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Sometimes winning a contest means becoming the recipient of a huge sum of money or an exotic vacation. For Sarah Vandenberghe and Anthony Ma, winning the 2009 Maryknoll Explore My Mission contest has not only expanded their world but also deepened their desire to serve its people.
Both young adults had seen our website inviting Catholics ages 18 to 35 to win a free trip to one of our mission sites by submitting an amateur video showing themselves engaged in service. Vandenberghe, from St. Vincent de Paul parish in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, who recently received her doctorate in physical therapy, says, "I had gone to the Dominican Republic for a service-learning trip, performing physical therapy for those in need. When I saw the ad about the contest, it looked like a great chance for more experience with mission." She sent a video of herself in action in the Dominican Republic.
Anthony Ma, a native of Hong Kong who emigrated to the United States as a child and recently graduated from Baruch College-City University of New York, was seeking to deepen his spiritual life when he learned of the Maryknoll contest. "Many times I would be caught up in the busy lifestyle of a New Yorker and forget the simple things," says Ma. "I knew this (contest) was a perfect opportunity to explore mission work." His video presented his service in his parish, Transfiguration in New York City's Chinatown.
"Sarah and Anthony were very creative in showing their strong commitment to service," says David Tereshchuk, executive producer of Maryknoll's Interactive Media Unit, who helped judge the contest. "More than skillful video making, it was their degree of commitment flowing from their Catholic faith that persuaded us they were the worthy winners."
On June 13th, feast of St. Anthony of Padua, Vandenberghe and Ma left Maryknoll headquarters in Ossining, New York, to begin their 10-day mission immersion experience in Joćo Pessoa, Brazil. As vocation director of the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers and having served 10 years in Brazil, I led the trip.
In preparation for this experience, we had reflected together about contemporary mission. We focused on mission as helping to bring about the reign of God by living out our baptismal commitment to transform the world through love, hope and reconciliation. We noted that even though the Church's understanding of mission has evolved over the years, some people still see it as simply proselytizing or making conversions to the Catholic faith. We expanded our understanding of mission to include living our Christian faith and sharing it while also respectfully listening to others and acting as Jesus did in liberating the oppressed and raising up the downtrodden. We discussed how prayer, liturgy and contemplation allow us to deepen our faith so we can better live out our commitment to the mission of God in the world. We soon saw those elements of mission come alive when, after a warm reception from the Maryknoll community in Joćo Pessoa, Brazil, we began witnessing the missioners in action.
Maryknoll Sister Efu Nyaki and Maryknoll Lay Missioner Anne Marie Yu-Phelps welcomed us to Afya, a holistic healing center established for women seeking to improve their health through diet, use of traditional herbal teas and other natural methods of healing. Our contest winners were overwhelmed by the many types of plants traditionally used for healing in Brazil.
Luisely Melecio-Zambrano, a Maryknoll short-term volunteer, and Maryknoll Lay Missioner Flįvio Rocha shared their work with "Theater of the Oppressed" groups, where young people perform street theater and engage the wider community in subjects of social interest, such as AIDS prevention, care for the environment and sexual exploitation of children. Vandenberghe and Ma discovered how participating in theater has helped to transform the actors as well as their communities.
Maryknoll Lay Missioner Kathy Bond and Maryknoll Sister Theresia Ndesoma shared their works with women's groups and children. We even got to work directly with the children Ndesoma serves and to help transplant banana trees in an organic garden where Maryknoll Lay Missioner Jonathan Yu-Phelps lends a hand.
Besides participating in Maryknoll ministries, the two U.S. young adults toured the historic district of Joćo Pessoa and visited a cultural museum as well as religious sites, including two popular pilgrimage shrines, and the parish where Dom Helder Camara, legendary defender of the oppressed, lived and served.
Just as our trip began on the feast of St. Anthony, it culminated with the feast of the birth of Saint John the Baptist. Both of these are important feast days for Brazilians in this northeast city because they correspond with the corn harvest. We literally got a taste of the local culture as we joined in celebrations where delicious foods made from corn were served, accompanied by singing and dancing to traditional forró music. We were privileged to participate in a special Mass to celebrate St. John's birth.
Learning about another culture firsthand, says Vandenberghe, has given her a focus for the future. "I plan on continuing my life with mission as part of it," she says. "One day I would like to plan a multidiscipline medical mission trip."
Ma says, "My experience in Brazil is the first step of a lifelong journey to continue learning about myself and other cultures." He has already contacted the Maryknoll Affiliates about starting a chapter in his home parish for youth interested in supporting each other in their mission work and vision.
The 2010 Maryknoll Explore My Mission contest will offer a mission trip to Africa. Visit our website at www.exploremymission.org to learn how to apply.
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Vandenberghe is delighted to meet a young resident of Joćo Pessoa, Brazil.
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Anthony Ma and Sarah Vandenberghe tell Maryknoll Father Dennis Moorman how they enjoyed exploring mission in Brazil.
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