The Priests, Seminarians, and Sisters of the Religious Family in Washington, DC did not have to travel far this year for their annual work in the summer missions. The mission destinations were right around the corner at St. James Parish in Mt. Rainier, MD and St. John Baptist de la Salle in Chillum, MD. The parish boundaries are so close that the mission, in fact, could have been considered a “Mega Summer Mission”.

At St. James Parish, most of the missionaries came from the novitiate houses of the IVE and the SSVM, while the mission team at St. John Baptist de la Salle consisted mostly of seminarians from the Fulton Sheen House of Formation and SSVM sisters from the Immaculate Heart Juniorate.

At both mission locations, missionaries organized a Bible Camp for kids and youth, visited many of the homes within the parish boundaries, prepared the faithful to receive the sacraments, and assisted at the evening missionary acts preached in Spanish and English.

The greatest fruits that were immediately recognizable during the mission were the number of children baptized and the number of couples who received the sacrament of matrimony. Needless to say, God’s Providence is without limit, and we continue to pray for the fruits that summer missions will bear in these two parishes for the years to come.