Pope Acclaims Faith in Post-communist Lands
Urges Bishops to Keep Flame AliveVATICAN CITY, OCT. 2, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is encouraging prelates from former communist countries to keep the flame of faith alive in their small communities.
The Pope made this appeal today when he received in separate visits prelates from Kazakhstan and Central Asia, who were in Rome for their five-yearly visit.
In addresses in Italian and Russian, the Holy Father invited the bishops to be grateful that communist repression had not extinguished the faith of their peoples, thanks to the "zealous sacrifices of priests, religious and laypeople." He was addressing prelates from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
He went on to acknowledge that the prelates generally minister to very small Catholic communities. In Kyrgyzstan, for example, 2004 statistics showed only 500 Catholics in the apostolic administration. The "sui iuris" mission of Turkmenistan reported only 50 Catholics that same year.
Thus, the Pontiff called on the prelates to be guided by the Holy Spirit and to draw from their past experiences.
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posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 10:36 PM
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