Cardinal Policarpo urges that new forms and methods of evangelization be sought in the streets of the metropolis Creating a missionary drive in the city. Experimenting with new methods of evangelization. Bringing a wave of creativity into the Church. Listening to a society in constant change and a population ever more “remote from a faith which can be a source of joy and restore meaning to life”. These are some of the priorities of the city mission spelt out by Cardinal José da Cruz Policarpo , patriarch of Lisbon. We asked him to describe to us the project that unites the Portuguese capital with Vienna, Brussels and Paris. The four cities will each host in turn, up till 2006, an “international Congress for the new evangelization” lasting two weeks in each capital. What do the four capitals have in common? “The need for an evangelization with specific methods adapted to large urban and suburban populations is a problem common to all the great capitals of Europe. Perhaps in Lisbon there is a higher rate of religious practice (12%) than in Brussels and Paris, but the problems are similar. There’s a great need to evangelize a population that has been baptized but that has lost its contacts with a faith that can be a source a joy and restore meaning to life”. What will be new about the congress? “Creating a missionary drive in the city. The Congress which will last for two weeks in each city is intended to go beyond the classic idea of a conference to discuss and reflect. It will combine discussion and reflection with the concrete practice of mission. That’s why a long period of preparation is needed, to enable the parishes and the movements to adopt a missionary posture. The original idea is that of experimenting with new methods of evangelization. The congress will undoubtedly bring with it great creativity”. What new methods will be tried out? “They are methods that have already produced good results in central Europe: those of the Emmanuel communities, of street evangelization, the neo-catechumenal method. These experiences will be furthered by the creativity of a city in an attitude of permanent evangelization”. Will each city be organized in its own way? “There’s a margin of diversity for each city, but there is only one Congress, with a central organization. Our idea is to create a movement that may be intensified and have repercussions in all four cities, from experience to experience”. What’s the reaction of the parish communities in Lisbon? “The project will be launched in Lisbon at the beginning of the next pastoral year. There is a great deal of enthusiasm, but some parishes are reacting with some mistrust to the venture. Today the Church is a very plural reality, but I hope that the missionary drive will eventually make itself felt. In the Church there are those who want to renew pastoral care, and others who think it’s better to continue to do well what has always been done, without losing time in the search for new experiences. The meeting and convergence between these two group is essential if things are to work”. On whom, or what, will Lisbon focus? “On the young, on the university apostolate, which will be a privileged field for direct evangelization. I am coming to the realization that there is a good deal of positive ferment in Portuguese youth. Youth today can no longer be considered separate from the rest of the community. The appeal is addressed to young and old alike. I believe strongly in promoting the convergence between groups of different age. I’m not pessimistic about the young. The problem is that we must ask ourselves whether their experiences of the faith may really help the Church to understand the signs of the time. This presupposes a willingness on the part of the Church to change: a proposition about which not everyone is agreed”. Patrizia Caiffa
