AMERICA/URUGUAY – The meeting of the PMS of the American Southern Cone: working together for the mission Ad gentes

Friday, 19 September 2014

Montevideo (Agenzia Fides) - The Directors and Secretaries of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) in the American Southern Cone (Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Paraguay and Brazil), met from 11 to 14 September on the outskirts of Montevideo (see Fides 8/9/2014). The meeting, which takes place every year since 2008, was intended to reflect, discuss and find common elements for the work of missionary animation in these countries. The first meetings in the past were only for national Directors of the Pontifical Mission Societies, but in recent years the National Secretaries of the four societies have been invited.
The meeting was inaugurated with a Mass presided by His Exc. Mgr. Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet, S.D.B., Archbishop of Montevideo and President of the Department for the missions of the Episcopal Conference of Uruguay. The celebration took place in the parish of Santa Isabel Hungary, in the city of Salinas, Canelones state, 40 km from the Uruguayan capital, the place where the meeting was held.
During the meeting mission projects, formation activities, the Congresses and other initiatives for missionary cooperation that take place in each country were shared. According to the note sent to Fides by the PMS in Brazil, what was pointed out was that one of the biggest challenges is to work all in the perspective of the mission Ad gentes, ie beyond the borders.
With about 3.5 million inhabitants, Uruguay has 10 dioceses and lives a strong process of secularization that affects 40% of the population. Priestly vocations are scarce, there are about 200 diocesan priests in the country (CE) (Agenzia Fides 19/09/2014)


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