Subject: VISnews 111025
Organization: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
TWENTY FIRST YEAR - N. 184
ENGLISH
TUESDAY, 25 OCTOBER 2011
SUMMARY:
- Welcoming Migrants and Rejecting Racism
- Migrations and New Evangelisation
- Other Pontifical Acts
___________________________________________________________
WELCOMING MIGRANTS AND REJECTING RACISM
VATICAN CITY, 25 OCT 2011 (VIS) - The Pontifical Council for the Pastoral
Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples held a press conference this morning
in the Holy See Press Office to present Benedict XVI's Message for the World
Day of Migrants and Refugees 2012. The Day is due to be celebrated on 15
January 2012 under the theme of "Migrations and New Evangelisation".
Participating in this morning's press conference were Archbishop Antonio
Maria Veglio, Bishop Joseph Kalathiparambil and Fr. Gabriele Ferdinando
Bentoglio C.S., respectively president, secretary and under secretary of the
Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples.
Archbishop Veglio explained how the Holy Father's Message is divided into
three parts, covering migrant workers, refugees and international students.
New evangelisation is addressed to all these groups, he said, in a social
context in which "the mix of nationalities and religions is increasing
exponentially. ... Faced with this challenge, the Church is impelled to
reconsider her methods, forms of expression and language, so as to renew her
missionary efforts. A 'new' evangelisation, then, does not affect the
contents and the value of the missionary mandate, as handed down by Holy
Scripture, Tradition and the Magisterium".
Migration offers an opportunity to teach the Gospel to people from other
regions of the world who have not yet met Christ. At the same time, many
Christians migrate to countries in which theirs is a minority religion, or
in which it has been reduced to a mere cultural phenomenon. In both these
cases, lay people can announce the good news through word and example,
supported by appropriate pastoral care. "New evangelisation in the world of
migrants must, in fact, involve the laity and rest on dialogue at all
levels", said archbishop Veglio.
Finally the president of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of
Migrants and Itinerant Peoples expressed his desire to echo the Pope's words
in thanking everyone "who dedicates time, energy and resources to the
pastoral care of migrants, often in silence and sometimes even at the risk
of their lives".
Bishop Kalathiparambil noted that, according to statistics of the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, 80 percent of the world's refugees
are currently hosted in developing countries. At the same time, in many
industrialised nations there are growing feelings of hostility towards such
people. Christians, however, are called to see in asylum seekers and
refugees "the face of Christ, which makes us brothers and sisters", he said.
"Welcome may be defined as a sign which distinguishes the Church. It is the
fundamental characteristic of pastoral solicitude for migrants and refugees,
and runs counter to all feelings and expressions of xenophobia and racism".
Fr. Gabriele Bentoglio focused his remarks on the question of
international students, whose numbers are expected to reach seven million by
the year 2025. For this reason, he said, "there is an urgent and growing
need that places of education and formation, especially universities, make
the vital strategic link between the 'profound thirst for truth and the
desire to encounter God'". At the same time, in a globalised world,
"education must be extended to cover the integral formation of the person,
and the transmission of such values as: individual and collective sense of
responsibility, ethical work, and solidarity with the entire human family
over and above national identity".
Finally Fr. Bentoglio announced that the pontifical council is in the
process of organising a world congress on the pastoral care of international
students. The congress, due to be held in Rome from 30 November to 3
December on the theme "International Students and the Meeting of Cultures",
will bring together 123 delegates from all over the world, as well as
representatives from religious institutes, lay associations and regional and
international organisations.
CON-SM/ VIS 20111025
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MIGRATIONS AND NEW EVANGELISATION
VATICAN CITY, 25 OCT 2011 (VIS) - "Migrations and New Evangelisation" is the
theme chosen by Benedict XVI for his Message for the World Day of Migrants
and Refugees 2012, which will be celebrated on 15 January 2012. Extracts
from the English-language edition of the text are given below:
"Proclaiming Jesus Christ the one Saviour of the world 'constitutes the
essential mission of the Church. It is a task and mission which the vast and
profound changes of present-day society make all the more urgent'. Indeed,
today we feel the urgent need to give a fresh impetus and new approaches to
the work of evangelisation in a world in which the breaking down of
frontiers and the new processes of globalisation are bringing individuals
and peoples even closer. This is both because of the development of the
means of social communication and because of the frequency and ease with
which individuals and groups can move about today
"'Migrations and New Evangelisation' is the theme I have chosen this year
for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. It originates from the aforesaid
situation. The present time, in fact, calls upon the Church to embark on a
new evangelisation also in the vast and complex phenomenon of human
mobility. This calls for an intensification of her missionary activity both
in the regions where the Gospel is proclaimed for the first time and in
countries with a Christian tradition".
