The Portuguese Bishops’ Conference (CEP) also held its plenary assembly in recent days. It expressed its “intention to establish new ministries to promote a greater participation of the laity in the running of their communities, beyond the usual activities of lector and acolyte”. Msgr. Carlos de Azevedo, secretary of the CEP, specified that “these roles would regard in particular catechesis, the welcome of new members of the Church and visits to the sick, and involve those who already animate these services within the parishes with responsibility for coordination”. Pursuing the reflection programmed for the three-year period 2005-2008 on the transmission of the faith, the bishops also approved a document called “Formation of the laity: ministries, services, schools – experiences, means and contents”, through which they specified the various experiences realized in the dioceses and in the ecclesial movements. One finding of the document is that the liturgy and catechesis are the areas in which most formative effort is being made. Nonetheless the areas in question are being widened to other spheres of social action, such as prisons, problems of immigrants and healthcare. Biblical formation is also strongly rooted in the country: Msgr. Azevedo recalled, for example, the experience of the diocese of Santarém that was able to mobilize almost 4000 people in 300 groups of “basic initiation”. “We also need to concern ourselves with the theological preparation of the laity, not just with their technical skills, and help them to acquire a body of knowledge in which doctrinal formation is complemented by spiritual and social formation”, said Azevedo.
