Pope Francis establishes the Lay Ministry of Catechists

Pope Francis Motto founded the Ministry of Catechism with the Apostolic Letter in the form of Proprio “Old Office” (Old ministry), in which he demanded the details of a creation, the ethical criteria for access to the ministry and the publication of the institutional rites of such ordinary ministry.

This new Motu Proprio was signed by the Holy Father at the liturgy of St. John of Avila and was released by the Vatican on May 11th.

In the Apostolic Letter “Old Office” Pope Francis described how The catechist ministry in the Church is very old “The first examples are already found in the writings of the New Testament” and “since its inception, the Christian community has enjoyed a wide range of ministry, integrated into the service of obedient men and women. The work of the Holy Spirit, they have dedicated their lives to the betterment of the Church.”

“A vision of the life of the first Christian communities that promised the spread and growth of the gospel calls on the church to understand what the new revelations might be today, which is truly true to the word of the Lord. Every living thing must reach for his gospel,” he pointed out.

In these ways, the Pope emphasized that “the whole history of the Gospel of these two thousand years shows great evidence of the usefulness of the work of the Catechisms” because “faith, along with the bishops, priests and deacons, as well as many holy men and women, is committed to the perfect existence of every man.” Their life is bizarre teaching for the sake of.

Moreover, the Holy Father warned this “Not to be forgotten are the countless ordinary men and women who took a direct part in spreading the good news Through Catalytic Teaching. Men and women who were animated by great faith and true witnesses of holiness, and in some cases, as the founders of churches, gave their lives. ”

In this sense, the Pope recalled, “a long list of Catechism blessings, saints and martyrs, describes the work of the Church, which is a useful source because it is” Christian “not only for Cadiz, but for the entire history of spirituality.

Likewise, the Holy Father emphasized this.The proper work of the bishop should be the first listener of his dioceseAlong with the Presbyterian sharing the same pastoral care and the specific responsibility of parents regarding the Christian formation of their children, and “the need to recognize the existence of ordinary men and women. Of their own baptism, they are called to co-operate in the service of the Catechism “.

With this in mind, the Pope explained, “The catechist is first called upon to express his talent Pastoral service for spreading the faith, Expands at its various stages: from the first ad to the launch Kerigma, Passing on the teachings that make us aware of the new life of Christ and especially prepare the rites of Christian initiation Permanent education This allows each baptized person to be ready to respond to anyone who asks for a reason for their faith. ”

At the same time, he emphasized that the Holy Father was a catechist.Witness of Faith, Teacher and Mistagok, Supplementary and Academic Teaching It teaches in the name of the Church ”so it needs to be done“ in harmony and with responsibility through prayer, study and direct participation of the community ”.

Regarding the new Lay ministry, the Pope pointed out, “It places great emphasis on proper missionary commitment to each one who is baptized, which in any case must be carried out in a completely secular manner. Without falling into any manifestation of the clergy”.

Therefore, the Holy Father pointed out that this ministry “has a strong professional value that requires proper wisdom on the part of the bishop and it testifies to the rites of the institution” and “about this”A standard service is provided to the local church It is carried out in a formal manner in accordance with the needs of the pastor, as identified by the local ordinary, but in accordance with the nature of the ministry ”.

“The so-called ministry of established ministers is convenient Men and women with deep faith and human maturity, Those who are active participants in the life of the Christian community, who can live in welcoming, generous and fraternal unity, who receive the proper biblical, theological, pastoral and pedagogical training to apply the truth of the faith attentively, and who already have previous experience in Cadiz.

Therefore, the Pope warned “Be faithful collaborators with priests and deacons and be prepared to serve where necessary, And animated with genuine apostolic zeal ”.

Finally, the Holy Father asked the congregation for the worship of God and for the morality of the rites Publish the Institutional Ceremony of the Ordinary Ministry of Cadizism soon; Episcopal Conferences “To Effectively and Establish the Needs of the Catechist Ministry Training and ethical criteria To access it, find the most consistent forms of service that are called to execute in accordance with what is revealed in this apostolic letter ”.

Read the full text of Mottu Proprio “Old Office” Click Here.