VATICAN - Pope Benedict XVI addresses Mexican Bishops: “The bishop’s duty to teach consists of handing on the Gospel of Christ and its moral and religious values keeping in mind the different emerging realities and aspirations in present day society”.

Vatican City (Fides) - ““The bishop’s duty to teach consists of handing on the Gospel of Christ and its moral and religious values keeping in mind the different realities and aspirations which emerge in present day society, a situation with which Bishops must be familiar...at the same time, as in the early Christian communities, the Bishops of Mexico must give special care to those groups who are most vulnerable and poor. They still constitute a large part of the country’s population, victims at times of insufficient and unacceptable structures. In the Gospel the proper answer is to promote solidarity and peace to render justice truly feasible.” Pope Benedict XVI said this on 29 September when he addressed the last of four groups of Mexican Bishops received on their ad limina visit in the Vatican over the past few weeks. The Bishops who included Cardinal Juan Sandoval Iñiguez, Archbishop of Guadalajara, were from the dioceses and ecclesiastical provinces of Acapulco, Antequera and Yucatán in south east Mexico.
The Holy Father recalled the Church’s efforts to “eradicate all form of marginalisation urging Christians to practice justice and love” also by sharing resources with more needy brothers and sisters. “It is necessary not only to alleviate the most serious needs but to go to the root of the problem proposing measures to ensure more fairness and solidarity in social, political and economic structures. In this way charity will be at the service of culture and politics, the economy and the family becoming a force of authentic human and community development”.
The riches of the culture, history and traditions of the people of Mexico is manifested also in their profound sense of festivity. “Since the times of first evangelisation this has been an expression of Christian joy - the Pope said - which gives exceptional expressiveness to celebrations and manifestations of popular religiosity. It is up to Bishops to orient this characteristic common to so many Mexican Catholics towards a firm and mature faith able to shape a conduct of life coherent with what one professes with joy. This will also revive the growing missionary impulse of Mexicans”.
In the last part of his address the Holy Father said that also in Mexico “feminine ‘genius’ manifests itself in many expressions” and in this regard he added: “it is still a challenge of our times to change mentality so that women may be treated with full dignity in every environment and be protected in their indispensable mission as mother and first educator of children”. Another important area is pastoral care for young people: “Many of them mistakenly think that making an effort to reach a decision means loss of freedom. It is good to remind them that a person is free when decisions taken are according to the truth and good. Only if they put Jesus Christ at the centre of their existence can they give meaning to life and build something great and lasting”. The Holy Father concluded urging the Bishops to “proceed and act together in a spirit of communion which has its summit and inexhaustible source in the Eucharist”. The International Eucharistic Congress in Guadalajara, “left a deep impression on the people of believers which must be preserved as a gift of faith celebrated and shared". (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 30/9/2005; righe 39, parole 566)