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Pope addresses bishops
from southern Brazil
The Holy Father met with the bishops of Brazil from Southern Sector-1 of the world's largest Catholic country in three separate groups earlier this week, and addressed them altogether at the Vatican today.
Here is a translation of the Pope's address, delivered in Portuguese:
Eminent Cardinals,
beloved Archbishops and Bishops of Brazil:
During the visit which you have been making ad limina Apostolorum, you are gathered together today in the home of the Successor to Peter, who welcomes you all with open arms, beloved Pastors of Region South-1, in the state of Sao Paolo.
Located there is that important center of welcome and evangelization that is the shrine of Our Lady Aparecida. which I had the joy of visiting in May 2007 for the opening of the Fifth Conference of Latin American and Caribbean Bishops.
I hope that the seed we sowed at that time may bring valid fruits for the spiritual and even social wellbeing of the populations of your promising continent, of the beloved nation of Brazil and of your Federal State - they who "have the right to a full life befitting children of God, with conditions that should be more humane: free of the menace of hunger and every form of violence" (Address, Aparecida, May 13, 2006, No. 4).
Once again, I wish to thank you for all that has been realized with great generosity, as I renew my heartfelt greeting to you and your respective dioceses, with a particular thought for your priests, consecrated persons and lay faithful who help you in the work of evangelization and Christian inspiration of society.
Your people keep in their hearts a great religious sentiment and noble traditions, rooted in Christianity, which are expressed in deeply felt religious and civilian manifestations.
It is a patrimony rich in values that you - as your accounts have shown, and as Mons. Nelson Wastrupp referred to in his kind words expressed in your behalf - have been seeking to maintain, defend, disseminate, know deeper, and continuously enliven.
As I rejoice sincerely for all this, I call on you to continue your work of constant and methodical evangelization, ever aware that authentically Christian formation of consciences is decisive for a profound life of faith, and even for social maturation and for the genuine, balanced wellbeing of the human community.
Indeed, to merit the title of community, a human group should correspond, in its organization and its objectives, to the fundamental aspirations of the human being. For this, it is not exaggerated to say that an authentic social life begins in the consciousness of every person.
The teaching of the Church - for its origin, God; for its content, the truth; and its point of support, the conscience - finds a profound and persuasive echo in the heart of every person, believer or not.
Concretely, "the question of life, and its defense and promotion, is not a prerogative of Christians alone. Although it receives light and extraordinary force from the faith, the task belongs to every human conscience that aspires to the truth and is attentive and thoughtful about the future of humanity... The 'people of life' rejoice to be able to share their task with so many others, so that there may ever be more 'people of life', and that the new culture of love and of solidarity may grow for the true good of the city of man" (Enc. Evangelium vitae, March 25, 1995, n. 101).
Venerated Brothers, speak to the heart of your people, awaken their consciences, reunite their wills in a commonn action against the growing wave of violence and scorn for the human being.
The latter, from being a gift of God welcomed in the loving intimacy of matrimony between a man and a woman, has come to be seen as a mere human product.
"A particularly crucial battleground in today's cultural struggle between the supremacy of technology and human moral responsibility is the field of bioethics, where the very possibility of integral human development is radically called into question.
"In this most delicate and critical area, the fundamental question asserts itself forcefully: is man the product of his own labours or does he depend on God?
"Scientific discoveries in this field and the possibilities of technological intervention seem so advanced as to force a choice" between two types of reasoning: reason open to transcendence or reason closed within immanence. (Caritas in veritate, 74).
Job, in a provocative way, invites irrational beings to give their own testimony: "But now ask the beasts to teach you, and the birds of the air to tell you; Or the reptiles on earth to instruct you, and the fish of the sea to inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of God has done this? In his hand is the soul of every living thing, and the life breath of all mankind" (Job 12,7-10).
The conviction of right reason and the certainty of the faith - for which the life of the human being, from conception to natural death, belongs to God and not to man - confers on him that sacred character and personal dignity that inspire the only legally and morally correct attitude, namely, profound respect.
The Lord of life has said: "I will demand an accounting of the life of man from man, and from each of his brothers... because man was made in the image of God" (Jn 9,5-6).
My beloved and venerated brothers, we can never be discouraged in our appeal to consciences. We will not be faithful followers of our Divine Master if on all occasions, even the most difficult, we do not know how to remain firm "in the hope against all hope" (Rom 4,18).
Continue to work for the triumph of the cause of God, not with the sad spirit of one who notes only deficiencies and dangers, but with the firm confidence of one who knows he can count on the victory of
Christ.
United to the Lord in an ineffable way is Mary, fully conformed to her Son, victor over sin and death.
Through the intercession of Our Lady of Aparecida, I implore God for light, comfort, strength, intensity of plans and their realization for you and your direct co-workers, while at the same time, I impart from the heart a special Apostolic blessing which I extend to all the faithful in each of your diocesan communities.
Brazil is so large, both in physical land areas, as well as in population, that a quick review of its Catholic statistics is in order:
The blue-shaded area on the map, left, represents the South Sector-1 from which this week's visiting bishops come from. The map on the right shows the various regions of Brazil, which has a total of 267 dioceses.
For more Catholic statistics on Brazil, see
www.catholic-hierarchy.org/country/scbr1.html
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 15/11/2009 03:39] |