Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Madrid (Agenzia Fides) - "A year dedicated to faith is a year for those who preach it. Because faith, as St. Paul taught, comes from hearing, preaching. This is why a preacher is necessary and can educate in this faith that the Church proclaims and that we believers live. The Year of Faith, the year of the preachers of this faith, that through their words, their testimony, and a holy life, means that many people listen and can convert to faith". This is what we read in the editorial of "Missionary Madrid", of the Diocesan Council Mission of the Archdiocese of Madrid. Recalling that the year 2012 is the year of faith, proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI, it is emphasized that "being a believer does not mean being a poor intellectual who accepts things just because they have told him/her. The believer is one who makes his/her own truth, which he/she understands and is not in conflict with reason ... Faith is not an instrument of oppression, to hold a person or people under the yoke of authority and slavery, but it is all the opposite. Faith helps us see things with a different criteria, more objective, less subjective".
Thinking about why the Pope declared the Year of Faith, it should be noted that "the Church cannot fail to proclaim Christ without betraying herself", and the text concludes: "The Year of faith, the year of the missionaries that bring the Gospel and the life of Jesus to the hearts of men and women who believe through their presence and their work ... We thank our missionaries because they make the light of faith light up the eyes and lives of those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death". (SL) (Agenzia Fides 09/02/2012)
