Meeting of Bishops President of Episcopal Conferences and Caritas in Africa. Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo November 2012

Transcription

1 Caritas Africa Meeting of Bishops President of Episcopal Conferences and Caritas in Africa Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo November 2012 Exercise of charity and pastoral work: the Bishop and his Caritas, Relationships between Diocesan Caritas and National Caritas, Relationships with other Socio-pastoral structures; Caritas Africa and SCEAM by Metropolitan Archbishop of Bobo-Dioulasso President of OCADES Caritas Burkina

2 Bishop s Meeting Kinshasa, November 2012 Exercise of charity and pastoral work: the Bishop and his Caritas, Relationships between Diocesan Caritas and National Caritas, Relationships with other Socio-pastoral structures; Caritas Africa and SCEAM By H.E. Mgr Paul Y. OUEDRAOGO Metropolitan Archbishop of Bobo-Dioulasso President of OCADES Caritas Burkina Novembre 2012

3 PLAN I-DOCTRINAL PRINCIPLES II-ORGANISATIONAL AND PASTORAL PRINCIPLES III-EPISCOPAL AUTHORITY IN THE GOUVERNANCE OF CARITAS

4 I-DOCTRINAL PRINCIPlES "Charity is at the heart of the Church's social doctrine. Every responsibility and every commitment spelt out by that doctrine is derived from charity which, according to the teaching of Jesus, is the synthesis of the entire Law (cf. Mt 22:36-40). It gives real substance to the personal relationship with God and with neighbour; it is the principle not only of micro-relationships (with friends, with family members or within small groups) but also of macro-relationships (social, economic and political ones)

5 For the Church, instructed by the Gospel, charity is everything because, as Saint John teaches (cf. 1 Jn 4:8, 16) and as I recalled in my first Encyclical Letter, God is love (Deus Caritas Est): everything has its origin in God's love, everything is shaped by it, everything is directed towards it. Love is God's greatest gift to humanity, it is his promise and our hope. Pope Benedict XVI, Encyclical Caritas In Veritate, N 2

6 The Bishop must show by his life and his Episcopal ministry God s fatherhood, kindness, caring, compassion, gentleness, the authority of Christ, who came to give life and to make all men a one family, reconciled in love of the Father.

7 According to Deus Caritas Est, n 32 Bishops, as successors of the Apostles, are charged with primary responsibility for carrying out in the particular Churches the programme set forth in the Acts of the Apostles (cf. 2:42-44): today as in the past, the Church as God's family must be a place where help is given and received, and at the same time, a place where people are also prepared to serve those outside her confines who are in need of help.

8 Following the model of the good Samaritan (cf. Lk 10: 25-37), the Bishop will ensure that the Christians are informed, encouraged and supported appropriately in the practice of all the works of mercy,

9 either personally in the middle of the concrete conditions of their lives, either by participating in various forms of organized charity. It is by this way that reciprocal relationship between preaching, liturgy and witness is concretized in the Christian life.

10 To help effectively those in need, the Bishop must promote in his diocese the diocesan Caritas or other similar institutions, under his chairmanship, keep alive the sense of fraternal charity throughout the diocese

11 and arouse the generous collaboration of the faithful to charity of the particular Church, as this is the manifestation of the Catholic charity.

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13 II-ORGANISATIONNAL AND PASTORAL PRINCIPLES «Go, then to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to obey everything I have commended you.» Mt 28,18-20

14 PASTORAL D ENSEMBLE CATECHETICAL PASTORAL LITURGICAL PASTORAL SOCIAL PASTORAL

15 Without ever using charity for filthy proselytizing reasons, the Bishop and the diocesan community should take to heart, through them, to bear witness to the Gospel and to create a desire to hear the Word of God and to convert oneself.

16 All works of mercy and assistance performed by the Christian community must manifest the spirit of supernatural charity which animates them, in order to become for people a powerful motive to glorify the Heavenly Father.

17 The Bishop must organize social ministry by integrating it into the overall pastoral plan. He has a unified mandate for which he is primarily responsible: "Go and teach, baptize, and learn to people to keep the commandments (love)." There is no reason for the Bishop not to become personally involved in social ministry as he does for the other components.

18 Even if he delegates his powers as he does for the pastoral catechetical and liturgical ministry, he must implement the same mechanisms of support, guidance and control that allow him to really know what is going on in his Caritas.

19 The Bishop close to his Caritas leaders promotes good governance of his Caritas. The advantages are enormous: Clarification of the guidelines Good coordination between diocesan Caritas and national Caritas Good decision-making, Reduction of powers conflicts between parish and diocesan Caritas, Reducing the risk of various self-censorship blockages or excess...

20 What is at stake is the communion and unity within the Church family of God, and the ecclesial identity of Caritas which should not be confused with a simple humanitarian NGO. It is really the Bishops who are guarantors of this Communion and unity which must be build and protected against every financial influence (Partners)

21 The Bishops are best placed to understand and solve the ecclesiological problems arising in the Caritas network with the problem of subsidiarity between sister Churches. The ultimate decision is up to those concerned.

22 III-EPISCOPAL AUTORITHY IN THE GOUVERNANCE OF CARITAS Promote synergy Promote the principle of subsidiarity Promote unity and communion Promote ecclesial identity of Caritas

23 Technical and financial inputs are not sufficient reason to replace the concerned persons on the field, or to force them to move in a direction contrary to their aspirations, their values or their integral development.

24 CARITAS AFRICA-SECAM MUMEMO meeting: May 2010 Bishops responsible for Justice and Peace Commissions and National Caritas saw the need to promote a work in synergy between the different structures of the Church in social pastoral.

25 MUMEMO RECOMMENDATIONS Where Justice and Peace and Caritas Commissions do not exist, these be established as a matter of priority at all levels.

26 Within 3 months, SECAM will create a task force to study the propositions of the Synod which relate specifically to women and make recommendations on how these can be applied affirmatively at all levels.

27 Within six months, Caritas Africa and the Justice and Peace Commission of SECAM will have developed a joint plan for advocacy on strategic, critical issues such as governance, peace building, extractive industries and climate change.

28 SECAM, through the national and regional structures of Caritas and Justice and Peace, will hold discussions within a period of six months over possibilities of and opportunities for working more closely together.

29 Within 12 months, each national and regional structure will have at least one joint programme agreed upon and being implemented.

30 Within one year, SECAM will develop a plan for improving effectiveness of information sharing between the regions and across the continent, in order that the institutions of the Church may benefit from good practice in the pastoral work of the Church, wherever it occurs. Mumemo, Mozambique, 26th May 2010

31 Where are we today? A call is made to Caritas Africa: Put the Bishops to work. The continent needs the credibility of SCEAM and Caritas Africa. AFRICAE MUNUS will then bear fruit.

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