Year of Faith Pastoral Letter - Oct 14, 2012

Year of Faith Pastoral Letter - Oct 14, 2012
Knowledge of the Faith
Live your Faith
Share/Proclaim your faith
Conclusion

Abp Harris crest"To The Faithful of the Archdiocese and to All People of Faith and Goodwill in Trinidad and Tobago"
Lord, I believe; help my unbelief. (Mark 9:24) These words find an echo in my heart as I seek to respond as your bishop, to the invitation of the Holy Father to journey with him on a Year of Faith and to invite you to join me here in this Archdiocese on that journey.
We in Trinidad and Tobago are adherents of many faiths. God is in our constitution. Prayer is very much a part of our life as individuals and as a nation. Yet we know how much and how often we fall short. Lord, I believe; help my unbelief! This Year of Faith extends from October 11 this year to the Feast of Christ the King, November 24, next year. Its beginning marks the 50th anniversary of the beginning of the Second Vatican Council and the 20th anniversary of the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church; both landmark moments in the history of the modern Church. October 11 also marks the beginning of the Synod on the New Evangelisation which seeks to confront the challenges we face in proclaiming the Gospel to today's world. In this year, we will give thanks to God for the faith which the missionaries brought to our shores and which our parents, grandparents and generations of catechists have passed on to us. Our Catholic institutions across the land bear witness to the meaning, affirmation and joy - abundant life - which we have found in the faith for more than two centuries. This year our Pro-Cathedral community celebrates 225 years of such witness and the parish of St. Michael’s, Maracas Valley, 150 years.
From 2003 to 2009 the archdiocese engaged in the Synod process, an expression of our on-going desire to deepen our faith and its expression. Even as we give thanks for this witness throughout the years, we continue to pray, Lord, I believe; help my unbelief! The strong foundations of our faith face the crisis of a decaying edifice symbolised by our Cathedral in disrepair. How do we build on these strong foundations an edifice able to withstand the current storms which assail us and become a beacon, a light on the hills of Aripo and Naparima for God's people in Trinidad and Tobago?

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