Card Arinze: A self Reliant Church for a Self Reliant Africa
(28 Jul 10 – RV) On the second day of the plenary assembly of the Symposium of Episcopal
Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) Cardinal Frances Arinze has called for
the Church in Africa to encourage the continent’s entrepreneurs to “make progress
in their businesses”.
The Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship
and the Discipline of the Sacraments is attending SECAM’s 40th session
in Accra Ghana.
The Nigerian Cardinal says that the assembly is a wonderful
opportunity to underscore the Churches Social Doctrine and how it proposes a way forward
for Africa’s emergent middle classes.
Together with Church partners such as
Caritas, CRS this year’s anniversary session in attended by 250 people including cardinals,
bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful from Africa and other parts of the world.
Together
they will reflect on the theme : “Self-Reliance and the Way Forward for the Church
in Africa".
Within the context of plenary assembly, Archbishop Leon Kalenga
Badikebele, apostolic nuncio to Ghana, will deliver a Message from Benedict XVI to
the participants.
Cardinal Napier says many discussions focus on how to generate
more confidence in the Church in Africa for self-reliance. At the same time he also
stresses that an essential part of becoming self reliant is the need to generate economic
independence: “Although as scripture goes ‘Blessed are the poor’ we need money to
run our activities. Christ has not told us not to work hard. We need to instil this
concept in our middle classes”.
This year's agenda includes a meeting of bishops
on the central theme of the plenary and a round table discussion, as well as a renewal
of their joint commitment to achieve the ideals of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences
of Africa and Madagascar.
The national and regional Episcopal conferences of
Africa and other bodies affiliated to SECAM will present their evaluations on the
Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops, which was held in the
Vatican last October on the theme: "The Church in Africa, at the Service of Reconciliation,
Justice and Peace".