Aparecida

V G ENERAL CONFERENCE OF THE BISHOPS OF
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
D isciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ, so that our
Peoples may have life in Him

"I am the Way and the Truth and the life"(Jn 16:4)

Concluding
Document
A parecida, 13-31 May 2007

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LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
TO THE BISHOPS OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
To my Brothers in the Episcopate ofLatin America and the Caribbean
Last 13 May, I opened with great joy the Fifth General Conference of the Latin American
and Caribbean Bishops' Conferences at the foot of the Blessed Virgin, Nossa Senhora
Aparecida, in Brazil.
I have vivid and grateful memories of this Meeting, in which I was united with you in the
same affection for your beloved peoples and the same concern to help them tobe
disciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ so that they may have life in him.
At the same time, as I express my gratitude for their love for Christ and his Church and
for the spirit of communion which marked the above-mentioned General Conference, I
authorize the publication of the Final Document.
I ask the Lord to grant that in communion with the Holy See and with the proper respect
forthe responsibility of each Bishop in his own particular Church, it may be a source of
enlightenment and encouragement to them for fruitful pastoral and evangelizing work in
the years to come.
This document contains an abundance of timely pastoral guidelines, explained in a wealth
of reflections in the light of faith and of the contemporary social context.
Among other things, I read withspecial appreciation the words urging that priority
attention be given to the Eucharist and to the sanctification of the Lord's Day in your
pastoral programmes (cf. nn. 251-252), and likewise, those which express your desire to
strengthen the Christian formation of the faithful in general and of pastoral workers in
particular.
In this regard, it was a cause of joy for me to know of the desire tolaunch a "Continental
Mission" which the Bishops' Conferences and each Diocese are called to examine and
carry out, convoking for it all the living forces so that in setting out from Christ they will
seek his Face (cf. Novo Millennio Ineunte, n. 29).
As I invoke the protection of the Virgin Most Holy under her titles of "Aparecida" as
Patroness of Brazil and of "Our Lady of Guadalupe" asPatroness of America and Star of
Evangelization, I impart my Apostolic Blessing to you with affection.
From the Vatican, 29 June, Solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.
BENEDICTUS PP. XVI

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INAUGURAL SESSION OF THE FIFTH GENERAL CONFERENCE
OF THE BISHOPS OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
Conference Hall, Shrine of Aparecida
Sunday, 13 May 2007Dear Brother Bishops, beloved priests, religious men and women and laypeople,
Dear observers from other religious confessions:
It gives me great joy to be here today with you to inaugurate the Fifth General
Conference of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean, which is being held close
to the Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, Patroness of Brazil. I would like to begin with
words ofthanksgiving and praise to God for the great gift of the Christian faith to the
peoples of this Continent. Likewise, I am most grateful for the kind words of Cardinal
Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa, Archbishop of Santiago and President of CELAM,
spoken in his own name, on behalf of the other two Presidents and for all the participants
in this General Conference.
1. The Christian faith in LatinAmerica
Faith in God has animated the life and culture of these nations for more than five
centuries. From the encounter between that faith and the indigenous peoples, there has
emerged the rich Christian culture of this Continent, expressed in art, music, literature,
and above all, in the religious traditions and in the peoples’ whole way of being, united as
they are by a shared history...