A journey of catechesis” “

Marriage and catechesis, and the international crisis, were some of the main issues on the agenda of the plenary Assembly of the bishops of France, held at Lourdes from 4 to 10 November, and chaired by the new president of the French Episcopal Conference, Jean-Pierre Ricard, bishop of Montpellier (cf. SirEurope no. 6/2001, p.8). The sacrament of marriage. “Marriage – pointed out Msgr. Guy Thomazeau, bishop of Beauvais – is a delicate and painful question for priests who suffer on account of it at the very heart of their ministry. They are sorely tried apostles. They experience joy in meeting young couples who want to get married, but run into various difficulties. Couples ask for the sacrament, but are only interested in the rite. They often come from a situation of cohabitation, sometimes already with children”. The priest, added the bishop, “is not any old witness of the sacrament: the essential link between marriage and the Eucharist should not be forgotten”. The bishop of Beauvais also emphasized the difference between the present generation and that of their parents: “forty years ago, 90% of children were catechized. When they asked to be married, they already possessed a Christian formation. Today, they don’t know a thing. In some meetings, we try to present to them the four fundamental pillars of matrimony: free consent, fidelity, indissolubility and a willingness to have children. And we try to make them understand the sacred dimension of their union. The whole sacramentality at the basis of marriage needs to be rediscovered. A catechumenal and catechetical journey needs to be begun”. The formation of catechists. The theme of catechesis was further developed by Msgr. Michel Dubost, bishop of Evry-Corbeil-Essonnes, president of the episcopal Commission for catechesis and the catechumenate, and then by Cardinal José da Cruz Policarpo, Patriarch of Lisbon, guest speaker at the assembly. “The great problem – said the cardinal, referring to his own experience in Portugal – is that the children who come to catechism are not baptized and don’t attend Sunday Mass. Those who do come for the most part abandon any religious practice at the end of catechism, at the age of around 12. The other aspect of the problem that is of concern to bishops is the formation of catechists, both at the doctrinal level and at that of Christian life. The preparation and permanent formation of catechists is crucial and decisive”, insisted Card. Policarpo. “The bishops complain that for too many years catechesis was mainly aimed at children and adolescents. But now there exist a large number of baptized, both children and adults, who are not prepared to embark on a catechetical journey. They have a need for a new basic evangelization”. An appeal for peace. At the end of their assembly the French bishops issued a final declaration in the form of an appeal for peace and evangelical brotherhood. Conscious of the gravity of the international situation, the bishops emphasize that “terrorism is becoming global”. “The time has come to seek other means so as not to add evil to evil, violence to violence”. The French episcopate appeals to the “sole form of combat worthy of humanity”, that of the “effort of everyone, especially the more privileged, to reduce the inequalities that exist between peoples, at the level of food, health, education, freedom, dignity and power”. The bishops are especially concerned by the question of peace in the Holy Land. In this regard, they ask the international community to intervene for “the security of the State of Israel, for the establishment of a Palestinian State, for a just distribution of resources, especially of water, and for the creation of a special status for Jerusalem”. Lastly, the bishops recall the dramatic situation in the Sudan and launch another appeal, this time aimed at the “businesses in our country” urging them to “beware of becoming accomplices of a situation of injustice”.