A “wake-up” call from Archbishop Soc
IT’S the “Year of the Laity” for the Catholic Church and Lingayen-Dagupan of the Philippines, has called on the faithful to “wake up from passivity”.
In his Jan. 1 letter posted in the Lingayen-Dagupan Archdiocese website, Villegas rallied the people to “be fired by the Spirit and dare to change the world for Christ”.
Villegas said it is important to observe 2014 as the Year of the Laity and attend to two pastoral concerns that need conversion. “First, we need to bring the laity out of the situation of passivity; at the same time, it is imperative that our priests be more open and willing to share church responsibilities with the laity.”
He invited parish communities, chaplaincies and pastoral stations to look for three signs of a healthy Church life this year: more catechists and more social action ministers than liturgical lay ministers; the rosary is prayed together by families in more homes; and at least one young man in the community entering the seminary per year.
“There is a remarkable interest among our lay faithful to be ministers at the altar but there is a high degree of hesitation to speak about the Catholic faith as catechists or work among the poor members of the parish as social action ministers,” Villegas said.
He said a vocation to the priesthood and religious life is a sign that the family has raised its children in the faith.
“The priest serves the laity; it is not the other way around. Every vocation to the priesthood is a great grace for the family. Every family must pray for a vocation at home. The priest and the laity depend on each other,” Villegas said.
Meanwhile, the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan will commemorate on February 11 the 60th anniversary of the renaming of the diocese and hold a ceremonial closing on Feb. 17 for its golden jubilee year as a metropolitan archdiocese.
The diocese also aims to complete its new theology seminary building and chapel in Barangay Palapad, San Fabian town this year.—Eva Visperas
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