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   VATICAN      News direct from the Vatican Information      2,032 messages   

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   Message 27 of 2,032   
   Marc Lewis to All   
   Vatican Information Service (Press Relea   
   11 Sep 10 07:34:08   
   
   Hello All!   
                   This Area is READ ONLY.  Do not post to this area.   
                   The following press release is Copyrighted by the   
                             Vatican Information Service.   
                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~   
                                  VIS-Press releases   
      
   CHURCH IN BRAZIL: IMPORTANCE OF NEW EVANGELISATION   
      
   VATICAN CITY, 10 SEP 2010 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received prelates from   
   the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Northeast region 3), who have   
   just completed their "ad limina" visit.   
      
   In his address to them, he highlighted how "the evangelising activity of the   
   Catholic Church was and continues to be crucial in determining the identity of   
   the Brazilian people, an identity characterised by harmonious coexistence among   
   people from different regions and cultures. However, although the values of the   
   Catholic faith have moulded the hearts and minds of Brazilians, today we are   
   seeing that new elements in society, practically unknown just a few decades   
   ago, are exercising a growing influence. This has led to many Catholics   
   abandoning Church life and even the Church herself, while in the religious   
   panorama of Brazil we see the rapid expansion of Evangelical and   
   neo-Pentecostal communities".   
      
   "In a certain sense", he told the bishops, "the success of these groups is a   
   sign of a widespread thirst for God among your people. It is also indicative of   
   an evangelisation, at a personal level, which is sometimes superficial. ... In   
   this context it is necessary, first and foremost, for the Catholic Church in   
   Brazil to commit to a new evangelisation which spares no efforts in seeking out   
   lapsed Catholics and people who know little or nothing of the evangelical   
   message, bringing them to a personal encounter with the living person of Jesus   
   Christ Who is active in His Church. Moreover, with the growth of new groups who   
   claim to follow Christ, though divided among various communities and   
   confessions, it is necessary for Catholic pastors to seek compromise and build   
   bridges to establish contact through ecumenical dialogue in truth".   
      
   Benedict XVI highlighted how "the lack of unity is a cause of scandal which, in   
   the final analysis, undermines the credibility of the Christian message   
   proclaimed in society. Today such proclamation is perhaps even more necessary   
   than it was some years ago, because ... intellectual and mortal relativism is   
   having an increasingly negative influence of peoples lives".   
      
   Referring then to the many obstacles impeding the search for unity among   
   Christians, the Pope underlined the need "to reject an erroneous view of   
   ecumenism, one which leads to a certain doctrinal indifference and seeks (in a   
   kind of uncritical irenicism) to level all 'opinions' to a kind of   
   ecclesiological relativism. At the same time the continual increase of new   
   Christian groups, some of which adopt aggressive proselytism, continues to pose   
   a challenge; this shows how the ecumenical panorama continues to be highly   
   diverse and confused".   
      
   The Holy Father encouraged the bishops to continue their efforts "to dialogue   
   with the Churches and ecclesial communities which belong to the National   
   Council of Christian Churches and which, through initiatives such as the   
   Campaign of Ecumenical Fraternity, help to promote Gospel values in Brazilian   
   society".   
      
   "Dialogue among Christians", Pope Benedict went on, "is a current imperative   
   and an indispensable option for the Church. As Vatican Council II said, prayer,   
   conversion and the sanctification of life must lie at the heart of all efforts   
   towards unity".   
      
   Benedict XVI concluded by highlighting how "pastors must remain obedient to the   
   will of the Lord, promoting concrete initiatives free from any kind of   
   conformist reductionism but realised with the sincerity and realism, the   
   patience and perseverance, which flow from the providential action of the Holy   
   Spirit".   
   AL/VIS 20100910 (570)   
      
   SUMMARY   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS =Meridian, MS= bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)   

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