South Central US
Texas Mission Conference
February 25 – 27, 2011
Sunday Morning Address
by: Matt Rousso
Introduction: Good morning! In the agenda, this morning's session is scheduled as "On-Going Formation and Mission Activity/Reflection." I had planned on doing a sort of "show and tell" – telling you about some of the things I've done re: on-going formation for participants of short term mission immersion programs and giving you a number of handouts that you might find helpful. However, I had a very restless night and very early this morning I decided that I needed to rewrite my talk for this session. Rather than an informative session, I'd like to have a sincere and open "heart to heart" sharing with you as directors of short term mission programs. I think that the vast majority of us here this morning are directors of programs. Others of you have been on more than one short term mission program so what I have to say is addressed to you also . . . I also need to forewarn you that what I have to say may be controversial. A participant told me yesterday that he found very challenging something I had said in one of the small group discussions. You also may find challenging some things I say today; and I confess, I myself will be challenged by some of what I have to say.
You know just recently I received notice that I have been working with Maryknoll for twenty years. And this morning I am realizing that I have been participating in the Texas Mission Conference for twenty years. In fact, only two other people who participated in this year's Conference have been here more than me – Larry Boudreau, who is here this morning and Sr. Patricia Ridgley, who was here yesterday. During these twenty years I have directed forty something short term mission trips to Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, and El Salvador. And during these twenty years I have come to know some of you and have profited greatly from your experiences in mission – people like Awanda Whitworth, Fr. Ralph Davila, Fr. Bill Donnelly, Colleen and Felicia and Ken Eppes and Fr. Gerry Kelly, and many others. I wonder how many trips we have directed cumulatively. All total, I wonder how many people have we taken into mission – young people and adults?
I think we can proudly say that we have become really good at leading Mission Trips! We know how to recruit, who to contact in the host countries, what activities to provide for participants. We've written books and essays and directions. People even talk well about us! In fact, they talk so well about us that it should cause us to say, as Dom Helder Camara once said, "I pray that I can become the person people think I am."
