Canadian Nuncio Speaks at Plenary

On December 10th, 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Pedro Lopez Quintana as Apolostolic Nuncio to Canada. As nuncio, Archbishop Quintana is the Papal Ambassador to Canada, and was formally the apolostolic delegate to India and Nepal. As the Canadian Assembly of Catholic Bishops closes today it would be interesting to read some of his reflections to the assembly this week when he contrasted catholicism in India with our own lived witness here in Canada:

Archbishop Lopez Quintana

"The North American context is, in many ways, profoundly similar to that of Europe, characterized by pluralism, consumerism and in some sectors religious indifferentism. This last aspect seems typical; whereas in India religion permeates almost every facet of daily life, in the Western world, society tends to relegate it to the purely private realm. Yet Christianity has indelibly marked our culture. In India, the Catholic population is around 18 million people, which is numerically higher than in Canada. Proportionately, however, it represents only 1.8 percent of the entire Indian population. But while this may seem negligible, the vitality of the Church and its presence even in a country like India is in fact, an important component of Indian life. In my humble opinion, it seems that Canadian Catholics can continue contributing significantly to the building up of their country as they have, from the beginning."

They are words of invitation for us as we reflect on our own participation in the carrying of the Gospel from our heads to our hands. It is our shared responsibility to take what we have come to learn about justice and dignity and pass that on - not only in our own families but also within the community in which we live.

I find it rich to expand my understanding of church and culture and to visit my beliefs in the context of the gobal church.