Sepe, Scampia yard new hope for Naples
Jul 03, 2006
"My pastoral walk into the reality of Naples could not but start here, in this place of drama and waiting," said Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Archbishop of Naples, beginning his office as the head of the diocese of Naples.
(AGI) - Naples, Jul 1 2006 - From the stage of Scampia, before thousands of people greeting him warmly, Sepe reveals having "greatly" desired to namely "stop here in Scampia and kiss for the first time this blessed land before continuing on to the cathedral." The new Neapolitan archbishop said, "And from here I can fill up my heart and my hands to more worthily celebrate the sacrifice at the altar." He continues saying, those who love Naples "firstly, as a good Samaritan, turn unto their own injuries, because it is the only way to authenticate a bond of complete and total sharing and compromise. There is a good side and a bad side of Naples, but a shepherd cannot love selectively." His visit to the symbolic poor neighbourhood is therefore "overall an act of homage: we are in a no man's land, or worse, in a domain of dark deeds and violence because even though evil seems to dominate, it is also true that good is also working here with equal energy and determination." The cardinal feels that Scampia is "also an unassailable fortress of solidarity and sharing with initiatives which barely manage to make any noise but which have a strong effect on morale. Scampia has the most solid bricks on which to open the trust of the yard for the new hope of Naples." Sepe's speech refers to the parable of the rock which was discarded by builders, which became a cornerstone "of an unstoppable moral and material rebirth." The archbishop explicitly mentions the visit of Pope John Paul II to the neighbourhood and his exhortation to residents never to surrender to evil. He said, "Those words are important today as well, in the face of difficulties and problems." Sepe lists the problems plaguing Scampia such as the lack of services, the occupational crisis, the abandoning of schools by students, petty crime and social deviance, and organised crime. But his invitation is to continue on the path shown by John Paul II. Only by triumphing over evil with good, he said, will it be possible to build a future for those who live in Scampia and "to find new horizons of prosperity and peace for Naples and for all of the South." He said, "Brothers and sisters, I exhort you to go ahead with faith. Witness the hope which is in you and which no one can kill." Then he leaves the neighbourhood to the Madonna of Hope which is its patron.
Sepe, Scampia yard new hope for Naples