Pope Sends Message to Catholic Fraternity
VATICAN CITY, OCT. 31, 2004 (Zenit.org).-
John Paul II expressed his appreciation for the Catholic Charismatic
Renewal communities and encouraged them to promote the Eucharist as a
bond of unity in a troubled world.
The Pope disclosed his hopes in a message read by Archbishop Stanislaw
Rylko, president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, at the 11th
International Conference of the Catholic Fraternity of Charismatic
Covenant Communities and Fellowships.
The four-day conference in Fiuggi, Italy, ends Monday. The meeting has
brought together 1,200 delegates from 70 nations.
Also attending the event are Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the
Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments; Bishop Renato
Boccardo, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Social
Communications; Andrea Riccardi, founder of the Community of
Sant'Egidio; and Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement.
The Holy Father's message, signed by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Vatican
secretary of state, is addressed to Charismatic communities to express
"all his affection" and to impart "his blessing."
The message appeals to Charismatics "to be committed in this
Eucharistic Year to take initiatives so that the Eucharist will become
increasingly a factor of union and cohesion in the People of God, in
this world marked by violence and division," according to the
text reported by Vatican Radio.
At the opening of the meeting, Matteo Calisi, president of the
Catholic Fraternity, said that the new challenge is to spread the
Eucharistic message, confirm the presence of Christ in society, and
give hope to a world that is ever more secularized, reported Vatican
Radio.
The Catholic Fraternity, an international organization
of pontifical right, is composed of more than 50 communities of
Catholic Charismatic Renewal.
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