Why in Italy godparents and godparents are hung at baptism

The dioceses of all Italy adapt themselves to the experiment decided upon by the Italian Episcopal Conference Excluded for three years Godfather and godmother at baptisms and confirmations. There are many who set the beginning of exclusion in June or July, and others who have already begun.

Several dioceses in the regions of Piedmont, Tuscany, Emilia, Sicily, and Veneto led the way for this reform.

The Vatican highlighted to the newspaper “Il Messaggero” that in the baptism that the Pope celebrated in the Sistine Chapel on the day of the Epiphany, There were no godparents or godparents.

The Emeritus Bishop of Trapani, Domenico Mugavero, said that the role of the spiritual father in the sacraments of baptism and confirmation It has partly lost its original meaning.

the reasons

Godfathers and godmothers have a mission Be spiritual with your children And also teach them the stages of faith with their parents.

This did not happen In the overwhelming majority of cases, the presence of godparents and godparents ends after the ceremony of baptism and confirmation social or family fact.

The Diocese of Genoa has announced the trial of suspending their attendance at baptismal and confirmation ceremonies for a period of three years, which will put the new order into effect from the next pastoral year, which begins in December.

witnesses

It proves that if families indicate people who are ready for it “Emotional and educational closeness”, She will be allowed to participate in the festivities Just as a witness of sacred rites.

In the baptismal register the elect will be recorded as “witnesses”.

The Episcopal Conference, which is the Archbishop of Bologna, directed Cardinal Matteo Zubi, Archbishop of Bologna, potential successor From the papacy, he is spurring half a revolution in the Italian Church, caught up in the growing process of secularization that is growing in societies around the world.

In Gubbio, Bishop Luciano Paolucci Bedini confirms that the changes mark “the new season of evangelization with the offer of the Jubilee in 2025”.

Historical reductions and changes in the diocese, promise the measures of the bishop of Gubbio, his hometown in central Italy The parents of the Argentine president Arturo Frondisi, who in the 1950s and 1960s was sometimes called Machiavelli and sometimes “the man from Gubbio”.

The changes expected by the bishop anticipate the activation of the diocesan groups responsible for developing the guidelines. For example, to restore Sunday “which should not be considered a feast with one mass per day, but rather that Sunday should be considered the day par excellence for Christians, a moment of encounter and knowledge.”

Refresh the face of the church

Changes that are pushing parishes like the one in Gubbio are trying Revives the face and activity of the Church. In sacramental rites, for example, The age will be raised to 11 years.

Traditional catechism will be partially replaced by an expansion of activity in preachers, understood as places of meeting and group participation.

Bishop Paolucci Bedini, in agreement with other Italian bishops, thinks we should Fewer festive masses celebrate But with more participation and experiences, with other groups and activities.

“We must put the family at the center, activate the centers of Catholic listening and inspiration. Give strength and awareness to engagement Before An increasing number of separations and divorces.

Last week, the Archbishop of Palermo, Monsignor Corrado Lorevich, announced the suspension decree “ad experience” From the role of the godfather and godmother in the baptism of bambinos and the confirmation of adolescents.

“Social norms and uniform customs have diluted the meaning and mandate of these roles which are exercised in the name of the Church.”

Monsignor Lorevis criticized the reduction of religious baptismal ceremonies to “dancing tinselthus detrimental to its original meaning.

That pope and bishop of Rome Natural leader of the Italian Episcopal Conference And he is about to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his pontificate on Monday the 13th. Discussions and renewals are gaining ground in a year complicated by clashes with the more conservative and traditional sectors.

In addition to celebrating the jubilee of the Holy Year starting in October Synodal Synod that will deal with the problems, conflicts and challenges of the Church.

In order to remove tensions for a long time, the Synod will not end this year. It will be completed with a second part in 2024. It is a repetition of the method of the Synod on the Family, which was held in two phases in 2014 and 2015.

Regarding baptisms, at the ceremony in which he baptized 13 girls and boys in the Sistine Chapel (without godparents) last Wednesday, he said that the Eucharist is very important because it should be considered a “new Christmas” because it means “a new birth of the Christian life.”

The celebration, full of rituals, reminds us of the baptism of Jesus in the waters of the Jordan River.

Vatican correspondent

ap

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