KENYA: ACWECA set for 17th Plenary Assembly in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
The Association of Consecrated Women in Eastern and Central Africa, (ACWECA) is set to hold its 17th Plenary Assembly at Tanzania Episcopal Conference’s Kurasini Centre in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
Based on the theme: Revitalize Our Solidarity for Deeper Evangelisation in Today’s Complex Reality within the Region, the one week deliberations is to run from 26th, August to 2nd, September, 2017.
Speaking during a joint interview at ACWECA Secretariat in Nairobi, the president of the Association, Sr. Priscar Matenga said that, the theme of the Assembly was a call to the members to strengthen the unity and to celebrate togetherness.
and ACWECA Staff in a group photo after their Strategic Planning
workshop at Donum Dei in Karen, Nairobi – Kenya
“We are in a global village and things are changing so fast and it is important for us as religious women to review our lives together and see things in the way Christ saw them, hence need to revitalize our solidarity for evangelization,” she said.
Matenga said that, the call to Member Conferences is to find a way on how to unite and strengthen the unity in ACWECA region more deeply to enable the apostolate bear fruits among the people whom they serve.
Sister Mary Abut, a Board member of the Association who was at the joint interview explained that, they arrived at the theme as a result of lengthy prayer and reflection by the member conferences.
Abut said that, though evangelisation is not new to the members it is not going to be the same after the conference adding that, members wanted a theme that would help them to reflect on how best they could evangelise to the people in the region.
Speaking at the same time, The Secretary General of the Association, Sr. Eneless Chimbali revealed that, the mission of the Association is to promote the spirit of collaboration and sharing of spiritual, human and economic recourses among member conferences and to enhance religious formation, strengthen leadership capacity for deeper evangelization among others.
“Some countries in the ACWECA region have more resources than the others. So coming together as a region would help members to devise ways of helping one another so that we are able to achieve more than if we remained individual countries,”
She also confirmed that, Vatican Prefect of Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life João Cardinal Bráz de Aviz will be the main celebrant at the opening Mass of the 17th ACWECA Plenary Assembly.
“The Cardinal gladly welcomes the invitation to celebrate the opening Eucharist on Sunday, August 27, at 10:00am together with other bishops who will be present,” she said
Other high ecclesial guests to the Assembly will include the Apostolic Nuncio to Tanzania, His Grace Archbishop Marek Solczynskinew, President of Tanzania Episcopal Conference (TEC), Bishop Tarcisius Ngalalekumtwa, and Bishop George V. Murry of Youngstown Diocese – United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
∽End∽
By Sr. Grace Candiru, Communications Coordinator ACWECA
