MAKATI
CITY: 18 May 2012- The Eighth Blessed
John Paul II
Catechetics and Youth Ministry Conference began yesterday with
a Mass
at which Bishop Giuseppe Pinto, Papal Nuncio to the
Philippines,
presided.
The Provincial Superior of the Philippine North Province
(FIN), Fr. Eli
Cruz, SDB and the General Councilor for Youth Ministry of the
Salesians
of Don Bosco, Fr. Fabio Attard, SDB, and a handful of
priest-delegates
concelebrated the Mass.
In his homily, Fr. Eli emphasized, “In order to listen to the
Word, one
has to be evangelized by it.”
Fr. Attard gave a talk on “Mary, Mother of God’s Word, Mother
of Faith,
Icon for the New Youth.”
He stressed the importance of witnessing in the fields of
catechesis
and youth ministry. He underlined the fact that “the whole
question of
catechesis is not just about doing, but more importantly, on
who we
are.”
He described Mary as “the perfect example of the one who
attentively
listened to God’s Word in a complete and total way.” Fr.
Attard gave
down-to-earth, theological key points from
pastoral-experiential
viewpoints.
One of the highlights of this year’s conference is the
exposition of
the relics of Blessed Pope John Paul II in the exhibit area
for
veneration. Fr. Mark Cruz, AM, officiated in the blessing of
the
exhibit. After the plenary talk, the participants visited the
exhibit.
In the afternoon, around sixty participants went to their
respective
workshops.
After the activities, the conference organizers offered Taize
prayer
service to the participants. It was animated by the National
Secretariat and Youth Apostolate in collaboration with youth
animators
from various dioceses.
In its first installment, the Blessed John Paul II Catechetics
and
Youth Ministry Conference took the theme “Mary and the
Eucharist.”
After seven years, the theme returns to Mary, this time in
relation to
God’s Word.
As before, both the strong Marian spirit of Blessed John Paul
II and
the profound thought of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI became
the
inspiration of this theme: “Mary, Mother of God’s Word and
Mother of
Faith.”
Some one thousand participants from various Philippine
dioceses as well
as from neighboring Asian countries attended the conference.
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