“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations”

Are you called to be a Catholic Missionary Disciple?

Are you interested in overseas missionary activities or have a special level of compassion for a certain group of people? Join us and discover “what”, “why”, and “where” your calling may be, to be open and have a courageous heart in becoming a missionary disciple.

Catholics are called to let their light shine with faith in answering the call in serving the poor and making disciples of all nations.

Date: Saturday, 4 March 2023
Time: 9.00am to 5.00pm
Venue: St. Joseph's Institution
Love Offering: S$10 (lunch will be provided)

Registration Closes on 26 February 2023

The course is CHARIS' interactive and collaborative course, covering the fundamentals of Overseas Humanitarian Missionary Works, including Catholic Social Teachings.

The Overseas Humanitarian Foundation Course is a face-to-face learning experience that allows participants to explore their lives’ faith journeys and answer the call to be living missionary disciples.

The course comprises four (4) modules and two (2) member organisation sharing/testimonies.

Key Takeaways

By the end of this course, participants should:

• Be inspired to be the face of Christ to all those whom they encounter during mission trips.
• Embrace and apply the core values of the Catholic Social Teachings when carrying out missionary work.
• Recognise the importance of conducting sustainable mission trips that create a lasting impact in the lives of the beneficiaries.
• Understand the dos and don’ts of planning and executing overseas mission trips.
• Understand the regulations and guidelines in undertaking overseas humanitarian work

Module 1: Be the Face of Christ on Mission 

"You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. And love your neighbour as yourself." - Mark 12:30-31

Rev Fr David Garcia, OP

Dominican Friar

A society that wants to develop healthily must practice the principle of solidarity. This principle tells us that we should take responsibility for each other and stand in solidarity with those who need help the most, especially the poor and disadvantaged.

The Church always shown a special concern for the poor, and in recent documents she refers to this concern as a “preferential option for the poor”.

“The preferential option for the poor should be reaffirmed in all its force.” (St. John Paul II, Puebla 1979 in Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church #182)

Module 2: Awakening - Come and See

Imagine Jesus asking us: “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” - Mark 10:51

Justin Khoo 

Director of Catholic Architectural Guild (CAG) 

Like Bartimaeus the blind man, perhaps we should all answer... Let me see again! If you feel a tugging in your heart or an interest developing in social mission, come and see.

Perhaps you have not yet identified God’s will for your life. Get closer to God, search your heart’s desires, and seek the Lord to elucidate His plans for you.

Peng Beng will speak on how the hearts of lay missionaries may be stirred and awakened when God the Father calls them to serve in overseas missionary work. Be inspired by the missionary saints and learn about how we can be transformed by their lives and walks with Christ.

Module 3: Answering the Call - Love in Action

"Here I am. Send me." – Isaiah 6:8

Kenneth Wambeck

Board Member of A Call to Share (ACTS)

Answering God’s call is something that we all strive to do. To be Christ-like to all we meet and serve - bringing His light not just to those in Singapore but also to our brothers and sisters overseas. 

Even though there are many different varieties of overseas missions, all can be challenging. There are many aspects to consider, many things to plan for and inadvertently, problems to deal with.

Listen to Kenneth’s sharing on how ACTS has organised overseas missions. Besides gaining insights on the nuts and bolts to consider when going on such missions, the session will help shed light on how we can differentiate ourselves from non-Catholic organisations who go on similar mission trips.

Module 4: Overseas Humanitarian Mission - Regulations and Guidelines

"Obey the government, for God is the One who has put it there. There is no government anywhere that God has not placed in power. So those who refuse to obey the law of the land are refusing to obey God, and punishment will follow." – Romans 13:1-2

Elaine Chan

Board Member of CHARIS, and Chairperson of Grants Committee

CHARIS is committed to maintaining high standards of corporate governance. Governance in the charity sector refers to the systems and processes for managing the direction, effectiveness, supervision and accountability of an organisation. High standards of corporate governance are necessary to ensure CHARIS operates ethically and responsibly, and so the organisation’s mission to love and serve our neighbours is fully realised.

Elaine will discuss the regulations and guidelines that are applicable for overseas humanitarian missions, highlighting fundraising legal framework and other aspects of regulations and guidelines established by the State laws and Commissioner of Charities.

Going On A Mission - In The Midst Of A Pandemic 

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” - Galatians 6:9

Christopher James

Founder of Fishing Rod Society

Mission trips are wonderful for volunteers discerning the type of mission work they would like to get involved in. Nothing beats being on the ground, face to face with the beneficiaries, exchanging words, thoughts, and deeds.

Prior to COVID-19, Fishing Rod conducted numerous mission trips that allowed volunteers to have personal encounters with the children from the Zotung Refugee Learning Centre. Be it joining the children on their field trip around Malaysia or conducting different types of learning workshops for them, these mission trips are always life-giving for both the volunteers and the children. But has COVID-19 now made mission trips impossible?

Come and listen to Chris' sharing on how COVID-19 has created opportunities for new and more sustainable missions, and allowed even more volunteers to be involved!

Bringing Christ’s love to the Riau islands.

"Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation." - Mark 16:15

Daryl Anselm Koh

Epiphany Coordinator

Celestine Snodgrass

Overseas Mission Coordinator

Epiphany set out in 2004 to bring Christ’s love to the Riau islands through our English programme. In the process we found ourselves transformed by the love of Christ emanating from our fellow volunteers, the Riau community and most of all, from the children. At every turn, we encountered amazing evidence of God’s hand at work to help us overcome obstacles, smoothen out conflicts and strengthen bonds in our teaching teams. Due to COVID19, we had to pause our missions however, we will be restarting again in 2023.

" An impactful and inspiring session for me. I was very encouraged by all the speakers, that despite their fears, in faith and trust they said ‘YES’. This ‘yes’ opened up a beautiful missionary journey which in turn has impacted so many lives."

- Anne Goswami

"I’m very inspired by the individuals who shared their journeys on how they have gone about carrying out their humanitarian work. They have walked by faith, not by sight, like the blind man, giving up their burdens to God and letting God lead the way. It’s such a wonderful sharing session."

- Genevieve S. Liaw

"The overall session was very intriguing. It has definitely opened my perspective about answering God’s call and preparing oneself for missionary work, be it overseas or in Singapore."

- Christelyn Pereira