Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Quito (Agenzia Fides) - Intense preparations continue as there is barely a month left before the kick off of the Third American Missionary Congress (CAM 3), which will be held in Quito (Ecuador) August 12-17. According to the Executive Secretary of the Congress, the registration deadline has been reached. The registrations were channeled through the diocesan offices of the Pontifical Mission Societies of Ecuador and the rest of the countries throughout the Americas, through the national PMS offices. 21 international groups and 23 Ecuadorian groups from various dioceses have already confirmed their attendance. Among the special guests invited to take part in the event are the Presidents of various Bishops’ Conferences and special delegates of countries such as Italy, New Guinea, Ethiopia, Portugal, Spain, Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Bolivia, and Honduras. An additional 40 press agencies from Ecuador, the Americas, and Europe have also registered to cover each one of CAM 3’s activities.
For 6 days, missionaries from all over the world will share their missionary experiences with supportive families that have opened the doors of the hearts and their homes so as to live this missionary celebration in a special manner, in response to the appeal made by Archbishop Raul Vela Chiriboga of Quito, Primate of Ecuador asking for families willing to host participants. There are nearly 3,000 families who are preparing to offer this service. Archbishop Raul Vela has invited all to be good hosts through their simple acts of kindness, their spiritual wealth, offering the support and hospitality that Ecuadorians are known for. All of this offers “a marvelous opportunity to intensify our commitments as Christians and missionaries.” “May the support and hospitality enable us to open our hearts and our homes so that we may live these days of the Congress in an environment of true fraternal exchange and community that the Lord’s presence gives us,” the Archbishop of Quito said.
The Executive Secretary has offered these families a guide in the form of a pamphlet explaining the formation courses and activities that have been organized in preparation for the Mass with a “Missionary Sending.” The pamphlet’s objective is to be a support to one of the main objectives of CAM 3 “To bring Christian families into a full commitment to the evangelizing mission of the Church, so that in the rediscovery of their identity, they may place themselves at the service of the New Evangelization and the mission ad gentes.”
The families who have agreed to host missionaries have been asked to open their home and heart to sharing the joy of loving and knowing missionary experiences from all over the world. The pamphlet has three parts: an explanation of the history, objectives, mottos, and themes of the Congress; the role of the missionary family in the world today; and a brief geographic synthesis of each of the continents.
Cardinal Antonio J. González Zumárraga, Archbishop Emeritus of Quito and President of the Central Committee for CAM 3 hopes that this Congress in Quito “may be for our dioceses, a new Pentecost. We need to reach out to the people, families, communities, and towns to transmit and share with them the gift of knowing Christ, which has filled our lives with meaning, truth, love, joy, and hope. We need to really assume our commitment to the mission ‘ad gentes,’ for the sake of the universal mission of the Church.”
As all missionary materials - printed, audio, or audio-visual – are of importance for announcing the Gospel to all peoples, during the Congress there will be a “Catholic missionary publications expo” in which various producers will have an opportunity to present their missionary-related educational and formative materials. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 10/07/2008)
