At 9:00am today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received in audience, the Bishops from the Episcopal Conference of the Dominican Republic who are in Rome for their visit ad Limina Apostolorum.
Dear brothers in the Episcopacy,
I welcome you most warmly on the occasion of your visit ad limina Apostolorum. I hope that these days of reflection and prayer at the tombs of the Saints Peter and Paul are a source of renewal for you and that they serve to strengthen the ties of ecclesial communion in order that you might respond more fervently to the promotion of a joint and coordinated effort toward the promotion of spiritual and material growth in the portion of the People of God that has been confided to your care. I appreciate the kind words that His Excellency, Gregorio Nicanor Peña Rodríguez, Bishop of Our Lady of Altagracia in Higüey and President of the Dominican Episcopal Conference has offered in your name.
The beginnings of evangelization on the American continent always bring to mind the memory of Dominican soil which first received the rich deposit of faith brought by the missionaries and which they faithfully and consistently proclaimed. Its effect is still perceived today in the Christian values that encourage coexistence and various social efforts toward education, culture and health. In addition, the Church in the Dominican Republic is alive with many parishes which include a large group of committed lay faithful and a consistent number of vocations to the priesthood and to consecrated life. Together, we thank the Lord for all that has been done and all that is being done in each of your local Churches.
Today, the Church is present, walking in those beloved lands along with her children in search of a happy and prosperous future in spite of the challenges of our time which affect social and ecclesial life, and especially the lives of families. Thus I call upon you to accompany men and women on their journey in search of strengthening the faith and identity of all members of the Church.
Both marriage and the family are experiencing a period of cultural crisis. However, this does not mean that either has lost its importance, rather that we feel even more the need for their presence. The family is the place where we learn to share our lives, even in moments of difficulty, to forgive and to experience forgiveness, and where fathers pass on to their children the values and especially the faith. Matrimony, seen merely as a form of emotional gratification, remains an indispensable contribution to society (cf Evangelii gaudium, 66). During the upcoming Jubilee of Mercy, do not give up on the work of matrimonial and family reconciliation, nor on the search for a peaceful coexistence: There is urgent need for a broad catechetical effort regarding the Christian ideal for conjugal communion and family life including a spirituality for fatherhood and for motherhood. You must pay greater pastoral attention to the roles men play as husbands and fathers, and the responsibility they share with their wives for their marriages, their families and for the education of their children (Ecclesia in America, 46). Let us present the beauty of Christian Marriage - being married in the Lord - as an act of faith and love in which the spouses, through their freely-given consent, themselves become transmitters of the blessing and grace of God for the Church and for society.
I invite you to dedicate some time and to look after the priests, to take care of each one of them, to defend them from the wolves that also attack the pastors. The Dominican clergy is distinguished for its fidelity and its practice of Christian life. May your commitment to the weak and needy help you to overcome the worldly tendency toward mediocrity. Do not neglect human, intellectual and spiritual formation in the Seminaries, ensuring a true encounter with the Lord, without ceasing to cultivate pastoral dedication and an affective maturity that will make the seminarians ideally suited to embrace priestly celibacy and capable of living and working in communion. The Seminaries cannot be filled with any kind of motivations, and less so if these are related to affective insecurities, the search for forms of power, human glories or economic wellbeing (EG, 107).
The pastoral and charitable care of immigrants, especially those from neighbouring Haiti, who seek better conditions of life in the Dominican territory, does not admit the indifference of the pastors of the Church. What is needed is that you continue collaborating with the civil authorities to reach unified solutions to the problems of those who are deprived of documents or are denied their basic rights. It is inexcusable not to promote initiatives of fraternity and peace between the two nations, which make up that beautiful Island in the Caribbean. It is important to be able to integrate the immigrants into society and to receive them in the ecclesial community. I thank you for being close to them and to all those who suffer, as a gesture of the loving solicitude for a brother who feels alone and unprotected, one with whom Christ himself identified.
