“Social pastoral care is a fundamental dimension of the church’s mission, which seeks to make the Kingdom of God present amidst the difficulties and challenges of daily life,” said Bishop Dante Braida of La Rioja, president of the Episcopal Commission for Social Pastoral Care.
“This action promotes a church close to its citizens, concerned with the problems of its community and committed to justice and solidarity,” he said, according to Fides news service.
Bishop Braida stressed the importance of a social pastoral ministry that strengthens and promotes four key areas: “the social dimension of faith, so that every Christian can exercise their identity in the social commitments they assume; participation as a citizen, that is, as part of social life; the protection of the environment; and the way in which we deal with addictions, the meaning and care of life, and everything that damages it, such as drug trafficking.”
Bishop Braida, who concelebrated the Mass at the Catacombs organised by the Australian Cardijn Institute and Cardijn Community International during the first session of the Synod on Synodality in 2023, said he remained hopeful despite social challenges.
“There are many reasons to have hope,” he said, reiterating the Jubilee 2025 theme Pilgrims of Hope. “When a family is founded, opens itself to life, grows, and raises its children, that is a very strong sign of hope. When people launch new entrepreneurial initiatives to serve society; when children, adolescents, and young people want to study and develop professionally in sports, the arts, and science. Other signs of hope are when society cares for its elderly; a society that cultivates its faith, that gives space to God and wants to be guided by him, that is a sign of hope.”
In response to these challenges, the church in La Rioja implemented social pastoral initiatives based on the principles of Catholic social teaching. These include food distribution, community kitchens for vulnerable families, training workshops, micro-enterprises, and support programs for the homeless, drug addicts, and victims of violence.
As the church in La Rioja continues its social pastoral work, Bishop Braida connected these efforts with broader spiritual commitments, particularly during the Jubilee Year and the Synod on Synodality.
“We begin the season of Lent in the midst of a Jubilee Year and seeking to implement the conclusions of the Synod on Synodality in the church,” Bishop Braida stated.
“In this Lent, God asks us to check whether in our lives, in our families, in the places where we work, in parish or religious communities, we are capable of walking with others, of listening, of overcoming the temptation to close ourselves in our self-referentiality, taking care only of our needs.”
Bishop Braida also reminded the faithful of the upcoming 50th anniversary of the martyrdom of his predecessor, Blessed Enrique Angelelli and three other church leaders killed during Argentina’s military dictatorship. “It will be an opportunity to delve deeper into the testimony of their lives and the teachings of Bishop Enrique, in particular those that speak to us of the different aspects of the synodal church.”
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Mass at the Domitilla Catacombs
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Bishop Dante Braida with Australian Cardijn Institute secretary, Stefan Gigacz