Oct 9, 2006 / 22:00 pm
In an interview this week with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) newly appointed Peruvian Bishops José Maria Ortega and Kay Schmalhausen have said a new emphasis needs to be placed on the neglected spiritual wellbeing of their people.
The newly appointed bishops of Juli and Ayaviri, located in the Andean high plateau of southern Peru, told the international aid agency that “there is a lot of ideology” within their local Churches.
The prelates pointed out that, over the past three decades, “social interests” had been overemphasized at the expense of “pastoral care for the indigenous population.”
“What we have to do now is to promote evangelization and social justice – in accordance with the Magisterium of the Church,” Bishop Ortega stated. “Appropriate catechetical work among laity as well as a sound and proper formation of seminarians are priorities for the next few years.”
The two asked ACN to support their efforts and both bishops made it clear that they would do all in their power to turn around the deterioration in faith and morals in their prelatures.