Archbishop reflects on importance of sacred Scripture at Spanish Bible conference, recognizes ecclesial movement

(En Espanol)
 

Juanita Barrera, left, Luis Xalanda and Reynaldo Gerardo, all members of St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish in Indianapolis, are pictured on Sept. 30 during a Bible conference at St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Indianapolis with Archbishop Charles C. Thompson; Ken Ogorek, executive director of the archdiocesan Secretariat for Evangelizing Catechesis; and Felix Navarrete, the archdiocese’s Hispanic ministry coordinator. The St. Gabriel parishioners are members of the board of Apostoles de la Palabra (Apostles of the Word) and were recognized for their service to Hispanic families in the archdiocese’s evangelization and catechesis mission. (Photo by Mike Krokos)

Criterion staff report

More than 150 people gathered on Sept. 30 at St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Indianapolis to participate in a Bible conference in Spanish during which Archbishop Charles C. Thompson presented a talk about the history of the Bible and the importance of the study of sacred Scripture in the life of the Church.

He also recognized members of the Apostles of the Word movement for their service to Hispanic families in the archdiocese’s evangelization and catechesis mission.

“Sacred Scripture is the discourse of God, as it is written under the breath of the Holy Spirit that the Church transmits to us in its entirety, the word of God that has been sent to the Apostles by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit,” Archbishop Thompson said in his presentation.

The archbishop also reminded those in attendance of the actions of a trinitarian God, who does not speak for himself but for a people sharing the word that is transmitted through the action of the third person of the Holy Trinity.

The Apostles of the Word (Apostoles de la Palabra) movement, whose name highlights its primary mission, promotes biblical study and catechesis for Latinos through the word.

The program for adults is present in the archdiocese in several parish communities and offers great support for the Church’s catechetical and evangelization ministries for Spanish-speaking families.

From St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish on the west side of Indianapolis to St. Joseph Parish in Shelbyville to St. Ambrose Parish in Seymour in the southern part of the state, the Apostles of the Word movement shares its evangelizing mission. Its goal is to leave footprints and sow seeds of faith in our Hispanic communities.

The approach is similar to what is found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “The Holy Spirit is truly the protagonist of the entire ecclesiastical mission. He is the one who guides the Church along the paths of mission. It continues and develops in the course of history the mission of Christ himself, who was sent to evangelize the poor … driven by the Holy Spirit, it must advance along the same path along which Christ advanced” (#852).

Through this movement, the Hispanic community brings to life the words of Pope Francis in his ongoing exhortation to reach out to the margins of society. The chapter of “Apostles” recently begun in Seymour hopes to evangelize new immigrants who are already participating in the community, in such a way that it leads to integration with the parish through the knowledge of the word of God.

The Apostles of the Word was founded by Father Flaviano Amatulli Valente, an Italian priest, on July 2, 1978, in Mexico. It received diocesan approval from the bishop of San Andrés Tuxtla, Mexico, on March 31, 1980, and was established as a public association of faithful in 1990. Its motto is: “A missionary family at the service of the Catholic Church.”

“Like all Christians, we must necessarily read, listen, study, discern, apply and proclaim the word of God. To do so, one must know the word of God. The Bible, of course, is not just a book among books,” Archbishop Thompson noted. “It is both a book and a collection or canon of books, letters and hymns.”

The archbishop urged everyone present to continually study sacred Scripture, where God speaks to us in very particular ways.

Conference participants were reminded “the Church insistently recommends to all its faithful … the assiduous reading of Scripture so that they may acquire the supreme knowledge of Jesus Christ” (#2653). They were also reminded that their prayer life must be accompanied by reading the Bible in such a way so that they can hear the voice of God.

Father John Kamwendo, pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Parish, began the event by leading eucharistic adoration. †