The words of Archbishop Wacław Depo – the Metropolitan of Częstochowa on the occasion of the 1000th edition of the ‘Częstochowa Sunday’

Joy and gratitude

At the very beginning of this message I would like to recall a kind of a principle, which obliges all of us believing in Christ: ‘Sentire cum Ecclesia’. This short sentence which précises us the Latin language, has a very rich essence and a calling often heard by us, derives from it, that we should ‘live the life of the Church’ through the Divine grace. Therefore, I received the message about the 1000th evangelising edition of our Częstochowa edition of ‘Sunday’ with joy and gratitude towards God. The first edition which was published in the year 1991, was enriched with a word and pastoral blessing of Bishop Stanislaw Nowak. Initially it came out as a monthly so that after 4 years, in 1995 it could change into an 8-page-weekly. This ‘blessed beginning’ entailed a great ecclesiastical and social event which was the VI Worldly Youth’s Days in Częstochowa with the participation of the Holy Father John Paul II. Going with the Church, going with Peter of our times and ‘under Peter’ – ‘Cum Petro et sub petro’, our Częstochowa edition pointed to and still points to the faithfulness to the deposit of faith, the presence of challenges and to the directions of changes towards processes, in which Christian faith is questioned. The work of the ‘new evangelisation’, which we undertake under the impulses of faith of Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI is a continuous invitation, so that everybody, without any exception, believed that ‘his life is going on in Christ and he will gain salvation with Him’ (see ‘Redemptoris hominis’ no.13). This work needs cooperation on various fields of mass media, so that, thanks to it ‘on the deserts of this world one could hear and understand the words of evangelical faith, which will revive real life, life in God in us’ (‘Instrumentum laboris’ of Bishops’s Synod no.8).

As the fifth bishop of Częstochowa, as well as the second metropolitan, I express my gratitude to the Reverend Chief Editor Fr. Ireneusz Skubiś and his co-operators for the whole previous road of struggles for the truth of Christ and faithfulness to the Church. I also assure about my prayer so that the message of the ‘Sunday’ would be an effective testimony of the truth and the hope laid in God for the furthest generations. May Mother of the Embodied Word, Jasna Góra Mother of the Church support your every effort and your whole life.

With pastoral blessing

Archbishop Wacław Depo

Częstochowa, 11 July 2012, on the Holiday of St Benedict the patron of Europe

(AA)

"Niedziela" 30/2012

Editor: Tygodnik Katolicki "Niedziela", ul. 3 Maja 12, 42-200 Czestochowa, Polska
Editor-in-chief: Fr Jaroslaw Grabowski • E-mail: redakcja@niedziela.pl