Pope says Puerto Rico needs better religious ed, training for priests

Published: 2007-07-02

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Improved religious education for children, better marriage preparation and greater care in training priests are needed to combat the erosion of the Catholic faith and traditional moral and cultural values in Puerto Rico, Pope Benedict XVI said. The pope met June 30 with the bishops of Puerto Rico who were making their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican to report on life in their dioceses. Pope Benedict said the bishops' individual reports recounted "the challenges and difficulties" faced by the church in a changing social, economic and religious environment marked by "religious indifference and a certain moral relativism." To counter the trend, he said, the church must be an institution marked by unity and a spirit of cooperation. Pope Benedict suggested that the Puerto Rican bishops consider cooperating more closely in running their seminaries, particularly in finding "the most appropriate and best-prepared educators for this mission."

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