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Evangelizare Pauperibus Misit Me — I have come to evangelize the poor. These words have been the compass of my life and priesthood. They are not merely a slogan but the very heartbeat of the Congregation of the Mission, rooted in the Gospel’s declaration that the Spirit of the Lord has anointed us to bring good news to the poor (Luke 4:18). My journey with the Beunen Foundation did not begin in an office or a classroom but in a deep, unshakable desire to be a missionary in the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul.

I joined the Congregation of the Mission with a burning hope to serve ad gentes — to go to the frontiers, to places where the name of Christ was not yet known or where the poor had been forgotten. That longing never left me during my years of formation. On the first anniversary of my priestly ordination, in February 2000, I formally wrote to my provincial visitor expressing my wish to be sent on mission abroad. At that time, I had no specific country in mind. Taiwan was not part of my plan — in fact, I knew very little about it. But God writes straight with crooked lines.

In August of that same year, I participated in the China Summer Exposure Program organized by the Chinese Province. The program brought me to Taiwan for the first time. It was a brief encounter, yet something took root. A year later, I chose to return. Seeing it now through the eyes of faith, I realize it was not I who chose Taiwan; rather, God chose me for Taiwan. That realization has been the foundation of everything that followed.

Evangelizare Pauperibus — To Evangelize the Poor

During that first visit, we were brought to St. Anne’s Home, a small, cramped facility for children with severe disabilities. The building was modest, almost shabby, yet the love within those walls was immense. I was struck not by the infrastructure but by the staff’s dedication — people who worked quietly, without recognition, in a space that seemed too small for the enormity of their mission. It was a home with a very big heart.

At the time, I did not fully grasp what I was seeing. Only after returning to Taiwan and spending several years there did the broader context become clear: the newly established Beunen Foundation, St. Anne’s Home, the Chinese Province’s strategic vision, Taiwan’s evolving social environment, and the pastoral needs of the local Church. All these pieces began to form a mosaic.

I gradually realized we already possessed tremendous potential for evangelization — not in grand programs or buildings, but in the works of mercy already being lived out daily. The question that began to haunt me was simple yet profound: How can I help maximize this potential for evangelization? That question changed the course of my life. It led me to pursue formal studies in Nonprofit Management, not as an escape from the mission but as a deepening of it. I believed then, and I believe still, that with proper skills, works of charity can become a powerful, credible, and transformative instrument for proclaiming the Gospel in contemporary Taiwan.

Evangelizare per Caritatis — To Evangelize Through Charity

When I formally began my ministry with the Beunen Foundation in early 2012 — first as executive secretary and later as executive director — I carried a clear guiding principle: Evangelizare per caritatis. To evangelize through works of charity, not alongside them but through them. Charity is not a prelude to evangelization; it is a mode of evangelization.

The first challenge was recognizing that our mission could not remain confined to St. Anne’s Home. As beautiful as that work was, the needs around us were far greater. I had witnessed firsthand the dire situation in the remotest areas of Taidong — places where professional services were absent, families with disabled members felt abandoned, and the Church’s presence was scarce. I did not hesitate. I leveraged the resources of the Beunen Foundation and the Congregation of the Mission to develop new programs for people with disabilities in these areas.

That decision to expand where we are most needed became a turning point for the organization. It forced us to ask difficult questions: What does it mean to be faithful to our mission if we remain only where it is comfortable? What kind of Gospel do we preach if we avoid the hardest places? Expanding was not merely a strategic choice; it was a spiritual one.

Yet expansion brought growing pains. As services multiplied, the need for personnel growth and organizational change became unavoidable. This was the most challenging period in the Beunen Foundation’s development. Some aspects of the old organizational culture had to change — sometimes gradually, sometimes abruptly. Old habits, unspoken assumptions, and resistance to accountability surfaced. There were moments of tension, misunderstanding, and fatigue.

