Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Madrid (Fides Service) - On March 6 the Church in Spain celebrates Hispanic-America Day with the slogan “America receives and sends missionaries”. Promoted fifty years ago by the Spanish Bishops’ Commission for Mission and Cooperation among Churches, the Day is celebrated in dioceses throughout the country. It aims to remind Catholics of the duty to evangelise which links local Churches in Spain with those in Latin America.
For the occasion special message of greetings and encouragement was addressed to Catholics in Spain by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and the vice president Bishop Luis Robles. The Cardinal recalls that missionary collaboration between Latin American countries and Spain is a fruit of evangelisation more than 500 years ago. Remarking on the present Year of the Eucharist the Cardinal recalled that from the beginning the celebration of the Eucharist, a primary means of catechesis for missionaries, has always been very important in the history of the evangelisation of the Americas. “This explains why devotion to the Eucharist is so deeply rooted in the hearts of the faithful in Latin America” the Cardinal said and also underlined the urgent need for workers for the abundant harvest urging the Church in Spain to “maintain lively commitment for missionary co-operation with Latin American countries."
To mark the day Bishop Ramón del Hoyo of Cuenca, Spain, member of the Bishops’ Commission for Missions, also published a pastoral reflection “He who gives, receives” in which he affirms: "Mutual support for evangelisation, continual giving and receiving is the natural response to the gift of faith. The living spring of our faith is the source for all missionary vocation and commitment". The Day is also a call to live of the Eucharist, the grow in faith in the Eucharist, to pray in front of Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament for the spread of the faith and to be committed to mission not only on certain days but all through the year.
To promote initiatives for the Day the Commission for Missions issued special material including suggestions for missionary animation for children and adults, a handbook for liturgical celebrations and information on the number of Spanish diocesan priests on mission today. At the moment Spain has 946 diocesan priests on mission, 383 belong to OCSHA Organisation for Hispanic-American priestly Cooperation and 563 belonging to other groups. The Spanish diocese with the highest number of these missionaries is Madrid (69), followed by Burgos (63), Pamplona-Tudela (54), Toledo (36) and Cartagena (34). Most of them, 818, work in America: Peru(116), United States (93), Venezuela (87) and Porto Rico (66). In Africa there are 72 mainly in Zimbabwe and Angola . In Europe there are 33, mostly in Italy (13). In Asia there are 23, 13 in Japan, 4 in Thailand and 3 in Philippines. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 1/3/2005; righe 36; parole 504)
