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TO THE PEOPLE OF GOD
JOURNEYING IN CENTRAL AMERICA
Joint Statement from Central American Bishops
“ I have come that you might have life, and have it in abundance”
(John 10:10)
1. The Bishops of Central America, meeting in Santa Tecla,
El Salvador, for our Annual SEDAC Meeting on November 25 to 29, 2002,
thank the God of Life and Father of us all for the gift of having prayed,
reflected,
lived and worked together, each of us sharing from his heart the joys,
hopes
and anguish of our Particular Churches.
We give thanks to God because we witness with great joy the existence
of countless parish communities and apostolic movements that live their
faith
maturely, in a missionary spirit of solidarity, in their common vocation
of fraternity and sharing. May the God of peace and hope be with you
all!
We are greatly concerned about the existence of factors that disrupt
and threaten peace in our Particular Churches, such as: growing unemployment,
migration, the increase in the external and internal debt, the growing
gap between the rich and the poor, the lack of credibility among public
institutions,
the aggressiveness of various sects and new religious movements, and
the
violence of criminal groups, organized crime and drug trafficking.
2. We have greeted with joy a delegation of brother Bishops and lay people
of the Catholic Church in the United States of America. This visit has
demonstrated the unity of the Catholic Church throughout the American
continent, renewing
the experience of the Synod of Bishops for America. The delegation visited
Guatemala and Honduras, as well as El Salvador, meeting with government
authorities and various sectors of civil society to obtain first-hand
information about
the situation in these countries.
Their intention was to listen to us so that the Catholic Church in America
can speak with a single voice, loud and clear, to proclaim the Gospel
of Life and denounce all that opposes it.
In dialogue with this delegation, we analyzed the phenomenon of economic
globalization and its effects, particularly increasing emigration. Because
of growing poverty, many Central Americans are forced to leave their
homes to seek better living conditions abroad. We underscored the negative
implications
of this phenomenon: cultural uprooting, frequent and humiliating deportations,
fragmentation of the family of origin. Nevertheless, we also acknowledged
its extraordinarily positive effects on families’ income in the migrants’ home
countries. We urge the responsible authorities in the United States and
Costa Rica to develop legislation to facilitate the legal recognition
of the millions
of undocumented immigrants. If this is not done, we could face countless
deportations, with unspeakable consequences for the countries of origin.
We have also verified endless human rights abuses, which seem to have
no solution and which give us a sense of weakness in the face of the
disproportionate
strength of the powers of this world. That does not discourage us, however,
because we have faith in the strength of the Word of God and are convinced
that Christ is the Lord of History, who bears as his own the suffering
of our emigrant brothers and sisters.
Despite all else, we must not forget the positive and decisive presence
of Hispanics in the Catholic Church in the United States, with their
characteristic “loving
faith.” We know that they represent a high percentage of Catholics
in that great nation.
3. The reports presented by the Particular Churches of Central America
(Dioceses, Prelatures, Apostolic Vicariates) demonstrate points of convergence
as well
as differences. Faced with a situation of generalized poverty, which
is increasingly affecting the countries of Central America, we see some
improvement
in certain
aspects. While the phenomenon of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala
and Honduras is aimed at the North, migration from Nicaragua is increasingly
directed toward the South. We have regions of high literacy and formal
education,
in contrast with widespread illiteracy in others.
In all countries of Central America, the gap between the rich and the
poor is widening. We see increasing deterioration of values, particularly
the
value of the family; an increase in corruption in the public and private
sphere, which results in public distrust; an apparently uncontrollable
increase in criminal behavior, drug trafficking, the corruption of minors
and domestic
violence. Our people live in insecurity and fear.
We are reassured by the deep religious sense of our faithful, although
this is often more an emotional than a lived faith, and there is often
a noteworthy
breakdown between faith and morals, which raises serious questions for
us. We greet with gratitude and satisfaction the renewed commitment of
our lay
people, who show themselves to be increasingly dedicated to the process
of the New Evangelization. We share the joy of our Panamanian brothers
and sisters, who next year will celebrate their nation’s first centennial
as a republic.
4. With the aid of experts, we have spent time in detailed analysis of
the serious consequences, especially in the social sphere, of the Central
America
Free Trade Agreement with the United States, the Free Trade Area of
the Americas and Plan Puebla - Panama. We do not oppose in principle
any
type of treaty
or trade agreement that proposes economic and social development for
our region, but we see an urgent need for more and more reliable information
and broader debate, so that economic interests do not jeopardize the
interests
of citizens, especially, in our case, of peasant farmers, who would
be the most affected by these agreements. We strongly proclaim that,
if
forced to
choose between money and the person, we choose the person, even though
that could mean a possible setback in economic progress.
For development to have a human face, it must be equitable and sustainable;
it must ensure food security; it must protect small and medium-size businesses;
and it must respect “human ecology,” which is rooted in the
family, the school of values.
5. On November 28, in the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Salvador, along
with the participants in the first continental preparatory conference
for the
American Missionary Congress (CAM 2), which will be held in Guatemala
next November, we participated in the solemn opening of the Missionary
Year
that we will celebrate in all our churches.
We firmly hope that this year will be a new opportunity to encourage,
organize and “live,” in a spirituality of communion, all
the strength of our Christian communities. We see the urgent need to
move from a ministry
that is concerned with caretaking and preserving what our Churches have
achieved so far, toward a ministry marked by a commitment to mission
and evangelization,
capable of opening itself up more decisively to mission beyond our borders.
The theme of the Congress, “Church in America, your life is mission,” reminds
us that mission is the very identity of the Church. This prompts us all — bishops,
priests, deacons, religious and lay people — to assume our missionary
commitment, which must lead us to a deep and radical transformation of
attitudes and of unjust structures which, as we have seen, do not promote
the human
development of the Central American people.
We call on all the faithful to live this Missionary Year in the image
of Mary and in harmony with the Year of the Rosary, proclaimed by the
Holy
Father, in an attitude of deep prayer and attention to the Word of God.
6. We thank all of you who have accompanied us with your prayer and filial
affection, which is a great comfort to us, and we know we can count on
your unconditional willingness to join us in this commitment to a more
Christian
Central America marked by solidarity and fraternity.
7. The protection of Mary, star of Evangelization, has accompanied us
during these days of intense labor, and we have been encouraged by the
witness
of dedication to our people in the lives of St. Brother Pedro de San
José de
Betancourt, the Blessed María Encarnación Rosal, the Blessed
Sor María Romero, and our witnesses of faith, Oscar Romero and
Juan Gerardi, who have so marked the journey of our Churches.
May Mary, Mother of Hope and Our Lady of Advent, encourage and renew
us so that we persevere in our Christian joy in difficult times.
Santa Tecla, La Libertad, El Salvador, November 28, 2002.
Most Rev.
Alvaro Ramazzini
Bishop of San Marcos (Guatemala)
President of SEDAC
Most Rev. Gregorio Rosa Chávez
Auxiliary Bishop of San Salvador
Secretary of SEDAC
The document was approved by the 44 archbishops and bishops attending
the meeting.)
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