Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Zarate-Campana (Agenzia Fides) – Bishop Oscar Domingo Sarlinga of the Diocese of Zarate-Campana (Argentina) has written a Pastoral Letter on the inauguration of the Pauline Year, which will take place on June 28. In his letter, he reflects on the Year as “an opportunity to revive in us the grace of unity and evangelization.”
Bishop Sarlinga explains that “the objective of the Pauline Year is one of deep reflection and of evangelization. That is, in addition to its being a perfect time to awaken knowledge of the person and works of ‘the Apostle to the Gentiles,’ it is also an opportunity for all believers and men of good will to reflect more deeply on St. Paul’s inspired message on life in Christ, the message of salvation. It is a time to allow ourselves to be formed by God and His grace, to make our faith, hope, and charity (without forgetting its social dimension of solidarity) blossom in a world that is so in need of virtues.”
It is also an occasion “to reflect on the essential relationship between justice and charity, inseparable virtues.” The Bishop states that this year of grace (2008-2009) will be, above all, a time to get on the path of “Jesus, the Way,” letting it become “a privileged pastoral opportunity” for all pastoral agents, priest, religious, and laity, “with the goal of deepening in the knowledge of Saint Paul and in the work of grace in him” and “to promote a spiritual reading and studious reflection of the Letters of St. Paul,” which held to confirm us in the faith, grow in testimony of life as “children of God” and “reaffirm our belonging to the Church.” “This will also reaffirm us” – the Pastoral Letter says – “ in our mission as evangelizers and in our commitment to true ecumenism and fruitful interreligious dialogue, in justice and peace, in loving openness to the Spirit of the Lord.”
The Bishop then presents the person, thought, and works of Saint Paul, highlighting above all that his success in the apostolate “depended above all on his personal commitment to announcing the Gospel with total and courageous dedication to Christ, without retreating before the difficulties and dangers.” He also points out St. Paul’s close relationship with Peter, “the ‘rock’ on which the Lord wished to build the Church.”
The Pastoral Letter concludes by indicating the main celebrations and activities that the diocese will be organizing during this jubilee year, as well as the churches and the days that indulgences are granted by the Holy Father for the Pauline Year. The Bishop will celebrate the initiation of the Pauline Year on June 28, in the afternoon, in the Diocese’s only church (established 2007), named “Our Lady of Lujan and Saints Peter and Paul,” in the city of Campana. The opening ceremony will take place on the 29th, with the consecration and inauguration of the new church for pilgrims, dedicated to Saint Joseph. There will also be various prayer encounters organized during the year, as well as conferences and other events in several sites. The traditional Jewish-Christian encounter will also take place, for the communities of Zarate and Campana. There is also a youth mission planned for Belen de Escobar, in September, which will be especially centered on the Pauline spirituality. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 23/6/2008)
