Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
photo Paolo Andrea Valente
Abu Dhabi (Agenzia Fides) - The Church in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia is a "Church of migrants", where the common experience of being migrant is to feel that there is always "something missing or lacking", starting from their homeland and their distant loved ones. But this perception should be “an opportunity”, first of all for us to open up to each other, and, at the same time, “this condition” brings out the source and the dynamism of Christian hope, “a hope that does not disappoint us because it is rooted in the love of Christ, an irrevocable love, a love forever”.
This is what Capuchin Franciscan Bishop Paolo Martinelli, Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia, writes in his pastoral letter addressed to the Catholic communities present in the Vicariate of Southern Arabia, which includes Oman, Yemen and the United Arab Emirates, on the occasion of the Ordinary Jubilee of the Catholic Church.
Bishop Martinelli points to the characteristic factors - pilgrimage and hope - that characterize the Jubilee period, highlighting the many things that migrants and pilgrims have in common: “Today we are called to be pilgrims of hope” because “a pilgrim goes through the adversities of life knowing that God never abandons him or her. Being pilgrims, reminds us that we are migrants. And like a pilgrim, a migrant is also always on the move”.
“We live in this part of the world, far from our homes and our countries of origin. We are a Church of migrants, we come from over a hundred different nations. Our life here depends on the condition of our jobs and on many circumstances that are not in our control. Precisely in these situations of being migrants, we are called to live with a greater passion, the role of being the pilgrims of hope”, said the Bishop, citing the Bull "Spes non confundit" (n. 13), in which the Pope calls for “signs of hope for migrants who leave their homelands behind in search of a better life for themselves and for their families. Their expectations must not be frustrated by prejudice and rejection”.
Being a migrant, continues Martinelli, “always means dealing with limitations”, such as the absence of families. “Even if we have a lot of help, we cannot have everything that we have in our countries of origin” and this makes us all understand “the temporariness of life”.
“I I invite you to live your reality of being migrants in this land of Arabia as part of your pilgrimage, towards the Kingdom of Heaven, continually supported by Christian hope. We are made for eternal happiness; let us not be deceived by the temporary goods,” the Apostolic Vicar continued.
“Mass migration,” the Apostolic Vicar wrote, “is changing the face of societies and face of the Church. Being aware of this epochal change, being migrants and pilgrims of hope leads us to live intensely and in harmony, our being a Church composed of people who come from many different countries and at the same time promote peace and solidarity in social life. In this way, united in diversity, we can be a prophetic sign of the Kingdom of God.”
Bishop Martinelli also recalls that this year marks 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which gave us “the Creed, which we recite every Sunday. It is still recognized today by all the Churches and denominations of Christianity. Celebrating the Nicene Creed has a great ecumenical value, it pushes us to work for the promotion of unity among all Christians”.
“I invite you to live with great vigor this Holy Year of hope. I encourage you to participate in the programs and the events of our vicariate, especially in the churches declared as shrines for the jubilee (vedi Fides 10/1/2025) and in some of the international events planned in Rome”, concluded the Apostolic Vicar of Southern Arabia. (F.B.) (Agenzia Fides, 7/2/2025)
