With the slogan "They will not steal our hope", four institutions of the Church of Chile called for a renewal of the commitment to human rights that had been made 40 years ago to the day at the International Symposium on Human Rights. This symposium had been convened by Cardinal Raúl Silva Henríquez in 1978.
This call to renewal took place on Sunday, 25th November in a cathedral church overflowing with hope, when a number of lay people renewed their commitment to the defense of human rights, thereby recalling one of the most symbolic moments experienced during the dictatorship: the International Human Rights Symposium that closed on 25th November, 1978. On this occasion, a large candle was lit, to represent commitment to the promotion and defense of human rights.
The candle was lit again at the Memorial of Esteban Gumucio, located in the parish of San Pedro and San Pablo in La Granja. More than a hundred men and women from the church were present, representing some of the families who had participated in the symposium and signed their names in a letter in 1978.
The afternoon ended with the performance of a fragment of the ‘Cantata of Human Rights’ by Esteban Gumucio and Alejandro Guarello, which had been created especially for the symposium, the text and melodies of which are part of the history of the church.
This meeting was possible thanks to a joint effort of the following church institutions: Caritas Chile, the Vicariate of the Caritas Social Pastoral of Santiago, the Silva Henríquez Catholic University through the direction of Linking with the Environment, and the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts.
11/30/2018