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Our Mission/Charism

ADCAPOSTLES OF DIVINE CHARITY (CHARITAN MISSIONARIES) ... Servingh the Poor and The Needy   ...
Fundamental Charism

Our fundamental mission or Charism is to seek to sanctify ourselves as priests of the Society of Apostolic Life by conforming our priestly life to the priesthood of Jesus Christ, in a mission of shared charity according to the norms of our Constitutions and the specific means of our apostolate, thereby fulfilling the intention of Christ to save the greatest number of souls, and paying an uninterrupted attention to the needs of the poor and the less-privileged.

In summary, our charism is summed up in our mission statement: To live the Holy Priesthood of Christ in sanctity, seeking to save souls by being of service to the poor and the underprivileged. Jesus drew near and spoke to them saying: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you, and behold, I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world” (Me. 28:16-20). Our mission then is to fulfill this original intention of Jesus, and to do everything possible for the salvation of the greatest number of souls.

An Apostle is one who is sent by Jesus the Lord as He Himself was sent by the Eternal Father through the Incarnation in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Jesus sent His Apostles to teach and baptize in His Name so as to bring souls to the glory of Eternal Life, 10 which consists primarily in the vision of the Most Holy Trinity. As a Society of Apostolic Life, we are sent by the local Ordinary of where we serve in communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Successor to Peter and the Vicar of Christ on earth. Hence as Charitan Priests, we always are called in light of the ultimate authority of the Bishop as the Successor to the Apostles. We must always understand ourselves as servants and sons of our Bishop, our spiritual father, acting under his direction and according to his discernment of where our charism can serve most effectively. This is always the intention of our apostolic endeavors: to do nothing without the approval of our Bishop. We pray daily for him, striving to remain always in union with him.

We also recognize that a true Apostle of Jesus Christ is one who is formed by Mary, just as the first Apostles were formed by her. Our Catholic Tradition recognizes that the Blessed Virgin, who “kept all these things, pondering them in her heart” (Lk. 2:19), communicated to the Apostles the secrets which she held within her Heart and bosom; i.e., all the intimate facts she knew about her Son, and all that the Holy Spirit had revealed to her in the Scriptures and otherwise. She rightly deserves to be called “the Evangelist of the Evangelists” and the “teacher of the teachers.”

We therefore realize that while we are Apostles of Divine Charity, we are also Apostles of Mary, who with and through the Holy Spirit forms Christ in us in the school of her Heart. Mary, moved with charity, “saw that the groom, at the marriage of Cana (John 2:1-12) was in lack of wine for his guests, and pleaded with her Son Jesus Christ to make provision for the wine. Her son, always willing to obey his mother, kindly responded to the request of his beloved Mother. Following the example of the charitable heart of Mary as our model, we will extend the same charity to all human persons especially the poor and the neglected ones. We will devote the first Saturday of every month to the honor of our Blessed Mary who, we believe, knows the most fitting ways of conveying our needs to Her Son and our Lord. We will keep her at the center of all our daily activities. We will acknowledge Mary as Our Lady, Mother of the Poor.

Our Patron Saints and Feast Days:
  • Our Patron Saints/Models:

    • »Our Lord Jesus Christ
    • »Our Lady, Queen of the Apostles
    • »St. Joseph, the foster father of Jesus St.
    • »St. Elizabeth of Hungary
    • »St. Martin de Pores
    • »St. Theresa of Calcutta
    • »St. Vincent de Paul

  • Our Feast Days:

    Below is the list of the Charitan major events. They are to be faithfully observed and celebrated.

    Anniversary of our foundation:
    This is an annual event, and indeed, one of the biggest feasts of our society, which is very well planned. The “Anniversary of the foundation of the Apostles of Divine Charity (Charitan Missionaries) is commemorated on February 06, the Memorial of St. Paul Miki and Companion, Martyrs.

    Major Feasts of the Church:
    such as Christmas (the Birth of our Lord Jesus Christ), New Year (the feast of Mary Mother of God), Easter Sunday (the triumphant Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ), the Pentecost (Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles), the feast of Ascension, the feast of Assumption, the feast of Immaculate Conception, the feasts of St. Joseph, St. Martin de Porres, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Vincent de Paul, St. Theresa of Calcutta, etc.

    The Birthday/Memorial of our Sponsoring Bishop (December 26):

    In his honor, we commemorate the birthday of our Principal Bishop annually at our Mother House in Obala, Cameroon, on December 26. This feast can be celebrated elsewhere if our General Superior deems it necessary. People within and outside our foundation diocese are invited to celebrate the life of our Principal Bishop with us. Even if our Bishop has passed on to the Lord, this tradition is retained in memory of him while the birthday of the incumbent local ordinary of our foundation diocese is also celebrated.

    Note: For clarity sake, our Principal Bishop is the Diocesan Bishop from whom we received the official written canonical consent approving the erection of the Apostles of Divine Charity in his diocese. We are very answerable to him in all we do, and we are to stay closely connected with him.

    Founder’s Day (July 25):
    In his honor, we dedicate a day, known as the Founder’s Day, to our beloved Father Founder. Our Founder’s Day is celebrated annually on July 25, the birthday of our Father Founder. This is a special feast for all our Charitan family worldwide, which remains as long as our society survives. After the passing unto glory of our Father Founder, his memorial should still be commemorated on this day. Outsiders are invited to join us in honoring our beloved Father Founder.

Donate to Support ADC

In order to carry out our mission successfully, the Apostles of Divine Charity solicit the support of men and women of good will. This support can be done by adopting one or two of our seminarians, that is, by funding their education, seminary formation or training. Every year, we spend at least $2,000.00 on training each of our seminarians. One can also support us by making monetary donations towards our mission. We are appreciative of the support of our Benefactors and Benefactresses whose financial contributions have gone a very long may in carrying out our mission so far. We pray for them daily and always keep them in our thoughts. Please, deposit your monetary donations to the applicable under listed bank account:

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