Aid to the Church in Need: “It is vital to support the Faith in Chile”

“It is vital to support the Faith in Chile”

Posted by Information Report on 20/1/2009, 2:43 pm
Message modified by board administrator 20/1/2009, 2:43 pm

“It is vital to support the Faith in Chile”

Aid to the Church in Need’s International President, Father Joaquín Alliende and International Secretary General, Pierre Marie Morel, traveled through Chile to experience first hand the reality of the country and the work of the Chilean office.

Chile was the first stop in a Latin American visit that the International Secretary General Pierre Marie Morel made together with the International President, Father Joaquín Alliende. The trip also included a number of days in Brazil.

Morel not only traveled throughout the large Chilean territory, but also took time to deliver an important message to the workers of the ACN Chilean office. “Your work responds to the vertical part of the cross: The spiritual way”. He recalled that every action must be related to the pastoral service of ACN, “That’s our unique mission”.

Addressing the possible economic challenges facing the work in 2009, Morel stressed that it should be confronted with a positive and enthusiastic spirit. “The spirit of donation has nothing to do with this crisis. The action of donation works in our minds on a very different level. The poor are the ones who suffer the most … that is something very clear for a donor”.

With the conclusion in Santiago of his multi-city visit, he offered an encouraging final comment. “Chile is a pioneering country. With programs such as “Chapels for Chile”, it is clear that the faith here is not superficial. There are roots, a formation… It is key for us to support the faith in Chile”.

He also highlighted the importance that Europe know more about the Latin-American reality, because the witness of its people have the power to “re-evangelize” Europe. “Today we are constantly re-evangelized by Latin America and Africa. We need these testimonies to feed our Faith”.

The path through Chile

The purpose of the visit was to allow Morel and Fr. Alliende to see first hand the work that the Chilean office has undertaken in the country since 1997; not only sharing with those in the capital Santiago, but in cities throughout the country

Opening with a meeting with the Chilean Board and concluding with a Mass in the office chapel, Morel also spent time with the Chilean ACN staff, who showed him a number of national programs developed over the years, notably: “The Childs' Bible”, “Gifts with a Meaning” and “Chapels for Chile”.

To understand the special Chapels for Chile project better, the team visited the desert region of Iquique in the north of the country where five chapels were built for the needy communities of Parca, Macaya and Alto Hospicio. In these remote little villages in the Andes, Father Alliende and Morel met with Iquique’s Bishop, Monseigneur Marco Órdenes and took time to share with the local people.

(Pierre-Marie Morel and Fr. Joaquín Alliende are welcomed by the
people of Parca village (Northern Chile)

Back in Santiago, they held meetings with Archbishop, Cardinal Francisco Javier Errázuriz and with the Auxiliary Bishop, Monseigneur Fernando Chomalí. They also visited two chapels located in extremely poor neighborhoods in Santiago, La Bandera and La Ligua, where the communities have been benefited from the construction of new places of worship.

To help the work of Aid to the Church in Need in Chile please contact the Sydney office of ACN on (02) 9679-1929. e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org or write to Aid to the Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148. Web: www.aidtochurch.org

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Aid to the Church in Need PO Box 6245 Blacktown DC NSW 2148 ABN: 62 418 911 594
Ph/Fax (02) 9679-1929 e-mail: info@aidtochurch.org web: www.aidtochurch.org