“Effective resource management is fundamental to any organization’s self-sustainability. The major reason for focussing on the effective management of resources is be- cause in this present world, there is a large decline in the number and size of foreign aid from foreign donors and missions. Therefore, managing the existing resources can only be the solution for any organizations towards self-sustainability” (cfr. J.E Del- lard on Christian Stewardship).
A visit to our theology house in Nairobi by Rev. Fr. Laurianus on September 10, 2021, was accompanied by a workshop, which he had organized on the economic status of our Order. All the brothers, the superior and formators attended the workshop in which Father Lauri- anus took us through very important topics which in- clude: Resource management, Budgeting and Finance, the CRM Regulations, Inventory and Holy Entrepre- neurship.
This last topic touched my attention as it raised quite a long discussion on how can a religious be an entrepre- neur? As Clerics Regular Minor, we are motivated by our Charism and Spirituality which call us to loving and serving the poor, the marginalized and the suffering, whereby all our activities are centered on the Eucharist. With focus on Primary evangelization,
our mission usually takes us to poor communities, where people
have no access to basic needs. However, the primary evangelization is also accompanied by various humanitarian activities that respond to the needs of the people we serve, which include: education, health, pastoral work, social development, chaplaincy
in hospitals, welcoming and integration of migrants and refugees where special attention is for the most vulnerable and marginalized. We cannot also forget the daily up-keep of our priests and we, brothers in formation, in our various formation houses.
One thing that we all learned in the workshop is that there is a challenge not only in our Order but also in the Church, especially for missionaries who serve the people of God who are vulnerable and marginalized. In the workshop, Father Laurianus took us through the development of the Order since its foundation here in Africa, the achievements made, some of the assets ac- quired, etc. We realized that indeed the Order has done a lot with the grace of God or rather, in our CRM lan- guage, with ‘The Providence’, whereby we have schools built in our missions, thousands of children who have benefited and still benefit from the adoption program. We are proud to have helped people to study and some of them have occupied high rank positions in the gov- ernment, religious life and other areas of life especially in Congo. Health centers were set up and built and sus- tained by the CRM, like the big hospital in our mission in Nyamilima and many other health centres in the sur- rounding villages that render high quality and afforda- ble health services, treating thousands of patients, providing maternity services, in-patient, out-patient, eye treatment camps etc. We also have Development Cen- tres in Nyamilima (CAM, Briqueterie, brewery, oil pressing, workshops, farm- ing…). Moreover, we have churches, orphanages in Goma, DRC, with more than 50 chil- dren both boys and girls, some of whom have been rescued from the Army rebels as child soldiers. All these have directly benefited those who are most in need. For over 37 years of mis- sionary activities, these have been carried out transforming the lives of thousands of people whom we minister to.
What factors have contributed to this success?
What should we do for our charism and spirituality to be more effective today?
Our founding missionaries depended much on generous benefactors, friends and family members who supported most of the missionary activities; in our case especially most of the help came from Italy. Having looked at the above advancements of the Order in our missions here in Africa (DRC), we realize that apart from the ministry of the Word of God, people still have a lot of expectations from us even today. As the Order expands, many developments and changes are taking place, like when opening up new missions, there is an increase of needs among our members and the people whom we serve. All these factors are a challenge today in our mission life as far as resources are concerned. The Church however still calls us to break away from the comfortable mentality and embrace the missionary spirituality of going to the ends of the earth like the early missionaries. Is this possible? YES it is…because of the “…Providence….!”
Holding the bull by its horns! Risk taking
According to Father Laurianus, the major reason for focusing on the effective management of resources is because in the present world, especially in our Church today as missionaries, there is a large decline in the number and size of foreign aid from foreign donors and missions. Therefore, managing the existing resources can only be the solution for the Order towards self sustainability to understand again to what extent is an ‘entrepreneurial mindset’ helpful for evangelization today, (e.g. if we upgrade one of our community empowerment center and register it as a Vocational Training center with official certificate -TVET).
The authors (Bush & Toney, 2007), state that, the general management of resources can be viewed in terms of acquisition, allocation, utilization, and evaluation. There is a need therefore in our Order to examine current resource management strategies with the view to identifying the shortcomings and at the same time making suggestions for more effective ones. This will ensure that more local ways can be found to acquire resources and effectively manage them to achieve the in- tended objectives.
In the writings of Ruwa, M.C. (2002), self-reliance is the condition of being able to rely on one’s ability and efforts. It enables people to be responsible for their own growth and foe social, spiritual, political and financial development. It is a call to a change of attitude on all levels of social life, without losing sight of the basic responsibilities of all communities, which are capable of self- determination and self-management with the full participation of all.
Saint Pope John Paul II, in his post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Africa, welcomed the Episcopal Conferences, dioceses and all the Christian communities of the Continent’s churches, in so far as it is within their competence, to see to it that self-sufficiency becomes increasingly evident. He said that the Church has the right to seek the support of the faithful, and the faithful have both the right and duty to offer their assistance since the missions may come to an end. The Church must acknowledge and appreciate the contribution and self- giving of the missionaries without which Christianity would not have taken root. The local Church must stand on its own.
Even if now in Africa we still have little to show towards self-reliance and sustainable development which has been characterized by poverty, political instability, social disorientation among others, which have weakened the vision towards reliance and sustainable development, there is still hope. A stable sustainability also requires good stewardship where funds are used for what they have been planned for, especially now that there is a de- cline of donor support due to the global crises caused by Covid-19.
Here in Nairobi, we appreciate the help given by the Order to help us revive our pigs’ project. As the house of formation, it is logical that most of the activities here involve spending, consuming. We however try our best to subsidize our needs by having small gardens where we produce vegetables, salads, onions, sometimes tomatoes and maize, depending on the season. The pig project is a great boost too, since we can take pork meat from the work of our hands. It is also part of training as we prepare to be present in the future missions.
Another project in which we appreciate the support of the Generalate is the poultry project. This has spared us from buying eggs from the market. And it is doing well, and we have become the suppliers of our neighbors and soon we will harvest chicken for our consumption! We also do goose and rabbit rearing.
It is therefore a good sign that the Generalate of our religious Family has seen the need, through the finance Commission, to have sustainable projects in our various communities where the members can share, listen and support one another in this time and age where sustainability is key to enhancing continuity of our religious life and ministries, since empowerment of the people we serve is crucial for sustainability as it helps them to be active and to shape their own destiny and to achieve our objectives. This however always calls for the missionaries to see the signs of times and to read them in the light of the Gospel.
As he concluded his presentations, Father Laurianus encouraged us to begin small and be ready to take risks. “The important thing is to discern the needs of the people and start on a small scale to respond with whatever little resources we can gather. Our first missionaries started small; our task is to continue: the courage of taking risks by starting small…”
It is a dangerous trend when missionaries lose their pioneering spirit and want everything prime and proper with established structures in order to carry out their mission – our entrepreneurial spirit is tested when we build from scratch (e.g. our new missions in Tanzania- Kharumwa and Ngomamtimba). Never be afraid to start small…but keep the vision alive, remain faithful to the charism and the spirituality, while enjoying the fruit of your labor…that is Holy Entrepreneurship!
By: Br. Juma O. Joseph, CRM
