Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Aparecida (Agenzia Fides) - On May 31st the reading of a Message to the Peoples of Latin America and a solemn Mass of thanksgiving marked the conclusion of the 5th General Conference of the Council of Bishops' Conferences of Latin America and the Caribbean in Aparecida inaugurated by Pope Benedict XVI on 13 Mary. In almost twenty intense days of work and prayer the Bishops reflected on the life of the Church in the present the socio-political, economic and cultural situation in Latin America and identified answers which ecclesial structures must offer their members and society in general.
The working sessions concluded with the approval of a Final Document on 30 May. During the closing ceremony at 8.45 local time a Message to the Peoples of Latin America will be read out. Archbishop Jorge Jiménez Carbajal, of Cartagena, Colombia, said the Message is addressed to all the men and women of the continent who wish to help build a more human, just and caring Latin America. The solemn closing Mass at 11am will be presided by CELAM President Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz, Archbishop of Santiago de Chile.
At the last media conference yesterday in Aparecida, Cardinal Errázuriz Ossa, one of three CELAM 5 presidents, said that from the first day the atmosphere had been one of brotherly communion, prayer, and encounter with Jesus Christ. The Bishops wished to consign and message a word of guidance to the Church in Latin America. The point of departure is to form the people to be disciples of Jesus Christ on a path of conversion, communion and solidarity. "We discussed how to help people encounter the living Christ so that our communities become schools of discipleship”.
Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Madariaga, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, underlined the happy coincidence that the Conference was held at the time of Pentecost, because "who better that the Holy Spirit, the Giver of life, could give us the life necessary to orient our work?". He also said the fact that it was held at the Shrine of Aparecida, made the participants burn "with ardent love for God ", like the disciples gathered with Mary at Pentecost.
Cardinal Cláudio Hummes, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy spoke on the theme of mission, the Conference's basic issue. It was agreed that Mission must involve every local Church: "the mission means going primarily to Catholics, baptised members of the Church who no longer share in the life of the Church". Mission will strives to meet the spiritual and material means of individuals and communities. With regard to the Mission it was suggested that CELAM should outline a general Mission Programme and then send it to the respective Bishops' Conferences for necessary adaptation and concrete local application. The aim of the Mission will be to fortify parishes and communities so they will make people feel welcome, especially the most distant, the poor and the excluded. Mission will not mean proselytising, but rather showing love for others, esteem for cultures promoting mutual enrichment and meeting the people's spiritual needs. Although the Great Continental Mission has been approved the details will be discussed in the next regular CELAM assembly in July in Havana, Cuba. (RG) (Agenzia Fides 31/5/2007; righe 33, parole 484)
