The Child’s Pastoral, a CNBB (Brazilian Bishops National Conference) social action organism, bases its activities on the community organization and training community leaders who live there. They assume the task of guiding and following up the neighboring families on health, education, nutrition and citizenship basic actions, having as goal the “full development of children, improving, because of them, their families and communities, regardless of race, color, profession, nationality, sex, religious or political beliefs.” (Article 2 of the Statute)
Vision
We work for a world without preventable mother-child deaths and where all the children, even the most vulnerable, can live in a favorable environment to their development. (Isaak 65, 16)
Mission
“That all the children may have life and have it abundantly.” (Jo 10,10). The mission of the Child’s Pastoral is to promote the development of children, in the light of the evangelical option for the poor, from the mother's womb to 6 years old, helping their families and communities to transform their own lives through basic guidelines of health, nutrition, education and citizenship, based on the Christian mystic that unites faith and life.
Values and beliefs
Beliefs (In what Child’s Pastoral believes):
God's glory is life;
Faith and Life: experience faith, through concrete actions in the community;
God reveals Himself preferentially to the poor;
Sharing and Solidarity.
Values (what characterizes the way of action and attitudes):
Adherence to the Child’s Pastoral Mission;
Ethics (Transparency, Honesty, Justice, Fairness);
Simplicity;
Non Discrimination (race, color, profession, nationality, sex, religious or political beliefs);
Commitment to results;
Perseverance;
Valuing children, pregnant women and families;
Joy in serving;
Multiply the knowledge;
Go and meet, look for proximity;
Foundation:
Child’s Pastoral was founded in 1983, in the city of Florestópolis, Paraná (South of Brazil), by the public health and pediatric doctor, Dra. Zilda Arns Neumann, and by Dom Geraldo Majella Agnelo, who then was Archbishop of Londrina (Paraná, South of Brazil) today Cardinal Emeritus. The institution is present in all Brazilian states and in other 21 countries of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.
Levels of Coordination
The Child’s Pastoral is organized into community, branch, sector, state and country and there are coordination teams and councils in each level. The Internal Regiment, approved by the General Assembly, sets their rules and structures.
Community coordination: exercised by one of the leaders of Child’s Pastoral from the community.
Branch coordination (parish): responsible for several communities with Child’s Pastoral of a same parish. The coordinator is indicated, within a three names list, by the community coordinators of the respective branch (parish) and ratified by the parish priest.
Sector coordination (diocese): responsible for several branches (parishes) with Child’s Pastoral from the diocese to which belongs. Is indicated by the branch coordinators and ratified by the diocesan bishop.
State coordination: responsible for several sectors (dioceses) with Child’s Pastoral from the state. Is indicated by the sector coordinators and ratified by the bishop responsible for Child’s Pastoral in the state.
National coordination: supports the activity of the coordinations all over Brazil. The national coordinator is nominated by the President of the Management Council and ratified by the CNBB.
Management Council: is elected by the General Assembly of Child’s Pastoral and ratified by the CNBB.
General Assembly: maximum organ of Child’s Pastoral. It is composed by the Management Council, the dioceses, represented by the state coordinators, and representatives of the National Association of Friends of Child’s Pastoral.