EDITORIAL

Bearing fruit (Gospel of Mark, 4:1-20)

As a teenager, I was strongly captivated by a passage in Mark’s Gospel (4:1-20) where Jesus addresses the crowd gathered by the lake. What does he say? Although he’s sitting in a boat, he’s not talking about fishing, but about seeds that have fallen into the ground. Only those that have fallen into good soil produce abundant fruit.

This seed, he explained to his disciples, is the Word sown in hearts. In today’s edition of the magazine, we read some wonderful examples of successful sowing even on impoverished soil.

The first example is a new centre dedicated to helping missionaries who have been through a lot. It’s called Bethany Centre, and it’s located in the high Maasai Mountains in Kenya. Psychotherapists are on hand to help them heal after a traumatic experience. Concerned about their environment, they also invest their energies in planting trees and helping Maasai women who have to carry their water in heavy containers.

As you read through the magazine, you’ll discover the moving testimony of a young missionary who was kidnapped, and that of an older confrere to whom the Lord converted trials into consolation.

The Word of God has also found good soil in the heart of Rudy, a young Mexican who aspires to become a missionary in Africa. For the moment, he’s struggling to learn French.

In the end, you’ll see that Afrika Centre reaped the rewards of 2023. A large crowd celebrated the first anniversary of its reopening. Joy, dancing and a well-stocked table were the order of the day. We give thanks to God for all this beautiful and good fruit, the work of the faith that animates us in Christ.