Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Karachi (Agenzia Fides) – The First Missionary Congress in Pakistan (see Fides 27/11/2008), celebrated in the spirit of the Asian Missionary Congress held in Bangkok in 2006, recently concluded in Karachi. One of the main resolutions made during the Congress was: to give a renewed vigor to the missionary activity of the entire people of God, a “Eucharistic people,” ready to give their lives and courageously bear witness to the Gospel of Christ.
Fides was informed by Fr. Mario Rodriguez, Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Pakistan, that the Congress has been the first step in a new phase of awareness for all the Catholics in the country, in an effort to have them reflect on their own identity, vocation, and mission as a community that bears witness to Christ, in a country of Muslim majority, within the social, cultural, and religious context of Pakistan.
The 210 delegates present, from all of the nation's dioceses, clearly saw the challenge they face. The Final Declaration from the Congress says: “As the People of God on our path, we are a community that places the mystery of the Incarnation in practice: in fact, each day it inspires us to illumine are society with the light of Jesus Christ, especially among the poorest and most marginalized.”
The delegates recalled that the Catholic Church in Pakistan – with nearly one million faithful, out of a population of 160 million inhabitants – suffers difficulties, problems, and sometimes discriminations that come from its situation as a small minority. However, this should not be a cause for discouragement. The Congress pointed out that, in accord with St. Paul's example, “every Christian should become a missionary, who by the grace of the Holy Spirit and the food of the Eucharist, bears witness to Christ in order to bring about an authentic social and cultural change, through the establishment of the Kingdom of God.”
In the concluding Mass, presided by Bishop Max John Rodriguez of Hyderabad, President of the Bishops' Commission for Evangelization, those present expressed their solemn commitment to be missionaries “fully participating in the life of the Church; participating in the Eucharist with profound fervor; training catechists and laity to offer the Christian testimony in their own environments; living the Gospel of love; bringing hope in times of violence and fear.”
The assembly asked that “the Spirit of Christ may help the Church in Pakistan to live its mission as a community of love that announces the life of Christ every day.”
Following the celebration of the Congress, on a national level, the event will be once again held by each diocese, with the participation of the parishes, associations, and movements, for a greater missionary awareness among the local communities. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 5/12/2008)
