Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Toluca (Agenzia Fides) - Bishop Francisco Javier Chavolla Ramos of Toluca (Mexico) recently issued a Pastoral Letter entitled, “Our diocesan path as missionary disciples of Jesus Christ.” In the document, he conveys his approval of the “Diocesan Procedure in the Mission of Permanent Evangelization” and presents the Procedure, that will be implemented in the diocese. The Bishop asks that all the faithful respond to the initiative “with generosity and commitment, with authentic love for Jesus Christ...as from now on it will be the pastoral priority for our diocesan Church.”
The diocesan project is a result of years of work and reflection that began in the First Synod for Diocesan Pastoral Ministry and has unfolded with the current Diocesan Plan for Pastoral Ministry 2007-2012. As the Bishop states in his Letter, the Procedure is “a gift and a task for us from Divine Providence,” that consequently requires conversions of the individual and the community, as well as generosity and co-responsibility in order to assume the task with personal commitment and work with tireless effort in support of it.
The Procedure is divided into four main parts. First, there are a series of preparatory activities aimed at creating awareness, capacitating, and encouraging those who work in pastoral ministry in their commitments. This primarily implies faith formation and openness in order to enter into an intimate relationship with Christ and experience true conversion. Secondly, there is the missionary activity that “consists of making disciples of all nations in Jesus’ name” and keeping in mind that “the proclamation that Jesus is alive is not simply conveying theories with doctrinal content, but it means bringing Christ’s presence into the heart of the modern world.” The third part concerns catechetical activity in order to support and encourage the apostle in his personal adhesion to the Living Christ, so that he may grow in his relationship with the Lord and thus, discover and accept his commitment within the community of apostles and missionaries. Lastly, there is the theme of the missionary pastoral activity that implies a continuous effort in formation and training missionaries who will be committed to building the Kingdom of God and later become trainers themselves of new missionaries.
Within this procedure, as it implies the participation of all pastoral care workers, the priests and deacons play a fundamental role and hold a grave and undeniable personal responsibility. Consequently, in his Letter, the Bishop asks that they “join me in assuming the responsibility of fidelity to an apostolic life, with all the joys and sufferings that we may face in announcing the Gospel.”
“Our diocesan procedure,” the Bishop of Toluca said, “should be based on the Truth of God, become man in His Son Jesus Christ, and on the truth of man; on the meaning of God and the meaning of man.” He also reminds the faithful that the best service they can offer man in evangelizing is to “offer Christ Himself, through the testimony of our own lives.”
He concludes his Pastoral Letter asking for strength from the Holy Spirit in order to “respond to the demands of the Church in Latin America: encouraging all Christians to live their faith with joy and coherence, aware of their task as missionaries sent by Christ into the world to preach and offer testimony of our faith and love.” (RG) (Agenzia Fides 28/3/2008; righe 43, parole 551)
