Pope Francis has called on the peoples of Latin America to take pride in their cultural and social diversity. Indians, African-Americans, mestizos, campesinos or suburban dwellers are unlikely to be deprived of their greatest wealth.
Pope Francis, who hails from Buenos Aires, said as much on Tuesday in St. Peter's Basilica during a mass in honor of the "Virgen de Guadalupe," the patron saint of Latin America. "Ideological colonization" must be resisted, he said.
Francis warned against attempts at cultural homogenization in his service, which was conducted in Spanish. If Latin Americans allowed a uniform way of thinking, feeling and living to be imposed on them "under attractive slogans," they would make the heritage of their ancestors sterile and deprive the young generation in particular of a sense of belonging.
Appeal also to the church
The Church of Latin America must also wear a face of mestizos, indigenous peoples and small farmers as well as the face of the poor, unemployed, children and the elderly, the pope said. No one should feel ashamed or worthless. He also recalled Native Americans and African Americans, who "in many cases are not treated with dignity and equality," disadvantaged women, young people without adequate educational and future opportunities, displaced people, the landless and underage victims of sex tourism.
Francis deplored among them the feeling of a "sterility" that paralyzes life. This sterility, he said, "can take many names and forms, each time a person feels in his flesh the shame of being stigmatized or feeling worthless". The "dream of God" is never to stigmatize or fill his children with shame, the pope said.
South America trip 2018
In January, Francis travels to Chile and Peru. Several meetings with indigenous people are also on the agenda there. The devotion to the Virgin of Guadalupe dates back to Marian apparitions in the 16th century. Century back in Mexico. John Paul II. (1978-2005) named her patron saint of South and North America and led the 12. December established as a general Catholic day of remembrance. The Basilica of Santa Maria de Guadalupe in Mexico City, which preserves the image of Our Lady, is considered the largest Catholic pilgrimage site in the world.