The president of the Venezuelan Bishops’ Conference Commission for Education, Bishop Carlos Enrique Curiel Herrera, urges all children, adolescents, young people, and other members of educational communities to use the tools of study and learning to build harmony for the country.

“As we return to our schools in this new calendar year, our Commission wishes to send a greeting filled with hope to every teacher, every student, every family, and every member who makes up the entire national educational community,” said the Bishop.

The Venezulan bishops, he added, want education to be a “space where peace and justice are strengthened, recognizing that, despite difficulties, the educational setting continues to be the most sacred place to sow the seed of faith, commitment to the values of justice, and the freedom that guide our existence.”

Bishop Curiel Herrera expressed his hopes that the Lord may accompany students and teachers “in every step that you will take; that His light, revealed in the Epiphany just celebrated, may shine in your hearts; and that the joy of this encounter may renew your strength to serve with evangelical faithfulness.”

He prayed that St. José Gregorio Hernández may “grant us his wisdom and his humility for service, and may Mother Carmen Rendiles Martínez teach us to educate with that tenderness that transforms lives.”

Invitation to build peace

The Venezuelan Bishops invited children and teachers to approach study and learning as “tools for building peace in the country.”

“May the start of the school year,” concluded Bishop Curiel Herrera, “be an opportunity to listen to one another, discern God’s will, ask for concord and peace for Venezuela, and renew our commitment to keep our schools as safe spaces for building citizenship, democracy, justice, and peace.”