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SPECIAL FEATURE
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“The Christian Family: Good News For the Third Millennium”
QUESTIONS MOST ASKED ABOUT THE FOURTH WORLD MEETING OF
FAMILIES IN
MANILA
Question: What is the World Meeting of Families?
Answer: Pope John Paul II because of his deep concern for the family
issued the
Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris Consortio and established the
Pontifical
Council for the Family in 1981. In 1994 the First World Meeting of
Families was held in
Rome, the “inspired
fruit of the Holy Spirit.” The World Meeting of
Families is a gathering of families from all over the world once ever
three
years upon the invitation of the Pope to celebrate the God-given gift
that is
the family. It enables the families to come together, pray, dialogue,
learn,
share and deepen their understanding and appreciation of how the
Christian
family fulfills its role as a domestic church, the basic unit for
evangelization. There are 5 main events in every WMF, namely:
International Theological Pastoral Congress (ITPC), Sons and Daughters
Congress, Eucharistic Celebrations for Families on Pilgrimage, Festive
Meeting with Testimonies from
families, and the Closing Mass.
Question: Why was the
Philippines chosen
as the venue for the Fourth World
Meeting of Families?
Answer: The
Philippines is the
only Catholic country in Asia. In 1995, during
the Mass marking the Quadricentennial Anniversary of the Archdiocese
of Manila,
Pope John Paul II called on the
Philippines to
continue to be the beacon of
light to
Asia – and to the whole world – of the faith that the Filipinos
have
received and preserved for more than four centuries. The Holy Father
has also
named the Third Millennium “the Asian Millennium” because it is the
millennium for the proclamation of the Name and Gospel of Jesus in
Asia.
Families – Asian
families – who have known Christ in their hearts through their legacy
of traditions and cultures and who have embraced Him even more through
their faith – naturally play an important role and have so much to
share and to proclaim about how they live, know and love Jesus
Christ. The Filipino families have this experience and are the
bearers of this legacy of faith in this continent, so the Pope chose
this country (home to 70 million Catholics) as the venue for
the Fourth World Meeting of Families, the first to be held
in Asia.
Significantly, the theme for the Fourth World Meeting of
Families is: “The Christian Family: Good News for the Third
Millennium.”
Question: How many delegates are coming?
Answer: The organizers are expecting around 10,000 delegates, foreign
and local, to attend the event.
Question: Can non-delegates attend the Fourth World Meeting of
Families?
Answer: The International Theological Pastoral Congress (ITPC)
and the Sons and Daughters Congress that will be held at the
Philippine International Convention Center from 22 to
24 January 2003 are
only for registered delegates. There are
other three events that non-delegates or the general public
can attend. The Eucharistic Celebrations for Families on Pilgrimage
are for the language groupings of the delegates and will be held in 16
selected parish churches in Metro
Manila
in the morning of 25 January 2003. The public. However, can attend
Mass in these churches along with the delegates. The
Festive Meeting with Testimonies from Families will be held in the 16
selected parish churches in Metro
Manila
in the morning of 25 January 2003. This event is open to all and
will be capped by a dazzling display of fireworks. On the
morning of 26 January 2003, the Closing Mass of the Fourth World
Meeting of Families will take place with some 1,000 cardinals, bishops
and priests celebrating. This is open to the public. Both the
Festive Meeting with Testimonies from Families (25 January 2003) and
the Closing Mass (26
January 2003) will be held at the Quirino
Grandstand of the
Rizal Park in
Luneta, Roxas Boulevard, Manila.
Question: What results are expected to come out of this event?
Answer: it will signal the start of the Asian Millennium with the
Filipino family in the vanguard of giving the testimony: “The
Christian Family: Good News for the Third Millennium.” It is now the
time of the heirs.
Source: http://www.archdioceseofmanila.org
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