The Icon of Mission shows two pairs of feet walking together, symbolizing brothers and laypeople united with children and young people in carrying out the Good News in daily life. Walking barefoot expresses simplicity, openness, and a Church that goes forth with courage and hope. This shared journey reflects a readiness to serve wherever needed, rooted not in privilege but in generous availability.
Violets along the path recall the Marist virtues that sustain our missionary identity and make the Gospel visible through our attitudes and actions. The icon points to the many places where the mission unfolds — especially among those on the margins — and evokes the missionary’s tunic, reminding us to clothe ourselves in the realities, cultures, and hopes of the people we accompany.
Mission is lived in communion, inspired by Mary’s bold and compassionate discipleship and Champagnat’s example. The Icon invites all Marists to cross new frontiers with light in their eyes and clay on their feet — walking together in hope, sustained by virtue, and ready to encounter God in the lives of young people, especially the most vulnerable.
The Icon of Mission is represented by two pairs of feet on the journey, symbolizing brothers and laypeople who, together with children and young people, carry out the mission in everyday life as bearers of the Good News. These feet walk side by side, marked by boldness and hope, and being barefoot, they remind us of detachment, simplicity, and the call to be a Church that goes forth — always available to serve and attentive to the appeals of the Kingdom.
This journey is an expression of missionary availability that is born from the call and expressed through generous service. “It grants you a special availability, which is not a privilege but a service to the mission.” (RV 15)
Along the path, violets bloom — a reminder that Marist virtues, cultivated in the heart, are the strength of our charism and must never be forgotten. They sustain our missionary identity, helping us to embody the Gospel and make it visible through our daily works and actions. “Embody its attitudes in your life and seek to make it known and loved. Through your way of being and acting, you help many to discover it and see it as a path that leads to Jesus.” (RV 76)
The icon also reveals the peripheries and major centers where the mission takes place and is renewed. Its shapes evoke the silhouette of a tunic — a symbol of the missionary on the way — reminding us of the need to clothe ourselves with the human realities we encounter: tears, hopes, cultures, and dreams, and never to forget the children and young people, especially the poorest.
The call to mission is shared and lived in communion with brothers and laypeople: “With your brothers and other Marists, prepare yourself to go to places where your presence is most needed. Like Mary, walk with light in your eyes and clay on your feet. She invites you to cross into new frontiers.” (RV 81)
The Marist Mission, like that of Mary, is pilgrim, bold, and compassionate. “Following the example of Marcellin Champagnat, we turn to Mary as a son turns to his mother. We draw inspiration from her, our sister in faith, to live our journey as disciples of Jesus.” (C 50)
Thus, the Icon of Mission reminds us that we are called to walk together — with clay on our feet and light in our eyes — clothed in hope, sustained by virtues, and driven by love, always going out to meet the faces and realities where God awaits us.
