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Herald Malaysia
5 days ago
- Politics
- Herald Malaysia
Pan-African Congress urges support for missionaries facing visa, racism challenges
Delegates of the third Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society, and Pastoral Life who gathered in Ivory Coast's city of Abidjan from August 5–10 have called for the support of African missionaries who are experiencing hardships in their missions, especially those set back by immigration challenges. Aug 14, 2025 Delegates of the third Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society, and Pastoral Life gathered in Ivory Coast's city of Abidjan from Aug. 5–10, 2025. | Credit: Radio Grace Espoir By Agnes Aineah Delegates of the third Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society, and Pastoral Life who gathered in Ivory Coast's city of Abidjan from August 5–10 have called for the support of African missionaries who are experiencing hardships in their missions, especially those set back by immigration challenges. In a statement at the end of the congress, the delegates said divisions such as ethnicity and racism must not stand in the way of missionary discipleship in Africa and even outside the continent. Noting that self-reliance is an imperative for the Church in Africa, 'not as isolation from other local churches but as mature participation in the universal communion of faith,' the delegates said: 'This means … supporting African missionaries in the challenging mission in some parts of the world where some African missionaries experience racism and immigration restrictions.' The delegates acknowledged that the African Church has transitioned to becoming a 'Church of the Sheaves,' sharing personnel within the continent, even outside Africa. 'We recognize with gratitude how far the African Church has journeyed: transiting from a mission Church receiving the Gospel to a Church of the Sheaves, sharing gifts and sending missionaries to other parts of the world,' they said, adding: 'We commit ourselves to deepening this transformation as missionary disciples of the Lord to Africa and the world.' They said that synodality, as explored in the Synod on Synodality, is the pathway of the mission of evangelization and called for 'overcoming divisions based on ethnicity, status, or ideology.' The call by the congress delegates comes amid mounting frustrations of foreign Catholic priests who have been forced out of South Africa on alleged expiry of their visas. In some of the most recent incidences, two Ugandan-born priests were forced to abandon their ministry in the country after reportedly being frustrated in their visa renewal processes. Father Stephen Syambi served in South Africa's Diocese of Klerksdorp before he was forced out on July 16, and Father Jude Thaddeus served in the Diocese of De Aar before he was sent packing in May. The president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC), Cardinal Stephen Brislin, has expressed his spiritual closeness with foreign Church ministers who have been forced out of South Africa, telling them not to lose hope but to 'try and resolve this matter.' Organized by the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network (PACTPAN), the five-day congress in Abidjan brought together theologians, bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated women and men, lay leaders, youth, and Catholic communicators who engaged with the theme 'Journeying Together in Hope as Church, Family of God in Africa.' Conference participants explored Africa's contribution to the global Church's understanding of the Synod on Synodality, advancement of African theological scholarship, and the place of women and youths in the Church in Africa. Participants also discussed urgent issues affecting African communities, including human trafficking, religious persecution, and environmental degradation. They emphasized the urgent need for the African Church to become more self-reliant by generating and managing resources in a transparent manner. The delegates also underscored the need to support clergy, religious, and pastoral workers materially and spiritually. Also important, they said, is the need to invest in theological formation, research, and Catholic education at all levels and to build sustainable institutions of evangelization, health care, and social service. The delegates further suggested that an African-led missionary fund be developed in Africa to support the work of African missionaries to the rest of the world. In their statement, the delegates also described Africa as 'a gift to the world,' saying: 'Africa is rich in faith, culture, and values.' 'The African family remains the domestic Church and the moral bedrock of society, preserving traditions of solidarity, hospitality, and mutual care. We affirm the irreplaceable role of women, youth, and elders as bearers of these values and as agents of renewal in the Church and society,' they said. Central to their deliberations was the theme of hope that Pope Leo XIV explored at length his message of solidarity with the participants of the congress. The participants presented hope as not simply an idea, a sentiment, or an aspiration. 'Hope is a person — Jesus Christ, crucified and risen,' they said in their final statement. 'He is the unshakable anchor for our faith, the sure foundation for our dreams, and the wellspring of courage for our mission.' 'Hope, grounded in Christ, enables us to … stand firm amid wars, political instability, and violence that afflict many African nations, resist despair in the face of poverty, corruption, and social breakdown, and care for our common home even as climate change threatens ecosystems, livelihoods, and future generations,' they added. Hope, they said, helps the people of God in Africa to heal the wounds of displacement, forced migration, and the loss of human dignity on the continent and to create new structures of love and programmes of reconciliation.' 'Our hope is not naïve optimism,' they said, adding that hope, for Africans, 'is a theological virtue rooted in the Resurrection — trusting that God is always creating and re-creating, raising life from ashes, and bringing light out of darkness.'--CNA
Saudi Gazette
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Africa remembers Pope who spoke for the continent
NAIROBI — Millions of African Catholics, as well as the continent's leaders, are mourning a man who they felt spoke for Africa. Home to nearly a fifth of the Church's followers, or 272 million people, Africa is becoming increasingly important in the Catholic world, and observers say Pope Francis did a lot to raise the profile of the continent within the institution. Heads of state reflected the sentiments of many describing how the late Pope spoke out for the marginalised. Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu called him a "tireless champion of the poor" and his South African counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted his "world view of inclusion [and] equality". The Vatican says that over the past year, seven million Africans have converted to Catholicism, making the continent one of the fastest-growing regions for the Church. "This Pope has made a lot of efforts to make our faith inclusive... I remember him with joy," Ghanaian Catholic Aba Amissah Quainoo told the BBC in the capital, Accra. "He was really loved by all because of his stance on the poor and the marginalised," Rev George Obeng Appah added. At the Holy Family Basilica in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, Rosemary Muthui said worshippers there will remember the Pope as a man who brought change to the Church, especially in promoting equality. "His love for the African Church was great, and we will miss him," she told the BBC. She said she met him when he went to Kenya a decade ago on the first of his five visits to the continent which took in 10 African countries in all. His last in 2023 was to South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, Kitsita Ndongo Rachel did not hesitate when she broke protocol to personally meet the Pope. "My heart was beating, I was less than 100 metres away. I slipped between the security agents; knelt down and asked the Pope for his blessing," the journalist remembers. "He blessed me, and he blessed my rosary." She says her actions were influenced by the Pope's teachings which spoke to her about what can be done in her conflict-ridden country. "When we listen to him, we feel that he wanted or he wants justice for the Democratic Republic of Congo, he knows that millions of people have died." Nigeria and Kenya have among the highest weekly church attendance rates globally, while DR Congo, Cameroon, Uganda and Angola also have strong Catholic communities. "One of the biggest things Pope Francis did for Africa was to bring global attention to the continent's importance in the Catholic Church," said Charles Collins, managing editor of Crux, a leading Catholic news website covering Vatican affairs and Catholicism. "He has not only spoken about Africa's struggles but has physically gone to marginalised areas, showing solidarity with victims of war, displacement and injustice," said Father Stan Chu Ilo, president of the Pan-African Catholic Theological Network. During his 2015 trip to the Central African Republic, the Pope pressed home a message of peace amid conflict there. In 2019, in a highly symbolic moment at the Vatican, the Pope knelt down and kissed the feet of South Sudan's rival leaders. His trip to the country four years later was a special peace mission that included then Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. And in a letter sent in the last week of March, Pope Francis urged President Salva Kiir and First Vice-President Riek Machar "to prioritize peace, reconciliation and development for the benefits of their people — South Sudanese". But the need to make that plea speaks to the limits of the Pope's power, as there are now fears the country could be on the brink of another civil war. Despite the remarkable growth of the Church on the continent and the creation of new African cardinals, Africa remains underrepresented in high-ranking Vatican positions. "The Catholic Church's future is African, but it hasn't yet translated into real influence at the Vatican. That shift is still to come," Collins said. Now attention starts to turn to who will succeed him and whether an African could take the helm for the first time in 1,500 years. "An African Pope is not a question of 'if' but 'when' — because the Catholic Church in Africa is now a theological, spiritual, and demographic powerhouse," Father Ilo said. — BBC
