The first Eucharistic Congress ends with an appeal to Catholics’ "awareness"
Pastoral initiatives are presented whose goal is to deepen the sense of belonging to the Catholic Church. More than 1,500 people, mostly young people, attend the meeting’s final Mass.
Islamabad (AsiaNews) – Pakistan’s first Eucharistic Congress ended with an appeal to Catholics who have fallen away from their Church to come back. The event was held at Our Lady of Fatima Church in Islamabad.
"People say that praying counts the most, whatever the Church one attends,” said Father Yousaf Amanat, pastor at the church that hosted the meeting. “Protestant pastors are attracting many Catholics. We hope to counter this trend through greater awareness."
"You can become part of the family of Jesus only by receiving the communion. The Blessed Sacrament will give you a sense of belonging," said Bishop Rufin Anthony of Islamabad-Rawalpindi on Sunday as he concelebrated the meeting’s closing Mass before more than 1,500 worshipers, mostly young.
Mgr Joseph Arshad, bishop of Faisalabad, led the opening Mass, the day before.
Pakistan’s Catholic Church has long been struggling for a while, as its numbers decline.
In 2009, the Archdiocese of Lahore, Punjab Province, had the most Catholic with 390,000 members. At present, Church records indicate 377,000 baptised Catholics in Pakistan’s oldest diocese, even though the population grew by 1.89 per cent.
During the Eucharistic Congress, several singers and Christian choirs performed sacred songs, including during sessions with various Church groups who proposed activities for sharing the Catholic faith at the grassroots level.
They include the Rosary group from the Church in the Federal Capital, which plans to recite the mysteries of the Rosary in five different houses every day.
"We plan to visit the houses where families have started to attend other churches," said a youth leader.
Other group presentations included proposals for other pastoral visits in sub-stations and catechetical programmes for children.
The bishop of Faisalabad hopes that the first Eucharistic Congress will generate further activities in the coming months.
"Christians are a minority and they need help to keep their faith strong amid prejudice and discrimination.,” he told AsiaNews.
“The Eucharist is the central theme of our prayer, but many still do not understand the meaning. We are calling for a stronger relationship with Jesus through prayer at the individual, family and church levels. Similar seminars will be held in parishes, as well as the diocesan and national levels."
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