FINAL STATEMENT OF CBCI
XXXI PLENARY ASSEMBLY, Feb 05 – 12, 2014
Renewed
Church for a Renewed Society – Responding to the Call of Vatican II
1. We, the 187 member-bishops of the
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), came together at the Alphonsian
Pastoral Institute, Palai in Kerala, the place sanctified by St. Alphonsa, from
February 5 -12, 2014, for the 31st Plenary Assembly. In continuation
of the 30th Plenary Assembly’s theme, Role of the Church for a
Better India, the Bishops deliberated, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit,
on the theme: “Renewed Church for a Renewed Society - Responding to the Call of
Vatican II”. On the 50th
anniversary of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), the CBCI Plenary
Assembly reflected on this theme in the light of the Second Vatican Council
documents in order to draw inspiration for her future course of life and
ministry. We took into account the reflections of the Catholic Council of India
which studied the same theme at its December 2013 annual meeting in Varanasi.
2. We first recalled the Church’s
self-understanding, enshrined in the Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, as the pilgrim People of
God, a community rooted in a deep experience of the Trinitarian God in Christ
Jesus. Ad Gentes, reminds us that the Church is a community with a mission
to evangelize, to proclaim the good news of Jesus to all, a mission entrusted
to her by Jesus and the Spirit. The Church exercises her mission in a world
marked by a tremendous imbalance: a few
very rich and the vast majority poor struggling to eke out a living. The
Document on the Church in the Modern World, Gaudium
et Spes impels the members of the Church to an
involvement in the struggles of
suffering humanity based on the principles of respect for the human person, solidarity
and effective social dialogue to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.
Finally, the Council document on the
Laity, Apostolicam Actuositatem points
out that the lay faithful, who form the vast majority in this People of God,
have a specific role in society – that of penetrating
and perfecting the temporal order in the spirit of the Gospel.
3. When we look at our country, we see
corruption plaguing every sphere of society. In such a scenario, Church
institutions must be an example of transparency and probity. Another phenomenon is that of internal
migration which, while opening opportunities to people, has torn the cultural
and religious moorings that sustained them. Globalization too has brought in
its wake problems like prolonged working hours which have disrupted family
life. We witness the trend to fundamentalism which seeks to dilute the secular
character of our nation. Against this trend, we stand by the values upheld by
the Indian Constitution and appeal to governments to respect these values.
4. The Church
in India has tried to live up to the vision of Vatican II. Several people have
been led to a deep experience of God through reading the Word of God, through
the traditional practices of piety and through the Charismatic Movement. In
many places Small Christian Communities, rooted in
the Word and Eucharist have been established.
“These communities are a sign of vitality within the Church, an
instrument of formation and evangelization, and a solid starting point for a
new society based on a 'civilization of love'" (Redemptoris Missio, 51). The
Church has worked for the uplift of the downtrodden. She has been appreciated
for the way she has responded immediately to natural calamities, for her
unbiased outreach to the needy and vulnerable sections of society. Participatory structures have been established in
several regions, dioceses and parishes. The 2010 CBCI Gender Policy has been hailed
as a step in the right direction. Youth have experienced empowerment through
training programs and services.
5.
However, there is still need for improvement. The reflections of the Plenary
Assembly centred chiefly on seven
areas:
5.i. Fostering God Experience: What is needed is a deep experience of
the Trinitarian God drawing on the treasures of the Church especially the Word
and Sacraments. For this, our liturgies have to be well prepared, participative
and meaningful. Hence, we have decided to initiate a renewal in the celebration
of the liturgy so that it becomes an effective means for Christ-centred God
experience. We bishops have to be ourselves Spirit-filled
men of God, giving priority to prayer and to the Word of God, and helping our
clergy and lay faithful to become aware of God’s presence and activity in their
lives. The God experience will lead to an
inner conversion made visible in the simplicity of our lives, in our attitude
of love, compassion and forgiveness. Following
the example of Pope Francis, we will live a genuinely simple, humble, welcoming
and outgoing life reaching out to all people.
