Archbishop of Braga wants the Church to have open and welcoming doors – Archive – News

The Metropolitan Archbishop of Braga hoped that the Church of Braga and beyond would be more open and welcoming to everyone, especially in the matter of sacraments, especially Baptism, which opens the door to Salvation. In his homily on Palm Sunday, at the Cathedral, D. José Cordeiro, reinforced that the Church is the paternal home, where there is a place for everyone with their tiring lives.

The inspiration for the homily and the appeals came from the symbolism of the opening of the main door of the Cathedral. Between songs and prayers, the Archbishop slowly approaches the door. He knocks three times on the door with a large cross, symbolizing Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Raise your thresholds, O doors, raise yourselves ancient porticos, for the King of Glory to enter.

Later, in his homily, D. José recalled that the “as ancient as it is beautiful” custom of opening the door of the Primate Cathedral with the cross of Jesus Christ challenges us to have the doors of the Church and churches always open, to listen and welcome in the joy of the brotherhood of the Gospel.

For the Archbishop of Braga, the Church is a mother with an open heart and “the Church “on the way out”, as Pope Francis often refers to, is a Church with open doors. (…) The Church is called to always be the Father’s open house. One of the concrete signs of this openness is to have churches with open doors everywhere. (…) and not even the doors of the sacraments should be closed for any reason. This is especially true when it comes to that sacrament that is the “door”: Baptism. (…) We often act as controllers of grace and not as facilitators. But the Church is not a customs house, it is the paternal house, where there is a place for everyone with their tiring life”, Pope Francis reminds us (EG 46-47)”, he quoted, agreeing.

It is necessary to open the churches really and symbolically

In D. José Cordeiro’s opinion, there are still many churches in Braga with closed doors. And they need to be opened, both really and symbolically.

“The Church does not exist and cannot live only for itself. It exists to welcome everyone, it exists for the Mission, or better yet, to evangelize with the Gospel that is always evangelized,” said the prelate, adding:

“The great challenge of Christianity in the current post-modernity is not having ’empty churches’, but having ‘permanently closed churches’. We are not a church of numbers, but of people!”, he stated, with vigor, calling for the opening of the doors, in the real and symbolic sense.

“As the prayer at the dedication of a church highlights: ‘here may the poor find mercy, the oppressed may obtain true freedom, and all men will clothe themselves with the dignity of your children, until they reach the Jerusalem above, the city of Heaven’ ”.

Finally, the Metropolitan Archbishop announced the proposal for the archdiocesan Lent-Easter dynamic: “We propose Silence! In the face of pain and suffering, there are no words that reign. Therefore, we are invited to silence. And silence will help us to listen, to give priority to the other, to generate a true encounter. So, let’s not let ourselves be carried away by the disease of words, but of the gestures that immortalize moments, so often lived in silence.”