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Latin American partner to bring ‘diakonia’ experience to Rupert’s Land

April 30, 2006

By Diana

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Canada: PWRDF 2006 Regional Meetings

Participants in The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) Rupert’s Land regional meeting taking place in Banff, Alberta (April 28-29), will get to hear from PWRDF Latin American partner and board member, Mara Lucia Manzoni Luz about the diakonia (service) experiences and challenges in Latin America.

‘Diakonia’ is central to the mission and being of the churches,” said Ms. Luz.  “It challenges us as Christian communities to relate more closely to our local context, and discover new, contextually appropriate patterns as to how we respond to the needs of our communities.”
 
In the context of Latin America, until the early 1960s, diakonia responded more to the consequences of poverty, but that focus shifted to address more pressing political issues during the period when most of the countries in the region were ruled by military dictatorships and violation of human rights had become an integral part of state policy.

“Those years gave rise to a strong ecumenical movement in Latin America, a relationship which we enjoy today,” said Ms. Luz.

Gradually, the concept of diakonia became synonymous with conscientisation or popular education. It was understood that it was necessary to unveil to the poor the structural causes of poverty. Solidarity became a synonym for political action on behalf of the poor.

However, the challenges are still there. The gap between the rich and the poor is widening, “churches in Latin America are still struggling to strengthen the capacity of impoverished communities,” noted Ms. Luz, “there is still a need to revive the strong ecumencial movement that existed in the 70s and 80s.”
Although diakonia work differs from country to country, Ms. Luz hopes to learn how Canadian Anglican dioceses and parishes practice their diaconal work in local communities.

“The regional meeting in Banff, will give me the opportunity to hear how dioceses and parishes are working locally to address some of the social justice issues within their communities,” said Ms. Luz.
Regional Meetings
The Banff regional meeting is the first of four PWRDF regional meetings expected to take place in 2006.

The regional meetings take place in the four Ecclesiastical Provinces of the Anglican Church of Canada, which are Rupert’s Land, British Columbia, Canada and Ontario.

The two-day regional meetings are intended to bring together PWRDF diocesan representatives, refugee coordinators, diocesan committee members, gift planning/financial development consultants, youth council members, KAIROS regional representatives and others interested and involved with PWRDF at the parish level.

The regional meetings are also intended to deepen the understanding of the work of PWRDF to its constituency and strengthen relationships among and between dioceses and PWRDF staff, and foster PWRDF’s international partnerships with its invited international partners who will be participating in the meetings.

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