3191 Pre-Congress on New Evangelization in FIN
austraLasia #3191
 


Pre-Congress on New Evangelization in FIN
Donnie Duchin Duya, SDB
PARANAQUE CITY: 9 February 2103 -- The journey of the congress on the New Evangelization in the FIN Province has just begun as the first pre-congress on new evangelization wrapped up on 7 February at the Seminaryo ng Don Bosco.

A three-part series of pre-congresses on New Evangelization has been calendared which aims to come up with propositions for the Provincial Chapter in April.

This is in view of the New Evangelization Congress that will take place in FIN by the second half of this year.

In keeping with its Provincial Chapter 2010 strategies, the Congress on New Evangelization aims “to assess, create awareness, own, and set directions to respond to the urgency of creating an environment that leads to positive personal and social transformation.”

The fruit of the Congress is an Integrated Pastoral Plan for the New Evangelization in the FIN province for 2013-2015 which is the FIN’s gift to Don Bosco on the bicentenary of his birth come August 16, 2015.

The now concluded first pre-congress involved those of the formation houses and provincial services sectors. Next week, the parish and youth center sectors will have their turn. The school sector will be the last to have its pre-congress by next month.

Among the participants in the recently concluded pre-congress included the rectors, formators and even formands of the prenovitiate, postnovitiate and theologate seminaries in the FIN. The provincial services sectors which include the social commission, finance, among others, were represented by both Salesians and lay mission partners.

Fr. Fidel Orendain of the neighboring FIS was invited to be an observer of the process. He noted that “the past three days became a beautiful avenue for the participants to think out of the box” vis-à-vis the task for the new evangelization. He also affirmed the preparatory steps which were taken by the organizers as “well-sequenced and community-based,” which “harmonizes with the (provincial) chapter preparations.”

Among the members of the preparatory group for the Congress on New Evangelization includes Fr. Renato de Guzman, who was one of the invited auditors in the Synod on the New Evangelization held last year. Fr. Vic Cervania of the Institute of Catechetics and Youth Ministry of Don Bosco Center of Studies is the chair of the organizing team for the congress.

The presence of the lay mission partners who were competent in their respective fields enriched the discussion.

 Fr. Eli Cruz, FIN provincial, summed up into three the roles we need to play in responding to the challenges of the new evangelization: prophet, mystic and servants.