Bishops To Pay Heed To The Pastoral Guidance In La Aparecida

Published by MAC on 2007-04-07

Bishops to Pay Heed to the Pastoral Guidance in La Aparecida

The priests, nuns, members of religious orders, laypersons, and Methodist minister who met in the Latin American Gathering on Mining and Environmental Justice, in Oruro, Bolivia on March 9-11, 2007, direct this letter to the bishops of our continent who are going to participate in the Fifth General Conference of the Latin American Episcopal Council in Aparecida, Brazil, this May 9-13. We ask them to take into consideration some of our pastoral worries and incorporate them into guidance which they can give us to bring life to our witnessing of Christian life within our towns and villages.

In Latin America we are experiencing a period of intensive growth of investments in extractive industries, which is generating destructive impacts upon the environment and causing the growth of social conflicts, threatening people's very lives. In the face of this, the Church will reaffirm its forces to continue educating and working for justice, the fruit of which will be peace.

Being that these activities are causing the suffering of the earth and making persons suffer, especially the most poor who have less resources to protect themselves, our Church will have to keep deepening its commitment to Life, preferential options for the poor, and the defence of the environment.

Communion with God has been broken, as has communion with men and women, as well as communion with creation. The Church will have to deliver its prophetic message, denouncing what is happening and announcing a message of hope, promoting actions which will lead a pastoral reconciliation with God, men and women, and creation.

Ecological leaders and movements have emerged in this continent who are defending and protecting life, and their dedication to life is being threatened by those forces who destroy creation. In some cases, these leaders have been killed, because they defended the threatened creation. As a Church and as defenders of life, we are compelled to act in solidarity with those who are persecuted.

The destruction of lands and waters puts life itself into danger, as well as the sustainability of native communities, indigenous persons and campesinos. The Church must deepen its commitment to the defence of the rights of the most excluded and threatened communities whose very existence is in danger.

We are called to cherish the culture and wisdom of the indigenous communities who live in contact with the earth, and in whom we recognize the presence of God; our evangelical task is to announce the gospel and strengthen the spirituality of the defence of Life.

From the word of God of Life who gives us strength, enriches our celebrations and our sacred life, always open to the worship of the gift of creation, which was a good thing and which we have disfigured.

Signed,

Father Eduardo Chepillo - Chile
Father Juan de la Cruz Rivadeneira - Pastoral Shuar - Ecuador
Father Erick Gruloos - San Miguel de Ixtahuacan - Guatemala
Father Marco Arana Zegarra - Perú
Father Miguel Córdova OMI - Perú
Daniel Le Blanc OMI - Perú
Father Seamos P. Finn - OMI, Washington USA
Sister Isabel Ramírez - Centro Vicente Cañas - Cochabamba, Bolivia
Brother Gilberto Pawels OMI - Oruro, Bolivia
Luis Faura - Pastoral "Safeguarding Creation" - Chile
Pastor Modesto Mamani - Evangelical Methodist Church in Bolivia