Continent’s First Congress of Family Pastoral, in Panama, 4-9 August
Reviving social reflection, theology and pastoral care of the family, a source of wealth for society. With these objectives the city of Panama is preparing to welcome, from August 4th to 9th, the first Latin American Congress of Pastoral Care of the Family (COLPAFA 1), promoted by the continent’s Council of Bishops (CELAM).
The work, focused on the theme "Family and Social Development for Full Life and Missionary Communion," will be coordinated by CELAM’s Department for Family, Youth and life. "The Congress—says a note quoted by Vatican Radio—intends to analyze the possibilities and challenges of families on the continent, with the aim of making them into the subjects of the social development in the country." Moreover, it is hoped that the conference "will contribute to the economic and political studies on the family," by putting emphasis especially on "its social value and priority as a source of social development." Another hope is that it may "influence family policies, so that they become a priority on the government’s agenda." The issue of the family will be analyzed in relation to five areas: education, communication, life, economy, and the new evangelization. Bishops, delegates for Youth Ministry and members of movements and institutions for the family will share their experiences of life and spirituality, in order to identify the pastoral horizons and develop common lines of action. In preparation for the Congress, the organizing committee has also written a "Prayer for the family and its mission," which asks the Lord to "strengthen, renew and inspire with the grace of the Holy Spirit" all the families in Latin America, so that they may progress "in the arduous task of creating a more humane world."