Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “Our great desire is that this encounter may be an expression of our affection for the successor of Peter,” said Cardinal Julio Terrazas Sandoval, Archbishop of Santa Cruz and President of the Bolivian Bishops' Conference, in greeting the Holy Father Benedict XVI in the audience held on November 10, on the occasion of their Ad Limina Apostolorum visit.
The Cardinal began by expressing his gratitude to the Pope for his closeness at Aparecida, for the attention and words he addressed to the people of Bolivia in difficult times and for his Pastoral concern for the Church in Bolivia.
The Cardinal later presented the Holy Father with a general account of the main “joys and hopes, sorrows and concerns” of the country. Among the joys he mentioned, the first was the “Continental Mission,” which will be launched early next year, “in order to awaken the missionary impulse amoung our faithful and all the People of God in Bolivia.” He also mentioned the new “Focus and Pastoral Directives of the Bishops' Conference, which tries “to illumine, encourage, and accompany the life and pastoral action of the local dioceses in our country, during the next five years.” Another positive aspect is “the growing value of the Sunday Mass and the announcement of the Word of God as the center of community life,” as well as a greater “presence of religious and missionaries who dedicate their lives to the service of the People of God with generosity in many far-away and abandoned areas, and oftentimes, in dangerous circumstances.” In addition, following the indications of Aparecida, they are trying to establish “formation for Christian initiation and on-going formation for the baptized, based on the Bible, Tradition, the Church's Magisterium and Social Doctrine, which enlighten our existence and give motivation for a personal, communal, and social commitment.”
However, with all that said, there are always moments of difficulty and insecurity, Cardinal Terrazas explained. Thus, it is evident that the political measures and legal mechanisms being used up until now to fight the great evils of poverty, social injustice, discrimination, and marginalization, “appear to be neither sufficient nor adequate in being able to establish a Bolivia for all its people.” Another cause for concern is that “this process of change still does not find channels that respond to the spiritual value and wealth of the entire society, who longs for paths of justice and peace.” The Cardinal went on to explain that “intolerance has risen and has prevented rational dialogue from bearing any fruit. It has often rejected sane measures and opted for physical, verbal, and ethical violence that leads to insecurity, suffering, and mourning in the country.” Thus, the Bishops continue to witness “the reappearance of new forms of exclusion, the rise of revenge, hate, racism, and even signs of xenophobia. These manifestations, lived with great intensity, have weakened the state, and the effectiveness of those whose duty it is to guarantee democracy.”
Throughout this entire process, the Bishops have made continual calls for reconciliation, pardon, sane judgment, dialogue, and prayer for peace. In a special manner, the Cardinal said, “we have offered our contribution and reflection in the drafting of the new Constitution, giving guidelines from the Gospel and the Church's Social Doctrine,” insisting on crucial points such as “the sacredness of human life, the dignity of the human person, freedom, the common good, and democratic coexistence.” “We have lived moments of intense uncertainty that, thanks be to God, have been abated after a long and painful quest for consensus, so as to serve the entire country,” the Prelate affirmed.
The President of the Bishops' Conference concluded his address by asking that the Holy Father bestow his apostolic blessing upon the entire Bolivian people, “so that our beloved Bolivia may be fully established in justice, reconciliation, freedom, and love, the foundations of peace.” (RG) (Agenzia Fides 11/11/2008)
