Cardinal Oswald Gracias, archbishop of Bombay, Credit: Archdiocese of Bombay.
Bangkok, Thailand, Jul 23, 2013 / 12:07 pm ().- Pope Francis' encyclical “Lumen Fidei” is notable for exploring the “valuable richness” of faith and for being an “answer to the present challenges to faith,” according to the Archbishop of Bombay.
“Lumen Fidei” is a “challenge to us not to take our faith for granted, but to understand our faith, to live it ethically, and proclaim it confidently,” Cardinal Oswald Gracias told CNA July 22.
The encyclical has the “theological depth” and insights of Benedict XVI as well as the “direct approach” of Pope Francis, making concrete examples to form direct appeals to people of God.
“I think the combination has been excellent (in) the depth, clarity and appeal” of the document.
While the encyclical is addressed to all the faithful, Cardinal Gracias examined it in the light of his Asian context, linking it to Blessed John Paul II's 1999 apostolic exhortation “Ecclesia in Asia,” which promoted a “great harvest of faith” on that continent.
“Lumen Fidei” is addressed to the “universal” Church, Cardinal Gracias said, and each diocese is called to pastorally “apply” the teaching of the Bishop of Rome to its “particular” situation.
The cardinal indicated that the years between Blessed John Paul II's apostolic exhortation to Asian Catholics and the present Holy Father's encyclical letter have been the occasion of a “reawakening,” a call to rediscover the richness of the faith in Asian cultures.
There is a “cry against corruption,” a cry for “good governance” and an “attitude of servant leadership” all over the world, Cardinal Gracias reflected, adding that “Lumen Fidei” is an effort to inculturate the light of faith so as to let the Gospel form better societies.