ASIA/KYRGYZTAN - "God loves the little ones": Young woman receives the sacrament of baptism in the Kyrgyz Church

Wednesday, 14 April 2021 baptism   sacraments   easter   pastoral   evangelization  

Bishkek (Agenzia Fides) - "With the beginning of Easter, which lasts from April 4 to Pentecost, our lives are by these two aspects: the first is Christ's victory over death through the cross; the second is the resurrection and thus the moment of the final disappearance of all that causes suffering for those who choose to live in the love of God. We are sure that Christ changed everything forever and also enables us to continue living in this 'drama' of inevitable daily events that is human life, in a world that has not yet fully accepted His salvation". This is the message sent to Agenzia Fides by the Jesuit Fr. Anthony Corcoran, Apostolic Administrator of Kyrgyzstan. The participation of the Catholic community of Kyrgyzstan in Holy Week was active, despite the difficult time of the pandemic. Fr. Corcoran reports: "In the days of the Easter Triduum, the Church of St. Michael the Archangel was full of faithful: both parishioners from the local community and faithful from different parts of the world were present. This confirmed the ecumenical nature and unity of the Catholic Church. Furthermore, during the Easter Vigil, an 18-year-old girl received the sacrament of Baptism. We are happy to have welcomed her into our community of faithful. It is a great and precious sign of hope for all of us".
In Kyrgyzstan there are three Catholic parishes in the cities of Bishkek, Jalal-Abad and Talas, but many small groups of faithful are present in the rural areas of the country. In his message in preparation for Lent, the Jesuit urged the faithful not to feel like a minority and to witness the Gospel message every day: "We recognize that our Church, even if the Catholic faith is the largest religion in the world by number, there is only a very small community here in Kyrgyzstan. However, as Pope Francis assures us, God loves the little ones and the little things. Our task, as Catholics, is to live our faith as a testimony of the Light and Life that Christ is alive in our generation, in our time and in the place where we are, our 'hic et nunc'. The time we have in this life is limited; so we continue to seek the best way to bear witness to the life that only Christ brings to our families, our country and our world".
Currently, the Kyrgyz faithful can count on the spiritual assistance of seven priests, a religious and five Franciscan nuns. (LF-PA) (Agenzia Fides, 14/4/2021)


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