I know of your efforts and concerns to appropriately address the grave problems that affect our nations, such as the trafficking of drugs and of persons, corruption, domestic violence, the abuse and exploitation of minors and social insecurity. From the intimate connection that exists between evangelization and human promotion, all actions of Mother Church must seek and look after the good of the less favoured. All efforts that are motivated in this way will enhance the presence of the Kingdom of God that Jesus Christ brought, at the same time as they will give credibility to the Church and relevance to the voice of her pastors.
The Continental Mission, promoted by the Document of Aparecida , and the Third National Pastoral Plan must be the two engines driving the joint activity of the local Churches. However, keep in mind that it is not enough to have well-formulated plans and festive celebrations if they do not permeate the daily life of our people.
Therefore, it is indispensable that the Dominican laity, which is perceived as very present in the works of evangelization at the national, diocesan, parish and community levels, not neglect its doctrinal and spiritual formation, and receive constant support, so that it is able to bear witness to Christ by penetrating those environments where often the Bishops, priests and Religious cannot reach. It is also necessary that the pastoral activities for young people receive careful attention so that they are not distracted by the confusion of the anti-values that seek to overwhelm youth today.
Without having the orientation that the parents and the Church want to give to the formation of the new generations, the civil laws tend to substitute the teaching of religion in the school with religious education of a multi-confessional nature or by mere illustration of ethics and religious culture. A vigilant and courageous attitude cannot be lacking in those committed to this service and educational mission, so that in all schools there is an education in keeping with the moral and religious principles of the families (cf. Gravissimum educationis, 7). It is important to offer children and young people catechetical teaching in accordance with the truth we have received from Christ, the Word of the Father.
Finally, to conclude, and keeping in mind the beauty and colour of the countryside of the beautiful Dominican Republic, I invite all of you to renew your commitment to the conservation and care of the environment. Man’s relationship with nature must not be governed by greed, manipulation or unbridled exploitation, but it must preserve the divine harmony between creatures and creation in order to place them at the service of all people including future generations.
Brothers, I ask you please, to take to the beloved Dominican sons and daughters the Pope’s affectionate greeting, which he entrusts to the intercession of Our Lady of Altagracia, whom they contemplate in the mystery of Her divine maternity. I ask you to pray for me and I impart to you my heartfelt Apostolic Blessing.
Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
to the Bishops of the Dominican Republic
Dear brothers in the Episcopacy,
I welcome you most warmly on the occasion of your visit ad limina Apostolorum. I hope that these days of reflection and prayer at the tombs of the Saints Peter and Paul are a source of renewal for you and that they serve to strengthen the ties of ecclesial communion in order that you might respond more fervently to the promotion of a joint and coordinated effort toward the promotion of spiritual and material growth in the portion of the People of God that has been confided to your care. I appreciate the kind words that His Excellency, Gregorio Nicanor Peña Rodríguez, Bishop of Our Lady of Altagracia in Higüey and President of the Dominican Episcopal Conference has offered in your name.
The beginnings of evangelization on the American continent always bring to mind the memory of Dominican soil which first received the rich deposit of faith brought by the missionaries and which they faithfully and consistently proclaimed. Its effect is still perceived today in the Christian values that encourage coexistence and various social efforts toward education, culture and health. In addition, the Church in the Dominican Republic is alive with many parishes which include a large group of committed lay faithful and a consistent number of vocations to the priesthood and to consecrated life. Together, we thank the Lord for all that has been done and all that is being done in each of your local Churches.
Today, the Church is present, walking in those beloved lands along with her children in search of a happy and prosperous future in spite of the challenges of our time which affect social and ecclesial life, and especially the lives of families. Thus I call upon you to accompany men and women on their journey in search of strengthening the faith and identity of all members of the Church.
Both marriage and the family are experiencing a period of cultural crisis. However, this does not mean that either has lost its importance, rather that we feel even more the need for their presence. The family is the place where we learn to share our lives, even in moments of difficulty, to forgive and to experience forgiveness, and where fathers pass on to their children the values and especially the faith. Matrimony, seen merely as a form of emotional gratification, remains an indispensable contribution to society (cf Evangelii gaudium, 66). During the upcoming Jubilee of Mercy, do not give up on the work of matrimonial and family reconciliation, nor on the search for a peaceful coexistence: There is urgent need for a broad catechetical effort regarding the Christian ideal for conjugal communion and family life including a spirituality for fatherhood and for motherhood. You must pay greater pastoral attention to the roles men play as husbands and fathers, and the responsibility they share with their wives for their marriages, their families and for the education of their children (Ecclesia in America, 46). Let us present the beauty of Christian Marriage - being married in the Lord - as an act of faith and love in which the spouses, through their freely-given consent, themselves become transmitters of the blessing and grace of God for the Church and for society.
