Bishop's Message
Dear Rev. Fathers, Rev. Sisters and my dear People,
As the Vicar Apostolic of Kuwait and as your Bishop, it is my duty and privilege to welcome you all to this august assembly for the Unity Congress which we begin today. You represent a pluralistic and migrant community and have come over here with much sacrifices. I appreciate your positive response to my invitation for the Congress. It shows your openness to the Holy Spirit and your readiness to listen to each other in communion with your Bishop. You have spared much of your precious time for being present at this fellowship. A real unity and sense of community among the believers in the Church is possible only when there is real communion and communication. Hence, a fruitful dialogue and interaction are necessary for the success of this Congress. Moreover, this is an assembly of believers united in prayer. Therefore a lot of blessing will be showered from above and thus it becomes another experience of the Pentecost. My beloved Clergy, Religious and my dear People, on behalf of the Vicariate may I extend a hearty welcome to all of you. I thank God who have called you to attend this three day session of the Congress
The Unity Congress is an event unique in the history of the Vicariate of
Kuwait. The migrant community from the different parts of the world constitute the great majority of the faithful here and in recent times the number has increased considerably. The need for dialogue and interaction was felt from top to bottom. Moreover, the pluralistic situation calls for greater understanding among the various ritual and linguistic groups so that the entire community is united as the People of God. The origin and nationalities should not be a barrier for unity and fraternity.
A real communion among the disciples was the strongest wish of Jesus and that was his last will too as we read in the Gospel of St. John : “The glory which you have given me, I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one” (Jn.17: 22). We have accepted this wish of Jesus as the motto of our Congress. In spite of our difference in cult and culture, our basic belongingness must be to Jesus. When I speak about belongingness to Jesus , I mean unity in His complete body and with Him as its head.
Our union with Christ should be well reflected in our insertion to the mystical Body of Christ which is fully realized only in the Catholic Church. Hence, our belongingness to the Catholic Church must be the first priority as the People of God. In order to safeguard this basic identity and unity, we must be ready to renounce certain ritual or cultural values which are good in themselves.
These three days are left at our disposal for a mature reflection on the nature of the Church as a real Communion and for the deepening of our sense of belongingness to this Community of Jesus. The information we gather from the talks , the deliberations we make in our group discussions and the prayer sessions we hold, are all means to create a sense of unity and fraternity. The three days of togetherness will also bring us closer to collaborate with the various spiritual and pastoral activities of the Vicariate. Hence, this Congress can create a healthy impression within the members of the Church in Kuwait that we are not an aggregate of different rites or different linguistic and cultural groups. We form one body with Christ as its head. If our Congress can imprint these ideals in our minds, the effort and the sacrifices we make for holding this assembly, will have a lasting impact on our life in Kuwait as Catholics. We become heralds of unity in diversity.
I hope and pray that these days are days of grace with the enlightenment we receive from the Holy Spirit. He is the one who opens our hearts for unity and mutual understanding. I place this gathering under the special protection of the Virgin Mary, the mother of the Redeemer. Once again, extending a warm welcome to all the organizers, preachers and participants, I formally inaugurate this Unity Congress and conclude my words of welcome. Thank you and God bless you.