Pope Benedict XVI unveiled a new Vatican agency to promote “new evangelization” and assigned it the task of combating the “de-Christianization” of countries that were first evangelized centuries ago. The new council, named the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, will encourage a clearer understanding of the faith and help “remake the Christian fabric of human society.” In an apostolic letter dated Oct. 12, the pope identified a variety of factors in the weakening of religious faith in the West: advances in science and technology; the widening of individual freedom and lifestyle choices; profound economic changes; the mixing of cultures and ethnic groups brought about by migration; and the growing interdependence among peoples. Such changes have brought many benefits but often are accompanied by “a worrisome loss of the sense of the sacred,” he said.
New Agency at Vatican For New Evangelization
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