AFRICA/NIGERIA – The Nationwide Missionary Congress requires the canonization of these killed within the act of “odium fidei” and for defense methods in opposition to the violence that impacts the ecclesial group
Owerri (Agenzia Fides) – Greater than 300 bishops, monks, spiritual and lay trustworthy from the 9 ecclesiastical Provinces of the Nigerian Church participated within the V Nationwide Missionary Congress (NAMICON V) organized by the Pontifical Mission Societies of Nigeria and the Division of Mission and dialogue of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria.
The Nationwide Missionary Congress is normally held each 4 years and the final one was held in Benin Metropolis (Edo State) in 2019. The theme that served as a standard thread all through the 4 days of the Congress was “Don’t don’t worry, for I’m with you” (Isaiah 41:10). The topic is topical given the scenario during which the nation finds itself, during which many individuals transfer ahead in worry, particularly as a consequence of socio-economic instability and insecurity.
The Bishop of Yola, Mgr Stephen Dami Mamza, inspired everybody to proceed to unfold and bear witness to the Gospel regardless of the complicated trials the nation goes by and at all times remembering that “we should not be afraid as a result of the Lord is with us till the tip. of time”.
The ultimate decision drawn up on the finish of the convention, composed of six factors, says: “The goal of the Congress is to remind each Christian of the missionary duty of each baptized particular person, regardless of the trials that this suggests; a chance to take inventory of how issues have been going for us as a Church because the final Congress. Following the safety challenges we face each day within the nation, which hinder missionary works and dampen missionary enthusiasm, the theme of this 12 months’s congress, “Concern not, for I’m with you”, was certainly a transparent name to face agency, even within the midst of persecution, threats to life and missionary actions.” One of many key factors of the decision was exactly that devoted to safety: Christians had been invited to organize for trials, additionally making use of the precise of self-defense, enshrined within the Structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Moreover, emphasis was positioned on eradicating insecurity within the nation. In reference to this level, the nice theme of persecution and the blood of martyrs because the fertile seed of the Church was addressed. Recognizing as a longtime indisputable fact that martyrdom, by grace, can generate the fruits of a very good life in religion, the start of the method of canonization of these killed as a result of they had been Christians and in hatred of the religion by Boko Haram and the bandits had been inspired.
Moreover, the Church was requested to rethink its technique to guard its members from persecution. There may be additionally room within the decision for the theme of younger individuals and their higher involvement within the ecclesial path, in addition to for a extra acutely aware and proper use of digital means. (EG) (Agenzia Fides, 18/11/2023)
Share:
