VATICAN - The Pope tells Bishops of Paraguay: “It is vital to make a vast missionary effort which, placing Jesus Christ at the center of all pastoral activity, reveals to everyone the beauty and truth of His life and His message of salvation

Castel Gandolfo (Agenzia Fides) – “Faced with a cultural environment that seeks to marginalize God from people and from society, or that considers Him as an obstacle to the pursuit of its own happiness, it is vital to make a vast missionary effort which, placing Jesus Christ at the center of all pastoral activity, reveals to everyone the beauty and truth of His life and His message of salvation. Mankind needs this personal encounter with the Lord that opens them the door to an existence that is illuminated by grace and the love of God.” This is what the Holy Father Benedict XVI told the Bishops of Paraguay, whom he received in audience at the Apostolic Palace at Castel Gandolfo on September 11, on their “Ad Limina Apostolorum” visit.
In order to face the “truly great and complex” pastoral challenges facing the Church in Paraguay, there is a need for “the presence of authentic witnesses of Christian life and the sanctity of pastors.” Thus, the Pope told the Bishops that “aware that one of the most valuable gifts that you can offer your communities is your own episcopal ministry, I encourage you to lead a life of holiness, marked by love for God, fidelity to the Church, and generous self-giving to the Gospel, so that you may become authentic models for your flock...As Successor of the Apostle Peter, I encourage you to continue placing all your efforts at the service of unity in your diocesan communities, as well as with the Apostolic See...the source of authentic pastoral and spiritual benefits.”
The Holy Father then encouraged the Bishops to offer their priests, in addition to closeness and consideration for their work, “an adequate permanent formation that helps them to revitalize their spiritual life, so that, moved by a deep sense of love and obedience to the Church, they may work tirelessly to offer all people the only thing that can fully satisfy man’s thirst: Jesus Christ, our Savior.” One of the priorities for the Bishops of Paraguay is the youth and vocational ministry. In this regards, Benedict XVI pointed out that “the joy, the conviction, and the fidelity with which priests daily live their own vocations will stimulate in many young people the desire to follow Christ in the priesthood,” and yet, “there is a need to offer seminarians the human and material means necessary for helping them to acquire a solid interior life and a sufficient intellectual and doctrinal preparation.”
After expressing his gratitude and acknowledgement to the religious, “for the zeal and love with which they have announced the Christian faith in your lands,” and encouraging the, “to continue being authentic witnesses of an evangelical life,” the Pope spoke of the “indispensable collaboration of the lay faithful.” He mentioned that “Their specific vocation consists in impregnating the temporal world with the Christian spirit, and transforming it in accordance with the divine plan. For their part, pastors have the duty to offer them all the spiritual and formative means they need.” The Pope focused on the participation of the laity in society through politics, telling the Bishops to encourage them “to practice responsibility and dedication in this important dimension of social charity, so that the human community of which they are part ... may progress in justice, in honor and in the defense of true and authentic values such as the protection of human life, of marriage and of the family, thus contributing to the real human and spiritual benefit of all society.”
The last piece of advice the Bishops received from Benedict XVI was that they should be “living image of Christ's charity for all your brothers and sisters, especially those who suffer most: the marginalized, the elderly, the sick and the imprisoned.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 12/9/2008)