SAR News September 11, 2003 AICU Chief Calls for Reshaping Organisation's Future Chennai: SAR News
The national president of the All India Catholic Union, a premier lay organisation, has stressed on reshaping the future of the Christian body in tune with the changing political trends in the country and the turmoil within the Catholic Church. In her inaugural address at the 49th Annual General Meeting of the Union, held here, September 6-7, Ms. Maria Emilia Menezes from Goa said that there were many forces that shaped the future of an organisation. "Today it is not enough to merely know the future. AICU, as a vibrant lay Catholic organisation, must shape its future keeping in mind the present political trends and turmoil within the Church. It must harvest ideas and bring renewal in the Church and country," she said. To achieve this goal, Ms. Menezes said, it was necessary to "redraw the image of AICU, redefine its units and rework an action agenda to rewrite its various dynamics." The national president said the Catholic Union too should strive to enhance its image among the people. "So far AICU was of the view that our works would speak for themselves but it is important that we should be committed to enhancing the image of Union, not only among the non-members but also with our own members." She said the Catholic Union members were "poorly oriented, poorly inducted and often not engaged in laity empowerment." Proper formation of the laity for the distinctive role in the life and ministry of the Church must continue to be a priority," she said and urged the audience to take active part in laity formation programmes. Ms. Menezes also spoke of AICU's contribution towards rehabilitation of the earthquake-affected children in Parnala village of Gujarat State. "Emboldened by this work, AICU should transform itself into a vehicle for grassroots diplomacy, empowerment and for uniting people of different cultures and beliefs," she said. Archbishop Arul Das James of Madras-Mylapore took a swipe at the "anti-people and anti-conversion Bill" introduced by the Tamil Nadu Government in October last year. "Tamilnadu was peaceful till the introduction of this Bill which has shattered the freedom, peace and the confidence in the Government," he said The archbishop said that the primary motive and goal of Christianity was evangelisation. "We are required to preach and make known the word of God to all men. The anti-conversion Bill has created new challenges. Persecution is not something new to Christianity; the Church in India is not afraid of it," he added. Former Secretary to the Government of Tamilnadu, Mr. Louis Menezes, in his keynote address emphasised that the Church in India must educate and empower the laity as recommended by the Vatican Council II and come forward willingly towards the ultimate goal of building a participatory Church. National vice-president of AICU, Mr. John Dayal, suggested some initiatives vis-à-vis the emerging challenges in politics, development and religious freedom. ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################