Prime Minister does the prayer of the laity at the 150th anniversary of the Seminary of Saint Peter and Saint Paul
The Prime Minister, Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo, attended, as a speaker, during the Academic Seminar “Vocation and Mission”, celebrating the “Dies Natalis” of the 150 years of the Seminary of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, in Fatumeta, Díli, on June 26th.
The Head of Government welcomed the invitation to speak at that ceremony and took the chance to introduce the point of view of the lay people.
“On the current context of Timor-Leste, the most important mission for preachers is to evangelize the baptized”, referred Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo.
From the perspective of the laity, explained the Prime Minister, the Timorese expression “Na’i Lulik” is used to describe the priests, for it includes two different components: “Na’i” (high, in Tetum) and “Lulik” (sacred, in Tetum). “When the missionaries arrived to Timor, the words that Timorese used for their garments, their attitudes, their appearance, were immediately “Na’i Lulik”.
On the other hand, from a social status point of view, the word “Na’i” is used for people of higher status, usually given to someone who is out of the ordinary: “The priests are, undoubtedly, under the context of the catholic world of Timor-Leste, highly regarded people. Therefore, the word “Na’i” in Tetum is appropriate.
The Head of Government also explained that, in Timor-Leste, most part of the population depends on the stimulation made by the priests, namely local priests.
“When the Na’i Lulik do not take the initiative, lay people don’t do it, either. This clearly shows a dependence, leading to the need of a priest profile more focused on community work”, sustained Dr. Rui Maria de Araújo. “The competence of the priests shall allow them to deal with these issues, not only at an operational level, but also as enablers, mobilisers and facilitators, and these roles are important in modern society.”
Finally, the Head of the Executive referred that, under the perspective of a lay person, the profile of the Na’i Lulik, or priest, includes providing good examples. Most of the times, they speak, but they do not influence the attitudes of Christian people. Their attitude carries huge influence, as it is very important the pastoral action on daily life, through examples.
