Mission Statement

We, the missionaries, inspired by the charism and mission of the Incarnate Word, choose to live in community and walk in solidarity with the economically poor and marginalized, in order to be transformed by them and to transform unjust social structures that keep people economically poor and marginalized.

WHAT DOES OUR MISSION STATEMENT MEAN?

Charism and mission of the Incarnate Word:  Through the gospels and the world around us, we come to know in Christ, the Incarnate Word, a God who knows and shares our human experience and walks with us in our joys and struggles.  This inspires us as members of the Incarnate Word family to make the love of God, as shown in the Incarnation, a real and tangible presence in the world today.

Community:  We challenge modern society’s emphasis on independence with the recognition that we are called to work together towards a common dream for the world.  As Incarnate Word Missionaries, we choose to live in community by supporting and encouraging one another, praying together and being a part of one another's lives.  Living in intentional community allows us to offer an alternative of relationship and interconnectedness to a world of individualism and isolation.  Our community living may take many forms, such as sharing with other lay missionaries, with religious and with the people in our neighborhoods.

Solidarity with the economically poor and marginalized:  We attempt to live a simple lifestyle in order to help us become aware of our interconnectedness and the way our use of resources affects others throughout the world.  With this understanding, we can begin to discover what is truly important and to walk more closely with the people we serve.  Through our solidarity we seek to live a preferential option for the poor, which means following Christ’s example of deliberately choosing to walk with the economically poor and marginalized.

Be transformed by them:  If we seek to change our world, we must begin by changing ourselves.  We recognize that we do not have all the answers nor do we come to teach our perspective of the world to others; rather, we have much to learn from the people with whom we work.  We are open to growth and change and are aware that as missionaries we will always learn more than we teach and receive more than we are able to give.

Seek to transform unjust social structures:  Our service to others makes us keenly aware of the injustice in the world, and we seek to critically analyze the social structures that create the desperate situations in which many people find themselves.  Only when we truly understand these structures and the oppression they cause will we be able to speak with a prophetic voice against them and work towards a world of justice and equality.