At noon today, the Pope received in audience, participants in the Symposium of the Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar in the Consistory Hall at the Vatican Apostolic Palace.
Dear Brothers,
This meeting with you, who represent the Symposium of the Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), gives me the opportunity to encourage this institution, thought out and promoted after Vatican Council II to render a service to the local Churches in Africa. The purpose of this service is to give common answers to the continent’s new challenges, so that the Church can speak with one voice, witnessing her vocation to be a sign and instrument of salvation, peace, dialogue and reconciliation. Of great importance to fulfil this mission is that the symposium remains faithful to its identity: that is, to be a living experience of communion and service, especially to the poorest of our brothers and sisters.
This itinerary requires that pastors remain free from every worldly and political preoccupation, that they reinforce their bonds of communion with the Pope, through collaboration with the Apostolic Nunciatures, and with a fluid and direct communication with the other entities of the Church. At the same time, it is necessary to maintain simple ecclesial experiences within reach of all people, as well as simple pastoral structures. Experience teaches that large bureaucratic structures analyze the problems abstractly and run the risk of the Church remaining from the people. And, because of this, concreteness is important: the concreteness that allows reality to be touched.
Young generations have a special need for your witness: young people look to us. The future in Africa is in the hands of the young, and today they are called to defend themselves from new and unscrupulous forms of colonization, such as success, wealth, power at all costs, but also fundamentalism and the distorted use of religion, and new ideologies that destroy the identity of persons and of families. The most effective way to overcome the temptation to yield to these very dangerous lifestyles is to invest in the field of education. It will also be useful to oppose the widespread mentality of abuse and violence, as well as divisions on social, ethnic and religious bases. Above all, there must be a concern to offer an educational proposal that teaches young people to think critically and that indicates a course of maturation in values (cf Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 64). An important instrument in this educational course is constituted by the pastoral approaches followed in schools: whether in Catholic schools or in public ones the educational task must be combined with the explicit proclamation of the Gospel (EG, 132-134).
For a variety of reasons, also in Africa there is a certain disintegration of the family. Therefore, the Church is called to appreciate and to boost all initiatives in favour of the family, as privileged sources of every fraternity, and foundation and primary paths of peace (cf John Paul II, Message for the 27th World Day of Peace, January 1, 1994). In these recent years, many priests, religious and laity have undertaken commendable endeavours to sustain the family, giving special attention to the elderly, the sick and those bearing handicaps. Especially in most isolated and remote regions, your Churches have proclaimed the Gospel of Life and, following the example of the Good Samaritan, have helped the neediest among us. A wonderful testimony of charity was also rendered in the face of the recent emergency of the Ebola virus, which has stricken so many communities, parishes and hospital centres. Numerous African missionaries generously offered their lives to remain at the side of the sick. This is a path to be followed always with renewed apostolic ardor! We, disciples of Christ, cannot fail to be concerned about the well-being of the weakest persons; and we must also awaken the attention of society and of public authorities to their conditions of life.
Dear Brothers, I wish to express my appreciation for the precious contribution of so many priests, religious and lay faithful to the proclamation of the Gospel and to the social progress of your populations. Your symposium is also a place for promotion of legality, so that the wounds of corruption and fatalism may heal and foster the commitment of Christians in secular realities, in view of the common good. The great task of evangelization, in fact, is to have the Gospel permeate our lives so that we, in turn, can share it with others. Therefore, it is important to remember that evangelization means to accept Christ’s call to repent and to believe in the Gospel (cf Mark 1:15). As the result of this conversion to salvation, not only the individual but the whole ecclesial community is changed, it becomes ever more a living expression of faith and charity.
May the light and strength of the Holy Spirit sustain your pastoral efforts. May the Virgin Mary protect and intercede for you and for the entire African continent. My blessing also accompanies you. Please, pray for me.
Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
to participants in the Symposium of the
Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar
Dear Brothers,
This meeting with you, who represent the Symposium of the Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), gives me the opportunity to encourage this institution, thought out and promoted after Vatican Council II to render a service to the local Churches in Africa. The purpose of this service is to give common answers to the continent’s new challenges, so that the Church can speak with one voice, witnessing her vocation to be a sign and instrument of salvation, peace, dialogue and reconciliation. Of great importance to fulfil this mission is that the symposium remains faithful to its identity: that is, to be a living experience of communion and service, especially to the poorest of our brothers and sisters.
This itinerary requires that pastors remain free from every worldly and political preoccupation, that they reinforce their bonds of communion with the Pope, through collaboration with the Apostolic Nunciatures, and with a fluid and direct communication with the other entities of the Church. At the same time, it is necessary to maintain simple ecclesial experiences within reach of all people, as well as simple pastoral structures. Experience teaches that large bureaucratic structures analyze the problems abstractly and run the risk of the Church remaining from the people. And, because of this, concreteness is important: the concreteness that allows reality to be touched.
Young generations have a special need for your witness: young people look to us. The future in Africa is in the hands of the young, and today they are called to defend themselves from new and unscrupulous forms of colonization, such as success, wealth, power at all costs, but also fundamentalism and the distorted use of religion, and new ideologies that destroy the identity of persons and of families. The most effective way to overcome the temptation to yield to these very dangerous lifestyles is to invest in the field of education. It will also be useful to oppose the widespread mentality of abuse and violence, as well as divisions on social, ethnic and religious bases. Above all, there must be a concern to offer an educational proposal that teaches young people to think critically and that indicates a course of maturation in values (cf Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 64). An important instrument in this educational course is constituted by the pastoral approaches followed in schools: whether in Catholic schools or in public ones the educational task must be combined with the explicit proclamation of the Gospel (EG, 132-134).
For a variety of reasons, also in Africa there is a certain disintegration of the family. Therefore, the Church is called to appreciate and to boost all initiatives in favour of the family, as privileged sources of every fraternity, and foundation and primary paths of peace (cf John Paul II, Message for the 27th World Day of Peace, January 1, 1994). In these recent years, many priests, religious and laity have undertaken commendable endeavours to sustain the family, giving special attention to the elderly, the sick and those bearing handicaps. Especially in most isolated and remote regions, your Churches have proclaimed the Gospel of Life and, following the example of the Good Samaritan, have helped the neediest among us. A wonderful testimony of charity was also rendered in the face of the recent emergency of the Ebola virus, which has stricken so many communities, parishes and hospital centres. Numerous African missionaries generously offered their lives to remain at the side of the sick. This is a path to be followed always with renewed apostolic ardor! We, disciples of Christ, cannot fail to be concerned about the well-being of the weakest persons; and we must also awaken the attention of society and of public authorities to their conditions of life.
Dear Brothers, I wish to express my appreciation for the precious contribution of so many priests, religious and lay faithful to the proclamation of the Gospel and to the social progress of your populations. Your symposium is also a place for promotion of legality, so that the wounds of corruption and fatalism may heal and foster the commitment of Christians in secular realities, in view of the common good. The great task of evangelization, in fact, is to have the Gospel permeate our lives so that we, in turn, can share it with others. Therefore, it is important to remember that evangelization means to accept Christ’s call to repent and to believe in the Gospel (cf Mark 1:15). As the result of this conversion to salvation, not only the individual but the whole ecclesial community is changed, it becomes ever more a living expression of faith and charity.
May the light and strength of the Holy Spirit sustain your pastoral efforts. May the Virgin Mary protect and intercede for you and for the entire African continent. My blessing also accompanies you. Please, pray for me.
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