Yet, looking back, this was also one of the most meaningful periods of my ministry. I had the privilege of journeying with our staff — from chaos to stability, from resistance to openness, from incapacity to efficiency, and from doubt to trust. None of this transformation was my doing alone. My presence in Beunen was in God’s own timing. I was there when the Chinese Province of the Congregation of the Mission needed to strengthen its mission in response to the needs of the present time. I was there when the Beunen Foundation was seeking a new direction while remaining faithful to its founding charism. I was there because God had given me a gracious opportunity to serve — nothing more, nothing less.

Over the years, the fruits of this service have been deeply fulfilling. We have seen our work touch not only the people we serve — children with disabilities, abandoned elderly, and vulnerable families — but also those who support us: donors, volunteers, and community partners. These partners may not share my Catholic faith, but they know, deep in their hearts, that only people with a deep sense of faith, conviction, mission, and values can sustain service to the most vulnerable over the long haul. Through our work, they have discovered that they, too, possess human values that can help others. In that sense, they have been evangelized — not by words, but by witness.

Evangelizari Servitio Nostro — To Be Evangelized by Our Service

If charity evangelizes others, it must first evangelize us. Evangelizari servitio nostro — to be evangelized by our own service. We cannot give what we have not received, and we receive most deeply when we serve.

For several years, skills development was the organization’s priority. This was essential, especially to keep pace with the demands of public service policies and the competition for funding. But an organization with skilled staff yet lacking a spirit of service is no different from many secular service organizations. In a world where skills often lack compassion, where policies can be designed to prohibit humanity rather than enhance it, we need first to be evangelized by the very people we serve.

The people we serve are among the most vulnerable: those with few material goods, little social power, and little voice in public discourse. The world often sees them as burdens. But with our love and care, we show the world something different: that they, too, have dignity — not a dignity earned by productivity or eloquence, but one that comes from being human, created in the image of God. Our service to them should not be less than what others might offer; it should be more — more love, more patience, more presence. And that love flows from God through us.

This is what sets the Beunen Foundation apart from other social service organizations. It is not our professional skills alone — though skills matter. It is the spirit with which we serve. Therefore, to reach greater heights in the future, we must preserve, cultivate, and deepen this spirit of service — one that evangelizes the value and dignity of human life, especially for the most vulnerable.

I have seen the fruits of this spirit again and again. Visitors to our centers leave deeply moved. Volunteers who spend time with our residents go home changed. Some give more generously, while others find renewed courage to care for their loved ones. Many rediscover hope they had lost, and some even find new meaning in their lives. These are not accidental byproducts. They are fruits of the evangelizing spirit of our service — because we serve not for efficiency alone, but out of deep conviction and the spirit of Christ.

Now, as I do my advocacy work at the United Nations, representing the Congregation of the Mission’s NGO presence, I have come to see the Beunen Foundation in a new light. In the vast field of global social service and charity, we are a small organization among thousands. Yet smallness is not insignificance. Despite our size, the Beunen Foundation can help make the world a better place for some of the poor and vulnerable in our care. And in doing so sincerely, we become evangelizers precisely because we allow ourselves to be evangelized.

Conclusion: A Mission That Never Ends

The journey that began with Evangelizare Pauperibus Misit Me has never been a straight line. It has been a spiral — each movement returning to the beginning, but at a deeper level. To evangelize the poor leads us to evangelize through charity, which may lead us to be evangelized by our own service. And then the cycle begins again.

I am grateful for the years I served as executive secretary and executive director, as chairman of the board, and now as the Congregation’s representative at the United Nations. But titles change; the mission does not. Wherever I am, whether in a remote village in Taidong or in a conference room in New York, the same call remains: to announce the Good News to the poor — and to let them announce it back to me.

About the Author: Fr. Ferdinand Labitag, a member of the Congregation of the Mission Chinese Province, is originally from the Philippines. He came to Taiwan in 2002 and served for five years at Our Lady of Assumption Parish in Dawu, Taidong. After studying nonprofit management in the United States, he served as executive secretary and executive director of the Beunen Foundation from 2012 until his appointment as Provincial Visitor in 2017. He served as chairman of the board until 2024. He now serves as the Congregation of the Mission’s NGO representative at the United Nations, advocating for social justice for the most vulnerable.