by Weena Kowitwanij

During Holy Thursday celebrations, Mgr Kovithavanij urges religious to announce the Gospel “through their own lives” before doing so using words. The prelate stresses how important it is for priests to be able to “read, meditate and contemplate” the Word of God. He expresses to the faithful his hope that Easter be present in their families and the Christian community.

Bangkok (AsiaNews) – Priests must announced the Good News through their life, even before they do it through words; they must be “true witnesses” of Jesus to the laity and the faithful, said Mgr Francis Xavier Kirengsak Kovithavanij, archbishop of Bangkok, as he spoke during Holy Thursday Mass to 140 priests and religious from various dioceses and provinces. At the end of the function, the prelate blessed the water and the chrism used in the various rites throughout the year.

At the beginning of the Mass, the archbishop of Bangkok told those present, “We are here to express the unity between bishop and priests—it is a special occasion for four of you who celebrate the silver jubilee of their ordination.”

Mgr Kovithavanij stressed the importance that clergymen have “as living witnesses” in “raising awareness about the Gospel” before doing so using words. “Union with Christ” is a task for those who have been consecrated, to “lead the laity on the right path, against the challenges and pitfalls of modern society.”

In order to fulfil their pastoral duties, priests must be able to “read, meditate and contemplate” the Word of God, the prelate said. They must “meet once a while to nurture the spirit of communion,” he added, and reflect on the value “of communion in the life of the [Universal] Church”.

In his message of best wishes to the faithful, the archbishop of Bangkok stressed, “Easter is the utmost conclusion of God’s love and the centre of our faith.”

Quoting from John the Evangelist, he said, God “gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life’ (Jn, 3:16).

“Happiness and good wishes to all,” he offered to all those present. “May the Risen Christ be present in your family and Christian community always so that the culture of love that Jesus Christ brings into the world can emerge in the Church of Bangkok.”

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