Peter Gates, our Deputy National Director, shares his insights on the meaning of mission, describing it as hope and love expressed through everyday actions.
Can you please introduce yourself and your role as Deputy National Director at Catholic Mission?
My name is Peter Gates, and I am the Deputy National Director of Catholic Mission. In this role, I have the privilege of engaging in the diverse aspects of our work with the vibrant people who make up the Catholic Mission team. I am glad to share with you this edition of Mission Today Digital.
What does Mission mean to you, both personally and professionally?
There are many beautiful ways to express the meaning of mission. In my early years at Catholic Mission, a young school student shared a painting she had done in response to a similar question. It was quite stark in many ways, yet in the bottom left-hand corner, it had a small plant rising out of the soil with a yellow budding flower and the simple handwritten words: “Mission is hope.” Expressions like this capture the heart of it—the meaning of Mission can be so simple and yet so complex and profound. A lot like “love.” Mission is hope and love.
How do you live out your missionary calling, and would you describe yourself as a missionary?
I spent nearly three years in a rural part of Zambia as what was termed then a lay missionary teacher. This was one way of living out my missionary calling, but I think we are much more aware that our missionary calling is more than that for each one of us. We can all be part of God’s mission in the everyday of our lives. If I am, and for that matter, if anyone is being hopeful and loving, then I imagine we are most likely living out and contributing to God’s mission for all of us and creation.
How do you turn your faith into action?
For this question, I like to share something my mum told me in her later years of life when I asked for some ideas to share at a talk I was going to give. Mum said, “Be generous and kind in your giving,” and then she paused and added, “and in your living.” This seems like a lovely way to live and act out my faith, don’t you think?
Having been with Catholic Mission for over 30 years, can you share how the work of Mission has evolved during that time?
The heart of Mission—such as hoping and loving, being generous and kind, and witnessing God’s love and spirit—is the same, but how this is done does change, not just over time but because of the place and context of people, such as the social, economic, ecological, and much more, reality of people and creation. The work for justice and peace, for instance, for so many people here in Australia and around the world, has become more of the “how” of living God’s mission in the world today than perhaps in the past.
With World Mission Month approaching, can you please share some ways people can engage with it?
There are some great opportunities for people to engage in Mission during this World Mission Month in October by: celebrating through prayer and liturgy; advocating for those who are experiencing great hardships yet are not being recognised, nor are their voices being heard; and supporting people and communities we partner with in mission projects throughout the world. For instance, in this Mission Today Digital, people can read about the amazing work in Mongolia that you can support and share in through your prayers and financially. Especially designed for youth and children, there is this brilliant program called Socktober, where everyone can ‘kick goals for good’ and help people in need, engage in meaningful activities, learn about important causes, and see the difference their efforts make. And there is much more.
The Mission of the Church is inclusive by nature, inviting everyone to participate. How can we ensure that our missionary efforts are welcoming and accessible to all?
I think it would be more accurate to say God’s mission is inclusive, but often our way, our institutions, are not quite so. I mentioned earlier that the way of Mission may need to be adjusted due to the reality and context of the time—inclusion is one for us today, and being inclusive is a way of Mission today. As a start, we can recognise that often inclusion can be a blind spot for us. We don’t walk the talk. This is why I find understanding Mission as being loving and kind may seem ‘airy fairy’ and too ‘idealistic,’ yet if you, or I, truly are mindful of the other… truly at the moment being loving and kind to the other, that can be really challenging and difficult to do—for the homeless person I walk by, for the person in my group I really don’t like, for the person who is neurodiverse, for the person who has some form of disability, for the person who is ‘different’ from my normal. So, thanks for this opportunity to share with you, and like the wisdom shared with me by my Mum, let’s try to “be generous and kind in our giving… and in our living.”
