USCCA Parish Mission Appeals: Continuing the United States-China Friendship of Faith
July 28, 2019, Mission Appeal talk at St Therese Church in Mooresville, North Carolina.
—A quote from the talk: John Wu, a well-known Chinese Catholic lawyer and author, captured the core of the USCCA Mission: “...there is no other way of loving God than by loving.”
Love—as Christ loved
Compassionately Serve—as Christ served
Mercifully Forgive—as Christ forgave
Willing to suffer—as Christ suffered
Be Free, life-giving, and joyful—as Christ is."
Tom McGuire, USCCA Board of Directors
For the past 35 years, the USCCA has shared a mutual story of faith, thanks, and learning between Catholics in China, who have been discovering and living the Good News of Jesus Christ, with Catholics in the United States.
Such mission appeals are common in most parishes across the United States at weekend Masses. During these Eucharistic celebrations, USCCA preachers or guest speakers reflect, educate, and proclaim a common experience: the mission of building bridges of friendship and dialogue with Chinese people in partnership with Catholics in China that has taken place since the early 1900s.
Since 1989, this shared message of the USCCA has taken place in an estimated 150 dioceses and 500+ parishes; perhaps 500,000 Catholics have heard the message. This faith story unites people in the pews throughout the United States, allowing them to reflect on their relationship with the Chinese Catholic Church and its intimate communion with the Universal Church.
These encounters at the parish level demonstrate how shared friendship, awareness and acknowledgment of common sufferings, and dialogue to establish sustained common faith continue between Chinese Catholics and Catholics in the United States. If you have been one of the people in the pews who have contributed and listened to our story, we thank you.
At the same time, we invite all of you parishioners and others who are reading this reflection to grow in the shared interest you and others have about the Chinese Catholics and the USCCA mission. Such participation can be through engagement with our ongoing interdisciplinary initiatives, generous financial support, and prayerful participation as a mutual witness of faith in the Gospel and the living hope of Christ today.
In addition, the USCCA Board of Directors and Affiliated Members are available to lead guided conversations, either in person or via Zoom, throughout the year, upon request.
To learn more, please get in touch with Anne Tsui, Board Secretary, at board@uscatholicchina.org
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