Pope's address to Cameroon's bishops

(March 18, 2009) Pope Benedict is on a pastoral visit to Cameroon and Angola. The main purpose of his March 17-23 visit is to issue to the African Church the working document of the Second Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for Africa, scheduled for this October in Rome, on the theme, “The Church in Africa in Service to Reconciliation, Justice and Peace: ‘You are the salt of the earth … You are the light of the world.’ Wednesday, March 18 was his first full day in Cameroon’s capital Yaounde, and his first major appointment that day was a meeting with the bishops of Cameroon during which he touched upon several aspects of the Church in Cameroon.
Speaking in French and English the Pope told the bishops that preaching the Gospel was the inherent mission of the Church. And in the frontline of preachers of the Gospel is the bishop himself whom the Pope called “the catechist par excellence,” of his faithful. And in order to preach the Gospel effectively the Pastors of the Church must first be in profound communion with one another which will help them to search collectively for answers to the many challenges of the Church. There should also be effective collaboration among dioceses in Cameroon as well with other African countries, especially with regard to better distribution of priests.
Then switching over to English, Pope Benedict urged the bishops to maintain a filial and fraternal relationship with their priests, inspiring them to give prime importance to their spiritual and sacramental life, first of all by being a man of prayer, so that there is no conflict between their life and what they teach.
Pope Benedict also thanked catechists for their generosity and faithfulness, and insisted on their human, spiritual and doctrinal formation. Besides material, moral and spiritual support from their pastors, catechists also need recognition for their work.
Pope Benedict also expressed concern over the family. He said, “The difficulties arising from the impact of modernity and secularization on traditional society inspire you to defend vigorously the essential values of the African family, and to give high priority to its thorough evangelization.” “In developing the pastoral care of the family,” he said, “you are eager to promote a better understanding of the nature, dignity and role of marriage, which presupposes an indissoluble and stable union.”
Regarding the liturgy, Pope Benedict told the bishops of Cameroon that while the faithful express their joy their dialogue and communion with God must not be obstructed.
Pope Benedict expressed concern over the spread of sects and esoteric movements, and the growing influence of superstitious forms of religion, as well as relativism, and insisted on the formation, particularly of the youth, especially by making the word of God and the teaching of the Church accessible and comprehensible to all.
In speaking of the laity the Pope strongly recommended a solid Christian formation for the lay people so that they can “fully exercise their role of inspiring the temporal order – political, cultural, economic and social – with Christian principles, which is the specific task of the laity’s vocation.”
Again speaking in French, the Pope urged the bishops of Cameroon to defend the rights of the poor and encourage the exercise of charity, saying this helps in building reconciliation and cooperation among ethnic groups for the good of all. He insisted that Christians, particularly lay people with social, economic and political responsibilities, be guided by the Church’s social teaching, in order to contribute to the building up of a more just world where everyone can live with dignity.