As the Church marked 100 years of World Mission Sunday on the weekend, communities across Australia celebrated a shared commitment to mission. Source: Catholic Mission.
Throughout October, Masses, prayer gatherings and local initiatives have brought people together in faith and solidarity. In the Bunbury Diocese, Western Australia, the celebrations also took to the trails, with 100 pilgrims walking the annual 16km Kirup Camino.
On the Feast Day of St Therese of Lisieux, patron saint for Mission, 100 pilgrims walked the Kirup Camino, to celebrate 100 years of World Mission Sunday.
Now in its third year, the event is held in the Catholic Diocese of Bunbury on the first day of October for the start of World Mission Month each year.
This year’s pilgrimage began at the Church of St Therese, in Balingup, with two pilgrims’ blessings at 8.30am and 9am, to allow for a staggered start with only 50 pilgrims able to fit at one time in the small village church.
To conclude the Kirup Camino, a pilgrims’ mass was held at 3pm at the Holy Family Church, in Kirup, presided by the Bunbury Bishop George Kolodziej SDS.
Catholic Mission’s focus for World Mission Month this year is building a new primary school closer to where displaced families now live in rural Malawi.
In recent years, the people of Malawi have faced severe hardship due to devastating floods which destroyed homes, farmland, and entire communities, and for many families, daily life has become a constant struggle for survival.
The 100 pilgrims participating in this year’s Kirup Camino raised more than $4000 to help build classrooms, provide nutritious meals, and ensure children have the books and supplies they need to learn in rural Malawi.
FULL STORY
100 pilgrims walk the 16km Kirup Camino to celebrate 100 Years of World Mission Sunday (Catholic Mission)
