South St. Paul family’s Costa Rica ministry models Catholic family life

Heading into missionary work in a foreign country takes strong faith and a desire to serve.

Taking on the role of foreign missionaries as a married couple — with five children — requires a special call and a tremendous trust in God.

Jason and Inge Becker, both 43, joined Family Missions Company in September 2018, spending their first year in Peru and the past two years in Costa Rica. Joining in their service are their five children: Isaac, 16; Gemma, 15; Augustine, 12; Bridget, 9, and Aviana, 6.

“Family Missions Company is a lay, Catholic organization that trains and equips Catholic families and singles to proclaim the Gospel and serve the poor,” Jason said. “We felt drawn to the organization’s way of life and felt prompted to make a radical change in our life.”

The Center for Mission in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis has aided the family with a yearly Mustard Seed Mission Grant of $2,000.

“When we left, we went all in; we sold our house and vehicles, quit our jobs and got rid of our things in order to be debt free and unattached from things,” Jason said. “We fully rely on the generosity of our sponsors to meet our personal and ministry needs, and we are always blessed when new sponsors step up to support our life and missionary work.”

Jason and Inge first met at the Catholic Newman Center at Winona State University in Winona. Her background is in elementary education; Jason is a licensed marriage and family therapist.

Both were raised as Catholics in Minnesota, Jason on a dairy farm south of Staples and Inge in Hopkins. Inge spent a year in foreign ministry in Kenya (1998-99), and as a newly married couple, they served as missionaries in south Texas and Belize for three years (2005-2008).

Before heading into their current mission, the Becker family lived in South St. Paul. They are members of St. Joseph in West St. Paul and are part of Community of Christ the Redeemer, a lay Catholic covenant community.

In January 2020, the family began its current ministry in Coopevega, a rural farming community in northern Costa Rica about 10 miles from Nicaragua. The community’s main sources of income are harvesting sugar cane, working at lumber mills and raising cattle.

“Our primary ministry from the bishop is to be a witness of authentic, Catholic family life for the people to see,” Inge said. “We recognize that relational ministry is the gateway to all other ministries; we strive to form and build relationships with those around us through frequent home visits and having a welcoming presence for those who come to our door.”

Some of the highlights of the Beckers’ ministry include encountering Jesus in the face of the poor when they knock on their door daily, having neighbors join in their family time for prayer, and witnessing couples respond to their invitation to get married in the Church.

“We have a passion to build up the domestic Church, and do so by going into homes and teaching the importance of prayer, as well as encouraging people to get their sacraments, especially to be baptized and to get married,” Inge said.

“We pray over people, listen to people’s struggles, and provide encouragement and hope,” she said. “Our children also do this by joining us on home visits and through the Wednesday children’s ministry we offer at our house, where we invite the neighborhood kids to do crafts, play chess and yard games.”

There have been challenges in Costa Rica for the Beckers. They include “learning the language, apathy among many regarding the faith and feeling overwhelmed with all the material needs being requested and knowing how to help,” Jason said. “A large population of those we serve are Nicaraguan refugees, and a majority of them come here without any official papers, making it very difficult to get work and health care to provide for their families.”

“Making friends has been a challenge. We spend periods of time with other missionary families and then they leave, and many of our neighbors have come and gone,” he added.

Despite the hardships, the Beckers see blessings for their family in this path they’ve chosen.

“The biggest blessing is that our children have each other, and our life here has really allowed us to build a good rhythm of family prayer,” Jason said. “We are so blessed to spend half an hour every morning in prayer, we pray a Divine Mercy Chaplet during the 3 o’clock hour and have daily night prayer as well.”

Each year, Jason and Inge take a discernment retreat, asking God if they should commit to another year of mission.

“This past April, we discerned that God was asking us to come back for another year,” Jason said.

“It has been humbling and a blessing in surrender to rely 100 percent on the gifts of others,” he said. “God has taught us a lot about trusting in him to survive. He hasn’t let us down.”