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En esta página se ofrecen testimonios de gran valor histórico. Es una recopilación de artículos publicados en la prensa internacional entre los años 1975 (fecha de fallecimiento del fundador del Opus Dei) y 1990, muy cerca ya de su beatificación por Juan Pablo II. Enlaces Romana (Boletín de la Prelatura del Opus Dei) Obras de San Josemaría Escrivá Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer - Fundador del Opus Dei Iniciativas sociales promovidas por personas del Opus Dei Documentos, artículos y testimonios sobre el Opus Dei y su fundador |
Jaime L. Sin, Arzobispo de Manila, en Bulletin Today (Manila), 29.6.76, en Philippines Daily Express (Manila), 23.6.79, en Abc (Madrid), 26.6.85, y en Bulletin Today (Manila), 2.1.86.
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BULLETIN TODAY, THURS., JAN. 2, 1986 Why I Appreciate the Work of Opus Dei By JAIME CARDINAL SIN During the Extraordinary Synod of Bishops in Rome that ended last December 8, 1985, I was a bit saddened to read sensationalistic re portings in the international press about the alleged rift between the so-called "liberals" and the "conservatives." There was so much fuss about imagined fears that some people in the Vatican wanted to "undo" what was accomplished by the Second Vatican Council. Fortunately, the final reports on the results of the Synod cálmed the fears of the alarmists. What was largely missed by those who focused on the sensationalistic issues were the truly novel insights contributed by the pronouncements of Vatican II to "bring the light of Christ to all men" as the opening lines of the document Lumen Gentium (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) eloquently stated. During these trying times for our nation and for the whole world, I have especially found solace in that truly novel reawakening of the Church to the universal calling to sanctity and consequently, to the special role of the laity to sanctify themselves in the middle of the world. If I were. to single out an outstanding innovation of the Second Vatican Council, I would readily choose its well-known emphasis on the responsibility of the laity to sanctify temporal realities. In the words of Lumen Gentium: "The laity, by their very vocation, . seek the Kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and by ordering them according to the plan of God. They live in the world, that is, in each and in all of the secular professions and occupations. They live in the ordinary circumstances of family and social life, from which the very web of their existence is woven. They are called there by God that by exercising their proper function and led by the spirit of the Gospel, they may work for the sanctification of the world from within as leaven." As I reread these words of one of the major documents of Vatican U, I cannot but rejoice that a beloved institution of the Catholic Church, the Prelature of the Holy Cross and Opus Dei, has been working in the Archdiocese of Manila for more than 20 years. In my frequent contacts with people of Opus Dei, I have seen for myself the truth of what Pope John Paul I said of the Servant of God, Monsignor Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, the Founder of Opus Dei. The late Roman Pontiff said in an article he wrote just before his death that Map. Escriva was a precursor of Vatican II. As early as Oct. 2,,1928 = more than thirty five years before Vatican II - he already started preaching that holiness was an obligation for everyone, not only for priests and religious men and women. For 47 years, he exhorted millions of people in writing and verbally to live the fullness of Christian life in their ordinary occupations. His teachings - which were considered heretical by some - were literally canonized by the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council. I am very much impressed by the silent and hidden apostolic work of thousands of members of Opus Dei in my Archdiocese. As the "Declaration concerning Opus Dei," issued by the Sacred Congregation of Bishops on Aug. 23, 1982 states: "In the aims and spirit of Opus Dei, stress is laid on the sanctifying value of ordinary work, that is to say, on the obligation to sanctify work, to sanctify oneself in one's work, and to turn it into an instrument of the apostolate." Because of this unique spirituality, the members avoid all types of ostentations and public display. As ' their Founder said, what is extraordinary about Opus Dei is that it is completely ordinary. Unfortunately, some unthinking persons brand as "secrecy" this most natural way of passing unnoticed. I must say that I am very pleased with the services rendered by Opus Dei in my Archdiocese. Very often, when I am in Rome, I have the pleasure to dine with the present Prelate of Opus Dei. Msgr. Alvàro del Portillo, whose company I enjoy very much. He occasionally reminds me that Msgr. Escriva loved to repeat that Opus Dei wants to serve the Church as the Church wants to be served. I fully subscribe to the words of Msgr. del Portillo in a recent interview: "It is a great blessing from God for any diocese to be able to count on a good number of Christians, highly respected in their professional work, who try to live a life of intense prayer and to give a sincere Christian witness, despite their personal limitations. Keep in mind also that these men and women try to transmit their ideals to their relatives, colleagues and friends. They bring them to the sacraments, to the life of grace, and to a more intense participation in the activities of their respective parish communities. The diocese benefits from the Christian families that those men and women form, and from the voce tions to the priesthood and to the religious life that come from those homes. Society also stands to gain because of the educational undertakings and welfare activities initiated by the members of the Opus Dei all over the world, in cooperation with many other people, including non-Catholics and non-Christians. Finally, in a recent visit to the Center for Research and Communication, whose spiritual and doctrinal guidance has been entrusted to Opus Dei, I.reconfirm the important apostolate of doctrine the members of Opus Dei are undertaking among those who can do much to exercise what Pope John Paul II calls the "preferential option for the poor." By thoroughly exposing professional men and women to the social doctrine of the Church and encouraging everyone to practise the corporal works of mercy, the members of Opus Dei are actively helping to eliminate the roots of mass poverty, especially through their professional or technical competence. The members are faithfully following the footsteps of their Founder who began Opus Dei among the poor and sick in the most depressed slums of Madrid. As he said, "The human strength of the Work has been the sick people in the hospitals of Madrid: the most forsaken ones; those who live in their houses, having lost the last vestiges of human hope. the most ignorant in the remotest corner of the city." It is most comforting to know that among the members of Opus Dei, I have some of my strongest allies in putting into practice the "preferential option for the poor." 74 Opus Dei: opiniones de protagonistas |
