‘A great chance to revive the faith’

| Michaela Nesvarova

To mark their 70th jubilee year, student association Ariëns has invited Archbishop Aldo Cavalli. The Papal Nuncio to the Netherlands will visit Enschede on the 23rd of October to celebrate an international mass in the Jacobuskerk.

Members of association Ariëns Katholieke Studenten Enschede

Aldo Cavalli is the envoy of Pope Francis to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. His visit was initiated by Ariëns Katholieke Studenten Enschede, a Catholic community consisting of students and young people from the UT and other educational institutes.

‘It’s an excellent opportunity to strengthen the Catholic community in Enschede and to get our group known,’ says Ricardo Lopez de la Cruz, Ariëns member and a PhD researcher at the UT. ‘The Catholic community in the Netherlands is not as strong. I’ve been here for a few years and it actually seems to be getting smaller. So this is a great chance to revive the faith, because perhaps many people simply don’t know that the community exists.’

Before the mass on Tuesday, members of Ariëns will have a social meeting with the Archbishop. ‘We’d like to talk to him about our lives in Enschede, about Catholicism in the area and about student life,’ says Lopez de la Cruz. ‘I think it’s important for people in the “higher ranks” to know what our generation goes through, what we think about, because that will allow them to better approach the young generation.’

The Pontifical International Mass with Aldo Cavalli will take place at 18:30 on 23rd of October in the Jacobuskerk in Enschede. It will be held in English and everyone is welcome to join.

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