AMERICA/GUATEMALA - “May the coming of God-made-Man encourage us to be signs and operators of communion among all. May we be better evangelisers and missionaries” says Cardinal Rodolfo Quezada Toruño, President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Guatemala

Wednesday, 14 December 2005

Guatemala City (Fides Service) - Celebrations for Advent and Christmas must not be a reason for forgetting daily personal and social challenges, instead “we should strive to give this liturgical Season a more contemplative and spiritual character”. “Let us celebrate Christmas welcoming more generously the Lord and our brothers and sisters. May the coming of God-made-Man stir us to be signs and operators of communion among all. May we be better evangelisers and missionaries” says Cardinal Rodolfo Quezada Toruño, archbishop Guatemala City and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Guatemala in a Pastoral Letter for Advent and Christmas 2005 .
The Cardinal says that Advent and Christmas call for greater commitment to make God present in the world with authentic individual and community solidarity with people most in need. The recent Hurricane Stan lifted for a moment the veil which hides the face of poverty and other latent needs in Guatemala: “Christmas festivities must not make us forget the disaster victims rather, awareness that Christ came in poverty should be a reason for more efforts to give and serve, more solidarity and availability towards those who suffer”.
Advent in particular is a season for conversion. Therefore as Christians Guatemalans must take the path of ongoing conversion especially if they want to build together a nation where all citizens enjoy human rights. Nevertheless - Cardinal Toruño writes - “many times we celebrate Christmas accepting persisting situations of deep social differences between those who have not and those who have too much, violence which causes our families to grieve every day, or the situation of inhuman poverty of thousands in the outlying districts of our cities”.
The president of the Bishops’ Conference expresses concern for the many dangers which threaten Guatemala and its people, including the recently approved law on reproductive health: “As Christians we cannot fail to show our dissent because once again this is a violation of the fragile conscience of our children and young people with programmes which distort the true significance of human sexuality. The promoters of these laws forget that in other countries programmes such as these have served little to prevent unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, results which would be obtained by promoting sexuality lived within marriage with responsibility, respect and fidelity”. Therefore “every Christian has a duty to oppose in conscience any unjust law which violates the dignity of the human person”. (RZ) (Agenzia Fides 14/12/2005, righe 32, parole 443)


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