Catechesis for Encounter and for Peace. The Conviviality of Differences”.
This is the title of a significant event experienced in the Diocese of Trani Barletta-Bisceglie
On June 3–8, 2036, the Congress of the European Catechetiсs Equipe took place at the “Oasi di Nazareth” Vacation House in Corato (BA), under the title “Catechesis for Encounter and for Peace. The Conviviality of Differences”.
This very year, the Congress celebrated the 75th anniversary of its foundation: the Equipe was founded during the First International Catechetical Congress held in Rome in 1950; the founding fathers came from France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, and they met for the first time in 1951. The Equipe operates under a Regulation approved during the 2010 Krakow Congress, which clarifies the two main purposes of the Equipe.
The first: to foster the meeting of catechetical leaders and experts and the exchange of catechetical experiences at a European level.
The second: to encourage catechetical research and reflection in order to identify the challenge that the contemporary cultural situation, characterized by a plurality of cultures, beliefs, and customs, poses to the Christian faith and evangelization.
The Regulation also establishes that, while respecting its specific aims, the EEC contributes to the ecumenical dialogue between the Churches and to the building of the cultural and civil unity of Europe. This is why the Congress is held in different countries, alternating between Eastern and Western Europe.
The subtitle of the Congress, “The Conviviality of Differences”, was strongly desired, recalling the prophetic vision of the Venerable Don Tonino Bello, to illuminate the historical present in which we live, characterized by a plurality of cultural, religious, and political differences among peoples and individuals, where progress has favored knowledge and encounter. However, this knowledge and encounter mostly appear to be characterized by an emotional mistrust that prevents the authentic recognition of the other as a gift.
Bishop Don Tonino Bello was a messenger of a peace that is not to be considered as a goal to be reached but as a modus operandi along the way. And it is from here that the Equipe drew its reflections during these days of fruitful work. In fact, the program of the days spent in Corato was dense and demanding, featuring presentations shared in person and online by Speakers from various European nations, for which details can be found on the social channels of the Archdiocese of Trani-Barletta-Bisceglie.
“Catechesis has a role to play. In recent decades we have insisted that catechesis must not be the mere transmission of doctrine, but that its general objective is to put interlocutors into a personal relationship with Christ [also through community life]. This implies that catechesis achieves its purpose when it becomes a laboratory of peace that helps interlocutors not only build a personal relationship with Christ, but also with one another.” These were the words of the President of the EEC, Fr. Carl-Mario Sultana, in the opening address of the Congress. Among the participants were Enzo Biemmi and Sr. Maria Rosaria Attanasio Fsp, director of the magazine “Catechisti parrocchiali”. There was no shortage of beautiful moments of prayer, fraternity, and conviviality “at the table,” as Don Tonino Bello himself liked to emphasize. Two appointments in particular allowed the participants to get to know and experience the hospitality and encounter with our local reality: first, the beautiful and solemn Eucharistic Celebration lived in the Cathedral in Trani, presided over by Archbishop D’Ascenzo, with the proclamation of readings and prayers of the faithful in different European languages, the visit to the museum, the walk through the narrow streets of Trani, and the fraternal dinner all together. The second appointment was experienced in the parish community of St. John the Apostle in Barletta, where the Sisters of Jesus the Good Shepherd (Pastorelle) live and work. In an atmosphere of serene sharing, parish catechists of various age groups were able to share the life of the parish through testimonies, stories, and a short musical on the life of St. Francis. The lunch, shared with the parish priest Fr. Francesco, the Pastorelle Sisters, and some representatives from the community, concluded the hospitality peacefully!
We are grateful to the Lord for having been able to experience this beautiful journey up close together with some catechists from our Archdiocese—a participation strongly desired and supported by our Archbishop, Most Rev. Leonardo D’Ascenzo—and we keep in our hearts with renewed emotion every moment shared with the European Equipe.
Stefania, Angela, sr Maddalena
(Codirettrici UCD)
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