Asian And Pacific Catholics To Hold Marian Pilgrimage May 19 At National Shrine

WASHINGTON—Asianand Pacific Catholics will hold a one-day celebration of faith and heritage atthe Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington,Saturday, May 19.

The annual Asians for Mary Pilgrimagewill mark its 10th anniversary this year. The event willbegin at 1 p.m. with a procession with Marian images venerated throughout Asiaand the Pacific and a call to prayer followed by the Crowning of the BlessedVirgin Mary. Rosary will follow at 2 p.m. with each mystery lead by a differentAsian community. At 2:30 p.m. Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington,will celebrate a multilingual Mass.

The annualAsians for Mary Pilgrimage began in May 2003, organized by the Office for thePastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, which is now part of the Secretariat ofCultural Diversity in the Church (SCDC) of the U.S. Conference of CatholicBishops (USCCB).This year the pilgrimage is sponsored by the Asian PacificCatholic Network (APC-Network) of the mid-Atlantic Region, in collaborationwith the SCDC. The APC-Network is committed to the propagation of the Catholicfaith and practices as seen through the eyes of Asian and Pacific immigrants.

As part of itspastoral goal of promoting understanding of cultural diversity in the Church, theSecretariat of Cultural Diversity is producing educational materials onBuilding Intercultural Competencies for Ministers (BICM) that will continue to supportthe richness and diversity of Asian Pacific and other ethnic groups present inthe Catholic Church in the United States.

The Asian andPacific Catholics of Metropolitan Washington area invite all Catholics andother religious groups to participate in the Asians for Mary Pilgrimage. Participatingcommunities include Bengali, Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Indonesian,Indian (Latin, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara rites), Japanese, Korean,Laotian, Montagnard, Pakistani, Sri Lankan, Tongan, Thai and VietnameseCatholics.

For furtherinformation, media and others may contact Fred Semendy (703) 472-2032, or SisterAnna Nguyen at (202) 541-3384.

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