The Association for Church Archives of Ireland (ACAI) has focused on the theme of ‘charism’ in its current newsletter. It looks at the origins of some of the ACAI’s religious congregations so as to learn about their foundation and their respective vocations.
Founded in 1980, the Association for Church Archives of Ireland aims to promote the care, preservation and use of church archival collections. The ACAI is concerned with the records and archives of the Christian Churches in Ireland and the Congregations and Societies associated with them.
Róisín O’Brien is the Assistant Archivist in Dalgan, where she works with Fr Pat O’Donoghue. The ACAI newsletter has published her contribution on the Columbans.
The Missionary Society of St Columban
The Missionary Society of St Columban was founded in 1916 in Ireland by Edward Galvin and John Blowick as a Missionary Society of Priests for the evangelization of China.
Today the Columban Priests and Lay Missionaries work in 15 countries: Australia, Britain, Chile, China, Fiji, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, Peru, the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United States of America.
The Society was originally called the Maynooth Mission to China. On 29 June 1918, when the Society was approved as a Pontifical Society its name was changed to St Columban’s Missionary Society taking its name from St Columban, Ireland’s sixth century missionary to Europe. St Columban travelled across Europe, founding monasteries in France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy.
From its founding the Superior General and his Council resided in Ireland. In 2008 the decision was made to relocate our international headquarters to Hong Kong in order to be closer to many of our mission countries, and to support the growing number of younger members – both lay and ordained – who come from the Asia-Pacific region.
The Society of St Columban preaches the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to minister to people of various cultures as a way of witnessing the universal love of God. As missionaries, they minister to Catholics as well as seeking to build bridges and foster mutual understanding through encounters with people of other cultures and religious traditions, trying to promote healing, reconciliation and peace.
The Columbans’ commitment to live in solidarity with people on the margins of our world, as well as promoting care for the earth, our common home, are ways in which they participate in God’s mission. This involves learning and integrating themselves into the culture and communities where they are missioned to.
The Society has a deep sense of justice and a yearning for peace for both the human and natural world. They have spoken out about human rights issues, including child prostitution and social injustices. They also have centres that care for Migrants, Drug and Alcohol Addiction, those with Special Needs, and Educational Centres and other projects. They are advocates for environmental justice and have founded and supported eco-theology projects.
Columban Missionaries believe and teach that faith must be lived through action, especially while working in solidarity with the poor and migrants and promoting community ecological responsibility, helping people to create lasting change for themselves. The Columbans’ work with migrants focuses on providing the support they need to rebuild their lives with dignity. They advocate for their rights as migrants and provide safe welcoming spaces.
The Columbans firmly believe that preaching the Gospel, is a commitment to confront the systemic barriers that prevent people from living with dignity.
The members of the Society see themselves as Peregrinari pro Christo (Exiles for Christ) in line with Columban and other Irish monks who left their homeland to preach the Gospel.
The motto of the Society of St Columban is taken from St Columban: Christi simus non nostri, which translates We belong to Christ, not ourselves and reflects a life fully devoted to Christ and his teachings.