Diocesan Resources
Asian and Pacific Presence: Harmony in Faith in Chinese (2002)
Asian and Pacific Presence: Harmony in Faith in Chinese
In a spirit of heartfelt pastoral concern for the Asian and Pacific people in our midst, we Catholic bishops of the United States write this statement to all Catholics and especially to our Asian and Pacific brothers and sisters to recognize and affirm with loving assurance their presence and prominence in the Lord's house. We pray that this pastoral statement will facilitate a fuller appreciation of their communities in our local churches and will encourage Asian and Pacific Catholics to take on active leadership roles in every level of church life.
In our solicitude as pastors, we hope that, by their vital participation, our Asian and Pacific sisters and brothers will help the Church in the United States shine as a sacrament of unity and universality. The post-synodal document The Church in Asia (Ecclesia in Asia) promulgated in 1999 by Pope John Paul II in New Delhi, India, echoes the Second Vatican Council.
In November 2000, in the pastoral statement Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity, we bishops outlined ways that the Church in the United States—a church of many races and cultures—might become more fully a sacrament of unity and universality. As a direct application of that statement, we welcome our Asian and Pacific sisters and brothers and encourage all members of the Church in the United States to do the same.
We will briefly present a portrait of the members of the Asian and Pacific communities—Catholics and non-Catholics—celebrate their gifts and contributions, reflect on the pastoral needs and concerns of the Catholics among them, acknowledge the efforts that have begun, and suggest helpful pastoral approaches to build our common future. It is our hope as bishops that Asian and Pacific Catholics will experience a warm welcome and sense of belonging in our local churches, building on the many gifts with which they have enriched our church communities over many decades.