VATICAN - Pope Benedict XVI addresses third group of Mexican Bishops on ad limina visit: “I urge you not to be discouraged but to continue the mission of teaching and announcing the Gospel of Christ … we must not lose our courage or enthusiasm in our pastoral programming”

Castel Gandolfo (Fides Service) - “Your pastoral ministry should be addressed to everyone, the faithful who take an active part in the life of the diocesan community and those who have distanced themselves and are searching for a meaning to life. This is why I urge you not to be discouraged but to continue the mission of teaching and announcing the Gospel of Christ to all peoples … In present day society which reveals many visible signs of secularism we must not lose our courage or enthusiasm in our pastoral programming. Remember that the Lord gives you the necessary strength. Trust Him.” Pope Benedict XVI said this in his address to a third group of Mexican bishops on their ad limina visit received in audience at his Summer Residence in Castel Gandolfo on 23 September.
The Bishops are in charge of dioceses in central east Mexico (Jalapa, Mexico City, Puebla, Tlalnepantla and suffragans). “The central area of Mexico - the Pope said - is the region in which the indigenous peoples first settled and where the missionary activity of the Church first started and then spread to the other regions. Urban life is marked by a co-existence of many different cultures and customs… life is difficult for people of different social classes and for all without discrimination the diocese must provide pastoral care with special concern for those in situations of dire poverty, solitude or exclusion. These different social groups forge the image of the city and present a constant challenge for pastoral activity. Pastoral plans should include the growing number of people who move from rural to urban areas in search of a more worthy life”. This situation and its pressing problems must the centre of attention for the bishop called to “promote and consolidate communion, so the faithful will realise they are called to live a more intense community life and the Church may become «house and school of communion».”
The Pope urged the Bishops to devote "special care and energy” to priests, the Bishop’s first co-workers in the pastoral ministry: “I therefore encourage you to be close to each of them and to maintain with them a relationship of priestly friendship, following the example of the Good Shepherd. Help them to be men of assiduous prayer … the priest’s prayer is a demand of his pastoral ministry because for the community the testimony of a priest who prays, proclaims transcendence and immerses himself in the mystery of God is indispensable. Be concerned with the situation of each of your priests, encouraging them to proceed with joy and hope on the path to priestly holiness, offering all the help necessary need and at the same time fostering fraternity among them.” Benedict XVI also urged the Bishops to give “special care” for the formation of seminarians and to promote vocation pastoral care .
The Pope ended his address on a note of joy: “In the face of today’s changing and complex panorama in the Christian community the virtue of hope is put to hard test. Precisely for this reason we must be apostles filled with hope who trust with joy in the promises made by God. He never abandons his people, indeed he calls them to conversion so that his Kingdom may become a reality. Kingdom of God means not only that God exists, but that he is present and active in the world”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 24/9/2005; righe 38, parole 571)