We will so orient the formation of future priests and religious that
they enter the ministry with an attitude of humility, ready to serve the poor
and marginalized of society.
5.ii. Addressing justice issues: The
experience of God will lead us to involvement in and solidarity with the
marginalized and the exploited, those suffering from disabilities, those living in the peripheries of economic,
cultural and social spheres. We will speak out against all forms of
injustice meted out to them and we will defend their rights. We listened to the
call of Pope Francis urging us to “work to eliminate the structural causes of
poverty and to promote the integral development of the poor.” (Evangelii Gaudium, no. 188). We want the
Church to be truly a Church of the Poor. We
reaffirm our solidarity with the Dalits in India who continue to be oppressed.
The CBCI reiterates its resolve to struggle for equal rights of Dalit
Christians on par with their counterparts in other religions. We will continue
the fight against the 1950 Presidential Order, which unjustly discriminates
against Dalit Christians and we demand that the Government remove this 64 year
injustice. Justice delayed is justice denied. We also commit ourselves to
rooting out all forms of discrimination within the Church and ensuring equal
opportunities in leadership roles for Dalit Christians.
5.iii. Ensuring for our lay faithful
their rightful place: Recognizing the God-given talents and
potentialities of the lay faithful, we will, in the first place, listen more to
their voice. Hence, we commit ourselves to establish Pastoral Councils in every
diocese. We realize that formation of the lay faithful is the need of the hour.
To this end, we commit ourselves, as a priority, to initiate programmes for lay
formation to equip them to play their role in the Church and society.
5.iv. Stamping out Discrimination against Women. We commit ourselves to strive for the equal dignity of and equal
opportunities for women, providing especially equal opportunities for the education
of the girl child. We wholeheartedly support
the campaign against female foeticide and domestic violence. In
the face of increasing sexual abuse and violence in Indian society, we will do
all in our power to enforce discipline so as to ensure a secure environment in
our institutions for women and children.
5.v.. Creating a Christian presence in political and public life. We depend in a special way on our youth, the
future leaders of the Church and society. As bishops we realize much more needs
to be done for them. We want to embark on intensive programmes for them to
enter into the mainstream of public life so as to ensure value-based politics.
Hence, we request every region to set
up, wherever possible, training centres to prepare the youth for leadership
roles in civic and political life.
5.vi. Promoting Dialogue. India is home to a
rich variety of ancient cultures and religions.
The Church in India has to be a Church in dialogue. We urge our lay faithful to engage in the “dialogue
of life”, mingling with our brothers and sisters of other religious traditions,
greeting them on their feast days and being with them in life’s vulnerable
moments such as sickness and death. Besides strengthening the
already existing Small Christian Communities, we will seek to establish Basic
Human Communities which would be a powerful means for communal peace and
harmony.
5.vii.
Safeguarding Ecology. The Bishops
re-affirm their commitment to the protection of nature. We stand for sustainable development of
peoples and human ecology. The CBCI Plenary Assembly shares the apprehensions
of people living in the Western Ghats and in the areas affected by the 2011 Notification
of the Ministry of Environment on the Coastal Regulation Zone. We appeal to the
Union Government to protect the civic rights of the inhabitants in areas
adversely affected by the proposals of the Madhav Gadgil and Kasturirangan
Reports. The CBCI also shares the similar concerns of the tribal population in
Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand fast coming under mining
projects.
6. The road ahead of us is challenging.
But we count on the presence of the Risen Lord who, through the power of
His Spirit, “makes all things new” (Rev. 21:5). All renewal is always the work
of the Spirit. We place our efforts at renewing the Church in view of renewing
society in the hands of Mary, our Mother, the Star of Evangelization.
Thanks:
Fr. Joseph Chinnayyan
Deputy Secretary General &
Spokesperson, CBCI
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