His Mission is Our Mission
A Reflection after a Mission Experience in Mexico
By Nhat Duc Minh Nguyen
I want to begin by stating my appreciation to all those who dedicated time, effort, finances, and prayers to make this mission experience a success. May the Grace of our Lord be with us always.
Despite having no background in ministry work, my application for the mission trip was still accepted by Divine Word Missionaries. During the pre-mission Zoom meeting, I was welcomed and encouraged by Fr. Anthony Nguyen, SVD, Mr. Len Uhal and other participants not to worry, but to enjoy the upcoming experience. I was ready to be a part of the Arnoldus family, to start and finish this mission strongly thanks to the group’s continued support. Along with the eight others, including our group leader, Fr. Anthony, I looked forward to being part of this mission trip sponsored by the Vocation Office for the Divine Word Missionaries in the United States.
After landing in Mexico, the first day was tough. We all loaded into a van and traveled four hours in the dark night without dinner. Nevertheless, Our Lady of Guadalupe protected us through our “not-so-solemn” Rosary and evening prayer, as all of us were tired, half-conscious, but could not sleep due to the bumpy ride with many abrupt stops. Finally, we settled in Santiago de Anaya Pastoral House, ate a late-night meal around 11 p.m., then rested peacefully in God’s Providence for our week of mission.
During the first week in Hidalgo, accompanied by several Divine Word Missionaries including, Fr. Antonio (Vietnam), Fr. Martin (Indonesia), Fr. Pranjit (India), Fr. Pablo (Poland) and Fr. Anthony (USA), we visited seven remote communities.
Despite the poor living conditions, they treated us with the most delicious food that they had. One of the most memorable moments came when our group visited Tlamaya. The rocky, steep height from the top of the mountains to the villages was a challenge for some of us, but with the hospitality of the villagers and the conversations with the children along the way, we overcame those obstacles and arrived at the village safely.
After Mass in their cozy, sacred church, we were served tamales for lunch. All of the villagers, from kids to the eldest lady, prepared a single, nicely-decorated table for the 10 of us with colorful hand-knit tablecloths while the villagers sat and stood around to serve us tamales. I tried to invite them all to share the food together with us, but they refused.
Later, I found out that Mexican culture is to treat guests – especially priests, who are chosen by God – with the utmost respect. In addition, the villagers would not start eating until we all had received our portions first. What a beautiful gesture! It reminded me of the widow’s mite parable. Their act of serving us the best thing they had to express their love and appreciation for our presence was what I admired. It made me ponder Christ’s sacrifice, that one day I may be His instrument to bring His love and mercy to the ends of the earth.
Another community that we visited was the catechism school in Santiago de Anaya. This trip reminded me of how lucky I am to be well-cared for, well-educated and protected by my loved ones. All the students in catechism class used bricks as tables and sat on the floor to learn. We brought them chairs and tables, so they finally had a comfortable spot to sit and learn.
Seeing that our gifts to them were used right away, I was moved to appreciate the grace God has always poured down upon me. Moreover, the catechists were normal farmers and construction workers. Even though they had very few things for themselves, they still possessed great faith and encouraged the kids to hold firm to God’s Providence. The indigenous people of Mexico that we met had the greatest faith of anyone I have ever met.
During the second week of our mission trip, I learned a different lesson through the manual labor we did, like maintenance and renovation work, at Casa Central. This is the house of the Divine Word Missionaries in Mexico. I learned about teamwork, perseverance, tenacity, and conflict resolution. A typical day at Casa Central began with morning prayers and Mass. It ended with us gathering together for evening prayer. Two weeks of this prayer format created a lasting habit that I continue today. As Christians in today’s fast-paced economy, we tend to neglect these small practices of always giving thanks to the Lord. Therefore, I recommend that we all try to start the day begging our Lord for a peaceful one and end it with praise and thanks to God. One day, perhaps, this habit will nourish our spirit, draw us closer to God in this life, and lead us to eternal life.
While doing intensive labor—like painting, gardening, and fixing windows—physical fatigue often led to short tempers, and occasional quarrels were unavoidable. When that happened, I took a break, turned to God, and sought guidance from the Holy Spirit. Then I made peace with the others by saying “I’m sorry,” listening to their opinions, and working together with a spirit of consensus to complete our tasks. This little strategy worked well. What a treasure God gave to me! I realized that war or peace, trouble or harmony, depend on our behavior towards others, like St. Paul remarks of the True Christian: “If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:18)
Finally, we got to enjoy the most fun and holy part of the trip after all the hard work. We joined up with another pilgrimage group and a couple of Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters (SSpS), Sr. Theresa and Sr. Bong for a hot air balloon ride and sightseeing in Teotihuacán, the home of San Juan Diego, and visited the Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica. Aside from having to get up at 3 a.m. to catch the sunrise while we flew in the hot air balloon, the “relaxing day” filled my heart with joy and happiness, and I felt the loving arm of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the grace of our Lord.
Unquestionably, the mission experience was a success. This experience has widened my worldview and appreciation of other cultures and the various ways we worship the Lord, our Father and our Mother with all our hearts, our minds, and our souls. Moreover, the mission trip also gave me a taste of what I am willing to discern for the rest of my life, as I plan to enter the seminary. Here I am, God. Let your work be done in me. Your Mission is my mission. “Now, I know in part, then I shall know fully even as I am fully known.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)
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