I invite you to dedicate some time and to look after the priests, to take care of each one of them, to defend them from the wolves that also attack the pastors. The Dominican clergy is distinguished for its fidelity and its practice of Christian life. May your commitment to the weak and needy help you to overcome the worldly tendency toward mediocrity. Do not neglect human, intellectual and spiritual formation in the Seminaries, ensuring a true encounter with the Lord, without ceasing to cultivate pastoral dedication and an affective maturity that will make the seminarians ideally suited to embrace priestly celibacy and capable of living and working in communion. The Seminaries cannot be filled with any kind of motivations, and less so if these are related to affective insecurities, the search for forms of power, human glories or economic wellbeing (EG, 107).
The pastoral and charitable care of immigrants, especially those from neighbouring Haiti, who seek better conditions of life in the Dominican territory, does not admit the indifference of the pastors of the Church. What is needed is that you continue collaborating with the civil authorities to reach unified solutions to the problems of those who are deprived of documents or are denied their basic rights. It is inexcusable not to promote initiatives of fraternity and peace between the two nations, which make up that beautiful Island in the Caribbean. It is important to be able to integrate the immigrants into society and to receive them in the ecclesial community. I thank you for being close to them and to all those who suffer, as a gesture of the loving solicitude for a brother who feels alone and unprotected, one with whom Christ himself identified.
I know of your efforts and concerns to appropriately address the grave problems that affect our nations, such as the trafficking of drugs and of persons, corruption, domestic violence, the abuse and exploitation of minors and social insecurity. From the intimate connection that exists between evangelization and human promotion, all actions of Mother Church must seek and look after the good of the less favoured. All efforts that are motivated in this way will enhance the presence of the Kingdom of God that Jesus Christ brought, at the same time as they will give credibility to the Church and relevance to the voice of her pastors.
The Continental Mission, promoted by the Document of Aparecida , and the Third National Pastoral Plan must be the two engines driving the joint activity of the local Churches. However, keep in mind that it is not enough to have well-formulated plans and festive celebrations if they do not permeate the daily life of our people.
Therefore, it is indispensable that the Dominican laity, which is perceived as very present in the works of evangelization at the national, diocesan, parish and community levels, not neglect its doctrinal and spiritual formation, and receive constant support, so that it is able to bear witness to Christ by penetrating those environments where often the Bishops, priests and Religious cannot reach. It is also necessary that the pastoral activities for young people receive careful attention so that they are not distracted by the confusion of the anti-values that seek to overwhelm youth today.
Without having the orientation that the parents and the Church want to give to the formation of the new generations, the civil laws tend to substitute the teaching of religion in the school with religious education of a multi-confessional nature or by mere illustration of ethics and religious culture. A vigilant and courageous attitude cannot be lacking in those committed to this service and educational mission, so that in all schools there is an education in keeping with the moral and religious principles of the families (cf. Gravissimum educationis, 7). It is important to offer children and young people catechetical teaching in accordance with the truth we have received from Christ, the Word of the Father.
Finally, to conclude, and keeping in mind the beauty and colour of the countryside of the beautiful Dominican Republic, I invite all of you to renew your commitment to the conservation and care of the environment. Man’s relationship with nature must not be governed by greed, manipulation or unbridled exploitation, but it must preserve the divine harmony between creatures and creation in order to place them at the service of all people including future generations.
Brothers, I ask you please, to take to the beloved Dominican sons and daughters the Pope’s affectionate greeting, which he entrusts to the intercession of Our Lady of Altagracia, whom they contemplate in the mystery of Her divine maternity. I ask you to pray for me and I impart to you my heartfelt Apostolic Blessing.
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