By sharing yourself, you re-discover who you are as a Catholic.
Short-term Immersion
These short-term trips are an opportunity to immerse yourself into a different culture and engage with our brothers and sisters in mission dioceses. Experience the Church in its many phases as she brings the light of the Gospels through activities that satisfy the spiritual and material needs of often struggling communities. These mission trips of solidarity and mutuality will enable you to see the Holy Spirit at work and re-ignite your Catholic understanding of mission.
Every year our office sponsors a short-term immersion trip for groups of individuals interested in sharing themselves in a mission diocese. Each trip offers time to reflect on what that might mean in terms of our faithful response in our own personal and parish setting. In the past, trips were taken to El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. Our emphasis now is focusing on visiting dioceses which are considered “mission” by the Congregation of Evangelization and receive financial aid from organizations like the Society for the Propagation of the Faith or Missionary Childhood Association, which our office and donors support.
Diocese of Mandeville, Jamaica
Our immersion trip in 2016 was to the Diocese of Mandeville, Jamaica. Delegates experienced the joys and struggles of the proud, dignified Jamaicans who live far from the resorts and beaches, deep in the rural mountains. It was an opportunity to engage with our brothers and sisters in schools, clinics, orphanages and nursing homes, all led by the Catholic Church in the diocese. For more information, contact Janine Ricker, or email.
Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska
The Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska is considered the North Pole and is about the size of four Minnesotas with 1/2 the population of St. Paul. It is very remote and consists of over 37 bush villages accessible by small plane or snowmobile. It is the home to Native peoples including Athabascan, Yup’ik, Cup’ik, and Inupiat. A June immersion trip took place in 2017 when a delegation visited the mission Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska and the Athabascan bush village of Galena. For more information about future trips to Alaska, contact Janine Ricker>>
Diocese of Vijayapuram, Kerala, India
The Diocese of Vijayapuram is a Roman Catholic diocese in the middle of a very active and large Syro-Malabar Catholic Rite community. The Roman Catholic Diocese focuses on serving the very poor and marginalized: the lower caste. The Center for Mission organized a solidarity mission trip to this diocese in January 2019. If you are interested or have questions regarding further trips, contact Janine Ricker, Click Here>>
