Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Friborg (Agenzia Fides) - "Our house is not just made of bricks, it is the whole world, we must protect and preserve it for future generations". This is what Elisa says, one of the children who was part of the delegation of Swiss Star Singers (see Fides, 23/12/2022) received on Tuesday at the Federal Palace in Bern.
Bringing the message of the birth of Jesus with songs and blessings in German, French and Italian is the mission of these boys and girls from the Cantons of Nidwalden, Friborg and Ticino, who dressed as the Three Wise Men, entered the Federal Palace, drawing the attention of parliamentarians to their concrete commitment as Christians to build a fairer and more peaceful world, starting with a more responsible and attentive attitude towards nature.
The President of the National Council, Eric Nussbaumer, very impressed by the commitment of the little singers to making the world a better place, declared: "I do not know how the divine entered this house. But today, something divine has entered here".
Erwin Tanner-Tiziani, director of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) of Switzerland, known as Missio Switzerland, also expressed his satisfaction and great gratitude: "We are honored to have had the opportunity to present the commitment of the Star Singers at the Federal Palace. The State and the Church are two different entities, but both are committed to the protection and support of the weakest, to the safeguarding of our land, to the sustainability of our common home. We can therefore only rejoice in moving forward hand in hand, according to the motto of the new President of the National Council: «Go beyond borders, broaden horizons»".
In Switzerland, the Action of the Singers of the Star has been organized since 1989 by Missio Switzerland and carried out in collaboration with Catholic parishes in a spirit of ecumenical and interreligious openness. Between New Year's Eve and the Epiphany, more than ten thousand will walk the streets of Switzerland and, this year again, on January 1, a delegation of Swiss Star Singers will participate, with other European delegations, in the Mass presided over by Pope Francis. Other visits are planned during the stay in Rome, including a visit to the headquarters of the Pontifical Mission Societies, a visit to Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, the Swiss Embassy to the Holy See and the Swiss Guard. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 22/12/2023)
EUROPE/GERMANY - “Raise your voice!” The 2025 Star Singers Campaign for children’s rights
AMERICA/PUERTO RICO - Archbishop Nappa at CAM6: Let us all return to the "first Announcement", the ever-living source of all the Church's work
AMERICA/PUERTO RICO - VI American Missionary Congress: more than 12,000 participants expected
ASIA - Father Anh Nhue: “Ecclesia in Asia” even today it represents a "prophetic call" for the mission in the Asian continent
ASIA/INDIA - A symposium 25 years after “Ecclesia in Asia”, for a synodal and missionary Church