"Internal or international migration, in fact, as an opening in search of
better living conditions or to flee from the threat of persecution, war,
violence, hunger or natural disasters, has led to an unprecedented mingling
of individuals and peoples, with new problems not only from the human
standpoint but also from ethical, religious and spiritual ones. The current
and obvious consequences of secularisation, the emergence of new sectarian
movements, widespread insensitivity to the Christian faith and a marked
tendency to fragmentation are obstacles to focusing on a unifying reference
that would encourage the formation of 'one family of brothers and sisters in
societies that are becoming ever more multiethnic and intercultural, where
also people of various religions are urged to take part in dialogue, so that
a serene and fruitful coexistence with respect for legitimate differences
may be found', as I wrote in my Message last year for this World Day. Our
time is marked by endeavours to efface God and the Church's teaching from
the horizon of life, while doubt, scepticism and indifference are creeping
in, seeking to eliminate all the social and symbolic visibility of the
Christian faith".
"In this context migrants who have known and welcomed Christ are not
infrequently constrained to consider Him no longer relevant to their lives,
to lose the meaning of their faith, no longer to recognise themselves as
members of the Church, and often lead a life no longer marked by Christ and
His Gospel. Having grown up among peoples characterised by their Christian
faith they often emigrate to countries in which Christians are a minority or
where the ancient tradition of faith, no longer a personal conviction or a
community religion, has been reduced to a cultural fact. Here the Church is
faced with the challenge of helping migrants keep their faith firm even when
they are deprived of the cultural support that existed in their country of
origin, and of identifying new pastoral approaches, as well as methods and
expressions, for an ever vital reception of the Word of God".
"The phenomenon of migration today is also a providential opportunity for
the proclamation of the Gospel in the contemporary world. Men and women from
various regions of the earth who have not yet encountered Jesus Christ or
know Him only partially, ask to be received in countries with an ancient
Christian tradition. It is necessary to find adequate ways for them to meet
and to become acquainted with Jesus Christ and to experience the invaluable
gift of salvation which, for everyone, is a source of 'life in abundance'".
"Pastoral workers - priests, religious and lay people - play a crucial
role in the demanding itinerary of the new evangelisation in the context of
migration. They work increasingly in a pluralist context: in communion with
their ordinaries, drawing on the Church's Magisterium. I invite them to seek
ways of fraternal sharing and respectful proclamation, overcoming opposition
and nationalism. For their part, the Churches of origin, of transit and
those that welcome the migration flows should find ways to increase their
cooperation for the benefit both of those who depart and those who arrive,
and, in any case, of those who, on their journey, stand in need of
encountering the merciful face of Christ in the welcome given to one's
neighbour".
"Asylum seekers, who fled from persecution, violence and situations that
put their life at risk, stand in need of our understanding and welcome, of
respect for their human dignity and rights, as well as awareness of their
duties. Their suffering pleads with individual States and the international
community to adopt attitudes of reciprocal acceptance, overcoming fears and
avoiding forms of discrimination, and to make provisions for concrete
solidarity also through appropriate structures for hospitality and
resettlement programmes. All this entails mutual help between the suffering
regions and those which, already for years, have accepted a large number of
fleeing people, as well as a greater sharing of responsibilities among
States.
"The press and the other media have an important role in making known,
correctly, objectively and honestly, the situation of those who have been
forced to leave their homeland and their loved ones and want to start
building a new life.
"Christian communities are to pay special attention to migrant workers and
their families by accompanying them with prayer, solidarity and Christian
charity, by enhancing what is reciprocally enriching, as well as by
fostering new political, economic and social planning that promotes respect
for the dignity of every human person, the safeguard of the family, access
to dignified housing, to work and to welfare".
"Lastly, I would like to mention the situation of numerous international
students who are facing problems of integration, bureaucratic difficulties,
hardship in the search for housing and welcoming structures. Christian
communities are to be especially sensitive to the many young men and women
who, precisely because of their youth, need reference points in addition to
cultural growth, and have in their hearts a profound thirst for truth and
the desire to encounter God. Universities of Christian inspiration are to
be, in a special way, places of witness and of the spread of the new
evangelisation, seriously committed to contributing to social, cultural and
human progress in the academic milieu. They are also to promote
intercultural dialogue and enhance the contribution that international
students can give. If these students meet authentic Gospel witnesses and
examples of Christian life".
"Dear friends", the Message concludes, "let us invoke the intercession of
Mary, 'Our Lady of the Way', so that the joyful proclamation of salvation in
Jesus Christ may bring hope to the hearts of those who are on the move on
the roads of the world. To one and all I assure my prayers and impart my
apostolic blessing".
MESS/ VIS
20111025 (1200)
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
VATICAN CITY, 25 OCT 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father:
- Accepted the resignation from the office of auxiliary of the diocese of
Haarlem-Amsterdam, Netherlands, presented by Bishop Johannes Gerardus Maria
van Burgsteden S.S.S., upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed Msgr. Johannes Willibrordus Maria Hendriks of the clergy of the
diocese of Rotterdam, Netherlands, canon of the cathedral chapter and rector
of the major seminary of Haarlem-Amsterdam, as auxiliary of
Haarlem-Amsterdam (area 2,912, population 2,847,001, Catholics 474,000,
priests 208, permanent deacons 41, religious 701). The bishop-elect was born
in Leidschendam, Netherlands in 1954 and ordained a priest in 1979. He
obtained a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University
in Rome and has served as vice pastor and pastor in a number of parishes in
his country. He teaches canon law at the major seminary of Haarlem-Amsterdam
and is a consultor of the Congregation for the Clergy.
RE:NEA/ VIS 20111025
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