated his words almost literally into the first Constitutions of 1536.  Today the Order is present in 106 countries of the world.  

 We define missionary service as a proclamation of the Good News of salvation to those who do not believe in Christ and as a service to the "young churches".  Our mission imperative is to go out to those who do not know, have forgotten, or abandoned the Gospel, which often means going where no one else is willing to go and living in precarious conditions.  By serving the cause of the Kingdom in this way, the missionary makes the universality of the Church visible and reveals the innovative force of Christ's Gospel, which as such knows no frontiers.

 The first official mission of the Province of St. Mary was in 1939 when 11 friars were sent to Guam and Saipan in the South Pacific.  Tragedy struck the mission early as in 1942 the Capuchins were arrested by the invading Japanese and sent to Kobe, Japan, to be held in a prisoner of war camp. Even before the war ended, more friars were sent to the recently liberated Guam.  At the end of the war, they were joined by the appointed Capuchin bishop, Appolinaris Baumgartner, and the freed Capuchins from the prison camps. The period that followed was one of great expansion and establishment of the diocese, with parishes, schools, retreat centers, homes for troubled youth, etc., being founded by the Capuchins.

 The strong leadership continues under the present archbishop, Anthony Apuron, also a Capuchin.  The friars today continue to run parishes, teach, serve as hospital and military chaplains, outreach to the poor and to troubled youth.   

 Ironically, our second mission grew from our first.  Shortly after the end of WWII, three Capuchins who had been prisoners of war under the Japanese became the foundation for the Capuchin mission on Okinawa later to expand to mainland Japan.  The first Capuchin vocation in the 20th century became Okinawa's first Japanese Bishop, Peter Baptist Ishigami.  The diocese grew tremendously as many parishes, schools, retreat centers, and even local religious communities were founded by the friars. Presently, the total number of friars living and ministering in Japan is 18. 
 


Our main ministry in Japan is still, and for the foreseeable future, the care of various parish communities, 9 in total, 3 in Okinawa and 6 on the mainland.  However, our ministry to the people in Japan extends to other ministries in addition to our parish work.  Many of our Friars are also involved in such ministries as: giving retreats, individual counseling, spiritual direction, various diocesan social services, Peace/Justice & Ecology promotion, Franciscan Secular Order spiritual assistance, inter-faith dialogue, youth ministry, and care of the sick and elderly, among others. Our youth work and vocation center is at our friary in Futenma, which also serves as a residence for those who serve the Futenma parish. Of course, the focus of ministry has shifted dramatically since the triple disaster of the earthquake, tsunami, and radiation danger to emergency relief and refugee care.  Friars have moved to the afflicted areas to offer counseling, solace, and basic necessities such as water, food stuffs, and blankets.

 The Province of St. Mary was also instrumental in founding the Vice-province of Northern Central America (Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador).  Though it is no longer our mission- they are now a General Vice-province, and there are only three Americans left- we still support them considerably in their formation, assisting in the education of the Capuchin brothers and priests of that region.

 And finally there is the support of the missions in Africa, primarily Tanzania and Kenya, but also Zimbabwe, Uganda, and others, where the Catholic Church and the Capuchins are an important and growing presence.  Parishes, diocese, schools, clinics, hospitals, retreat centers, have all been founded and run by the friars for over 80 years.  In the last 6 years, we began a new initiative, Capuchin Africa Initiative for Development (Cap-AID) aimed at helping to develop and support integrated and sustainable projects that foster social and human development; combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other infectious diseases; and promote peace and reconciliation.  

Father Claver D'Souza (in orange pants) with volunteers. Father Claver has helped coordiante the Capuchin Japan Relief Effort and was recently selected as the Director of Caritas Saitama by the Catholic Bishops' Converence of Japan, a role that oversees the Catholic relief effort for the Saitama Diocese.
    
Claiming more than 15,000 lives, the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami will stand as one of the worst catastrophes to ever hit Japan. Kuramoto-San, an elderly woman whose husband drowned during the tsunami, told Father Maxim D’Souza, a Capuchin friar, that she had lived through the military assault on Japan during World War II, but those days were nothing compared to the recent disaster.        
     The earthquake measured a 9.0 magnitude on the Richter scale and is considered one of the five most powerful earthquakes in the world since modern recording began in 1900. It struck off the northeast Japanese coast and triggered destructive tsunami waves of up to 128 feet high that destroyed thousands of homes, schools, churches, hospitals and the infrastructure of many coastal towns. In addition, there were a number of nuclear accidents in the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant complex, which led to the evacuation of hundreds of thousands of residents.      
    Immediately, there was a need for food, medical supplies and shelter for the hundreds of thousands of survivors. There was also a dire need for spiritual comfort and guidance for individuals who witnessed the death of their loved ones and lost everything they ever worked for. Thanks to the generosity and compassion of donors who contributed more than $107,000 (every dollar of which was sent directly to the Province of St. Mary’s Japan Relief Effort), the Capuchin friars in Japan, working with the Diocese of Saitama and other NGO’s, were able to quickly supply families with clean water, food and counseling at government shelters soon after the disaster, and will continue taking part in the rebuilding effort of the affected regions for the next two years.              

