EUROPE/ITALY - “The Church in the 20th century was like a ship moved by the Holy Spirit across tempestuous seas, to reach new land and despite a thousands difficulties, to plant the seed of Christ’s love”: Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe addresses Convention ‘The Holy Spirit in the history of the 20th century’

Monday, 3 October 2005

Lucca (Fides Service) - Rereading the signs of the Spirit in the last century, “we cannot fail to refer to that significant event which in a way summed up the history of the 20th century the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000”, said Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples in Lucca, on Saturday 1 October in his address to participants at the Convention “The Holy Spirit in the history of the 20th century: lights and shadows of the 20th century with testimonials from various different countries” (see Fides 28/9/2005).
The Great Jubilee was “a representation of how the Holy Spirit works in the Church and the world, demonstrating that Christians, in their different existential situations not only keep the faith they also conquered evil with good bearing witness of their fidelity to Christ, showing that seeds of hope sown in their hearts by the Holy Spirit bear abundant fruit of good and new hope for humanity”.
Cardinal Sepe continued recalling the grief and suffering caused in the last century by totalitarian ideologies, waves of violence and hatred which tried with every means to “obscure authentic humanism and corrode the religious spirit and sentiments of freedom of people”. Nevertheless not to be forgotten are the great examples of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Padre Pio da Pietrelcina, Pope John Paul II, nor can we overlook the appearance of new Church Movements, the decisions of the Second Vatican Council, precious testimony of martyrs. “The Church in the 20th century was like a ship moved by the Holy Spirit across tempestuous seas, to reach new land and despite a thousands difficulties, to plant the seed of Christ’s love”.
Cardinal Sepe said that in the last century the great missionary impulse of the Church reached “the far corners of the earth”, and “planted the Church” in Africa and Asia. “The action of the Holy Spirit with the cooperation of holy and heroic missionaries and local clergy produced abundant fruit in many Churches which although young demonstrated great potential and generous adhesion to the Gospel of Jesus Christ”. Among the phenomena of today we see signs of hope for the future, Cardinal Sepe said, mentioning growing missionary awareness in the Churches in Africa and Asia and a desire to send missionaries to other continents, greater efforts for first evangelisation on the part of the laity, catechists in particular …
In the 20th century the mission of the Church was neither easy nor free of obstacles, but the Church continues her missionary task of announcing Christ . Looking to the horizons of the new millennium which has just started she relies on the power of the Spirit effused at Pentecost “which compels us to set out again, sustained by hope which will not be disappointed”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 3/10/2005 Righe: 39 Parole: 507)


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