Pope says popular piety is a great heritage of the Church

(April 08, 2011) Popular piety is a great heritage of the Church that deepens the faith life of Catholics, but one must watch out against certain wayward forms of piety that create confusion and harm in the Church. Pope Benedict XVI made the remark on Friday while addressing participants in the plenary session of the Vatican’s Pontifical Commission for Latin America that discussed the theme: “The impact of popular piety in the process of evangelization of Latin America." The Pope noted the rich and profound popular religiosity that characterizes the faith life of the Latin American people, saying when in line and properly guided they create a fruitful encounter with God, an intense veneration of the Blessed Sacrament, an endearing devotion to the Virgin Mary, a growing affection for the Successor of Peter and an awareness of belonging to the Church. Popular piety, he further explained, serves to evangelize, to communicate the faith, to bring the faithful to the sacraments, to strengthen the bonds of friendship, family and community, and to increase solidarity and the exercise of charity. “At the same time it must be closely linked with the liturgy, which can not be replaced by any other religious expression,” the Pope stressed, adding, “the liturgy and popular piety are two forms of worship which are in mutual and fruitful relationship with each other. “Liturgy must be the benchmark for "clearly and carefully guiding the longings of prayer and charismatic life," Pope Benedict added.