Cries for Help     
Like all those living in Japan, Fr. Alexander Daniel was going on with his daily routine when the earthquake struck.              
    “I was taking my walk. I then found myself being unable to stand properly while hearing people shouting and crying for help,” he said. “Later, on television I saw many victims removed from the debris and the sea. You couldn’t help but shed tears for those who have suffered so greatly.”
    Father Alexander is one of 18 Capuchin friars who minister in the Japanese mission, which was established shortly after the end of World War II. In 1939, the Capuchins Franciscans were sent to minister in Guam and Saipan in the South Pacific. Three years later, the Japanese invaded the South Pacific and arrested the Capuchins, who were held as prisoners of war and sent to a prison camp in Kobe, Japan. When they were freed, rather than return to Guam or Saipan, these friars remained and became the foundation for the Capuchin mission in Japan. Today, we care for nine parish communities in Japan, three of which are in Okinawa and six in the Saitama Diocese.
    The Saitama Diocese, which is in the eastern coast, was struck hard by the earthquake and tsunami. It covers four states (known as prefectures in Japan): Saitama, Tochigi, Gunma, and Ibaraki, where radiation was a top concern, as the prefecture borders Fukushima where the Nuclear Power Plant is located.      
    Many people’s homes in Ibaraki were damaged and left uninhabitable and the earthquakes’ repeated aftershocks throughout the regions exacerbated the psychological trauma of survivors. In addition, the damaged Fukushima Nuclear Plant and the subsequent evacuation of surrounding communities led to heightened anxiety and panic. Grocery stores ran out of food and many gas stations were closed. There were also scheduled power blackouts and trains ran sporadically or not at all.  Radiation in food was also a huge concern as vegetables were declared to have excessive amounts of radiation in Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, and Fukushima prefectures one week after the disaster struck.

The friars of the Capuchin Custody of Japan.

Relief Effort      
    The Custody of Japan coordinated with the Province of St. Mary’s Mission and Development Office in New York City to raise money for the relief effort. Thanks to the generosity and immediate response of supporters, Capuchin friars were able to distribute clean drinking water and food and to provide counseling at parishes and churches. The Saitama Diocese has also set-up refugee centers and support centers at churches.
    To maximize the coordination and efficiency of the relief effort, Capuchin friars are working with Caritas Japan, a committee of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Japan that collaborates with the worldwide Catholic Church in emergency relief, welfare, and development. Capuchin friar Fr. Claver D’Souza has been selected as the Director of Caritas Saitama, a role he is passionately committed to.   
    Father Claver and volunteers helped clean tsunami-damaged homes, offered necessities, and assessed the situation to determine what supplies are needed by families in Sendai Diocese.  This is the diocese which neighbors Saitama and covers the Fukushima Nuclear Plant and the surrounding villages that have been evacuated.      
    Funds raised by the Province of St. Mary are helping provide aid in Sendai Diocese through disaster centers, which are registering volunteers, assisting the elderly with needed medicine, and distributing food to those living in shelters and temporary housing. 

Reconstruction and Psychological and Spiritual Healing     
    While the media coverage that swarmed the area in March has left, there are still more than a 100,000 people without homes who continue to live in evacuation centers and temporary housing. Having lost everything they have worked for and not sure how they will be able to build back their lives, many of them have become very depressed and anxious. 
     “Thousands of people have had traumatic experiences. Many of them feel sleepy, but cannot sleep. Sleepless nights make them sick,” said Fr. Maxim D’Souza, who provided counseling services to survivors in church and at shelters. “Many people don’t know why they have to live in the shelter camps when they had prepared everything for life. In other words, they cannot yet accept the reality that there was a tsunami and earthquake that took away their previous life.”    
    Father Wayne Berndt, Custody Minister for the Custody of Japan, and the Capuchin friars in conjunction with Saitama Diocese are currently looking to set up a counseling center near the largest temporary housing settlement in Iwaki City. 
    While things have vastly improved since March, the magnitude and enormity of the disaster is so large that relief efforts will continue for the next two years in both the Saitama and Sendai Dioceses, where the Capuchin friars will continue providing assistance. 
    “Fear, worry, and uncertainty remain,” Father Wayne said. “The Catholic Church in Japan is determined that these people will not be left on their own to face these terrible burdens but that we will face these problems together. The Capuchins are determined to do our part as well.”


$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0News: July 2011$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0 $0$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0$0 $0Complete coverage...$0 $0$0 $0 $0$0