OCEANIA/COOK ISLANDS - The Year of Faith in the Pacific travels via e-mail

Thursday, 4 October 2012

Rarotonga (Agenzia Fides) - "The Year of Faith is an opportunity for us Catholics of immense value, to deepen our faith. We will do this through seminars, conferences, formation programs and catechesis, in full communion with the Church of Rome, even though we are on the other side of the world. We will do this mainly thanks to new tools, such as the web and e-mail ": is what His Exc. Mgr. Paul Donoghue, SM, Bishop of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, Head of Missions of the Episcopal Conference of the Pacific Islands says to Fides. The Bishop says that "the approximately 20 thousand Catholics of Cook love the Holy Father and are ready to follow his recommendations, living the Year of Faith, studying and improving their formation."
"The difficulties and challenges - he explains - are primarily those related to the huge distance between the islands and between communities, even small, scattered thousands of miles. Thus, the small island of Penrhyn, for example, 4 hours by plane from my residence, 70 Catholics live without a priest. A catechist of good will, Alex, continues the prayer and catechesis. Every now and then we manage to send a priest to celebrate the Eucharist. The flame of faith is nourished and sustained even for this small community." " The use for pastoral purposes, - the Bishop concluded - of new communication technologies that bridge the gaps: pastoral programs, the Pope's speeches, Bishops’ speeches help us a lot, everything travels via e-mail and reaches communities in more remote places. This will help cultivate communion and feel the closeness." (PA) (Agenzia Fides 04/10/2012)


Share: