2017-10-31 17:35:00

Africa urged to protect the family from spiritual and moral vulnerability


The National Directors of the Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS)  of the Catholic Churches of English-Speaking Africa recently gathered in Harare for two weeks with the aim of strengthening the missionary communion and to share notes on how to carry forward the mission of the Church. Two such meetings are organized in Africa after a considerable period of time one for the French-speaking Directors and another one for the English-speaking Directors to support the Holy Father, Pope Francis, in his solicitude for all the Churches in the world.

The Pontifical Mission Societies President, Archbishop Protase Rugambwa, reminded the church in Africa quoting the words of blessed Pope Paul VI that faith of African Churches is fruit of the laudable testimony and sacrifice of countless missionaries who, leaving behind their families, lands and churches of origin, came to share with us the gift of the life, love, and truth of Jesus Christ, that is the gift of life. By this Archbishop Rugambwa urged the Church in Africa to remain focused in its missionary work and breath life in churches around the world whose faith was waning. He said Africa was the source of vocations for missionary work because of her vibrant family spirit and youthful generation. Archbishop Rugambwa stressed that missionary hope lies in Africa despite the continent’s misery and injustice.

“Our African countries, so tormented by misery, injustice and fratricidal struggles, see the family and the gift of children as a renewed force of hope. Our nations are generally young; nations that express, even in the midst of the social, political, and military conflicts, a great hope through our young generations. The youth, our sons and daughters are a true reason for hope and thanksgiving. Human life, our children and our youth, reveal the extent in which marriage and family are crucial to an evangelization that takes our cultures seriously. Our people believe in life and do not fear generating children, new citizens who are destined to become, through baptism, sons and daughters of God,” stressed Archbishop Rugambwa. 

Archbishop Rugambwa challenged the Church in Africa to prioritize and protect the family so as to safeguard the future of the continent.

He said: “ A solid future for our nations will be the result of a church that is increasingly dedicated to work in favor of life, from its origin to natural death, provided that the family is firmly rooted in the sacrament of marriage, at the heart of which the love between a man and a woman meets and is introduced in the love of Christ for his Church.”

The Archbishop called priests, religious and the laity to be deeply rooted in faith and charity in protecting families from all sorts of spiritual and moral vulnerability. He said by virtue of its central importance and the various threats looming over it, distortion of the notion of marriage and family, devaluation of maternity and trivialization of abortion, easy divorce and the relativism of a new ethics, the family needs to be protected and defended so that it may offer society the service expected of it, that of providing men and women capable of building a social fabric of peace and harmony.

The National Director of Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS) of Nigeria who is also the President of National Directors of English Speaking Africa (NDESA), Fr. George Ajana said the principal mandate for the PMS was to evangelise, making all the faithful missionaries in their respective calling. Fr. Ajana emphasized that this continental meeting was a platform at which, plans, projections and concrete activities are designed putting in place a synergy for the enhancement of the evangelization apostolate of the Church in Africa for the benefit of humanity and the greater glory of God.

“Because of its importance to the Church in the continent and the universal church, this gathering provides a unique opportunity for us as a family to reach out with the Good News of Christ, making every Catholic faithful; Bishops, priests, consecrated persons and the laity, missionaries ad intra and ad extra,”  Fr. Ajana said.

According to Fr. Ajana the NDESA meeting was an opportunity to brainstorm on how to move the mission of Christ forward in the African continent with dynamism and commitment and at the same time consider the individual and collective challenges and find ways of ameliorating them so as to put the church in Africa on a better spiritual and pastoral pedestal.

“Among other things, this meeting provides us with an opportunity to initiate missionary animation and activities that can help the church in addressing the challenges facing her missionary activities with particular regards to the role of the family, the youths and the media, especially social media. We have the duty to challenge on how to make the church more present, spiritually and pastorally in the context of the modern day world,” expressed Fr. Ajana. 

The meeting was organised by the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference PMS National Director, Fr. David Muguti. The delegates  toured Chinhoyi and Masvingo Dioceses to assess progress on missionary work in the country and to learn from the Zimbabwean experience.

By Br. Alfonce Kugwa (Director of Social Communications at the Bishops Conference of Zimbabwe).








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