Bishops called to serve people, promote evangelization, Pope says
September 22, 2014
In a message to bishops taking part in a conference organized by the Congregation for Evangelization, Pope Francis said that the missionary work "involves every baptized person and every parish."
The Pope asked the bishops-- most of them serving in countries where Christians are a minority-- to lead and support their people in the work of evangelization. He characterized that work as the "missionary transformation that currently challenges the People of God."
Pope Francis encouraged the prelates not to be "intimidated by the difficulties and challenges of the current world, that make the mission of bishops even more arduous nowadays." Sketching a portrait of a good bishop, he said:
The Church needs pastors, that is, servants, bishops, who are able to kneel before others to wash their feet. Pastors who are close to the people, meek fathers and brothers, patient and merciful; who embrace poverty both as freedom for the Lord and as simplicity and austerity in life.
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