UGANDA: Africa Rise Up and Walk
The celebration of the SECAM Golden Jubilee in Kampala (Uganda), with the theme: “Church Family of God in Africa, Celebrate your Jubilee, Proclaim Jesus Christ your Saviour” has been a moment of grace as it re-affirmed the teaching of Jesus Christ that despite the innumerable challenges the Continent is facing, the people of God in Africa have retained the vision to “know Christ and have life in abundance” John10:10.
When following media news from and about Africa, there is hardly a day that passes without reporting bad news in large multitude apart from countable nations like Botswana, Namibia, Seychelles and Mauritius. What seems to overshadow the giftedness that God has to Africa are problems such as war, terrorism, strange diseases like Ebola, floods, environmental degradation, human trafficking, high levels of illiteracy, famine, mistaken vaccinations, chronic bad civil governance, brain drain, child marriages, ivory robbery and modern slave trade.
On the other hand, Africans are known for their incredible memory, beauty and smartness in that without consulting any written document, an African can recall with precision what happened several decades back and at times foretell what is about to happen in the future. An added privilege is what is documented by Professor John S. Mbiti (1975) who asserts that ‘Africans are notoriously religious’.
In sports, the African has maintained consistent winning records not withstanding which continent heor she is residing in. Africa is blessed with young, resilient and ever smiling population. When allowed the opportunity to freely compete internationally, the African over shines. Tapping into such a talent is a privilege not to be taken for granted.
The delegates who honoured the celebrations of SECAM Golden Jubilee in Kampala saw it appropriate to exhort people of Africa and the surrounding Islands with hopeful possibilities for a better future as long as all embrace a heart of repentance and conversion. Africa and the surrounding Islands are the new lands of great opportunity because the Africans know very well what they want today and for generations to come. Africans need space to demonstrate their true identity as unique people of God as they position themselves to be the game changers in the economics, politics and faith agendas of the entire world.
With SECAM Golden Jubilee the Church in Africa family of God is ready to say yes or no only where sustainable values are a sure deal. As the Kampala document is being streamlined, the SECAM Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops have in the meantime provided preliminary guidelines to sustain the momentum already achieved so that the Catholic faithful on the continent do not wait in vacuum. Listening to their reflections and reflecting on them, these, in my opinion, can be categorized under five core areas.
- Holistic formation for all people of God
The bishops call us to invest deeply in catechetical, biblical, theological, moral and spiritual formation of all the baptized; to nourish each other with the word of God and the sacraments, so as to make the Gospel penetrate all aspects of our life. The people of Africa and the surrounding Islands are strongly encouraged to imitate African saints and equally resist cunning attractions offered by new religious movements and ideologies which are in a long run contrary to the Catholic faith.
- Evangelization
The SECAM Golden Jubilee was indeed a time of grace as our Bishops invited us to hold firm to our faith, urging us to remain a Catholic Church which is truly a family of God in Africa no matter the weight of modern negative influence that proposes many other 
models of ‘family’. The family inAfrica means father, mother and children even when some groups seek to differ. In the principle of faith and sustenance of the human race, this is an indisputable truth that the African Catholic cannot compromise.
We are also reminded to embrace Church guidelines on new evangelization by participating actively and willingly in the Small Christian Communities and in approved Catholic pious societies and associations as we continue promoting pastoral care of the family so that it can bear prophetic witness within the society.
All the baptized have to take into account that the evangelizing mission of the Church needs to utilize maximally new forms of information technology but without abandoning traditional means of communication as the two complement each other; to live true to their Christian vocation and to bear witness to the Church’s mission of evangelization.
The same Bishops encourage missionary exchange among the different dioceses of the continent, particularly with those of North Africa and the universal Church.
- Ecumenism
The Church in Africa and Madagascar has to continue strengthening ecumenical communion among the different Christian denominations and promoting interfaith dialogue as a sure way of serving and guiding all the people in the spirit of unity in diversity.
Structures of inter-religious dialogue such as the National Inter Religious Councils, health and education institutions, faith programs such as fasting during Lent and way of the Cross are a sure way to sustain the wish of Jesus Christ that “they may all be one as I am one in you” John 17:20
- Politics
Catholic professionals and people of good will have to be formed holistically so that they are ready to be the answer and not a question to the rising soci0-political and developmental challenges affecting Africa and Madagascar. Catholic politicians need to provide true political sign boards to guide all citizens to the right and sustainable direction.
- Politicians like Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Benedicto Kiwanuka of Uganda and Kenneth
Kaunda of Zambia, Léopold Sédar Senghor of Senegal, Thomas Isidore Noël Sankar of Bokina Faso and Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana still offer a challenge that African politicians need to emulate if they are to remain servants of those who have put trust with the office of political leadership.
- Respect of the National Constitution has to remain the anthem that guides political policies at all levels even where one thinks that all the people love him or her like money. A simple example can be never to manipulate the national constitution to favour those in power as it is happening in several countries. The other simple examples are that no Catholic will accept to use plastic bags because they are a disaster to our environment; no Christian will give or receive bribe, because in the long run such a habit impoverishes generations.
- The Bishops felt the need for African to deepen our patriotic collaboration with credible political leaders by holding them accountable on their political manifestos so as to put our human and natural resources at the service of development, reconciliation, justice and peace; to address the problem of migrants, refugees and all who are still victims of slavery and human trafficking.
- The Bishops want the laity to become more deeply involved in the mission of transforming the society, drawing inspiration from the Gospel, the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Social Teachings of the Church. They equally encourage particular Churches to engage in the formation, accompaniment and guidance of civil servants and politicians in their respective locations so as to fight against corruption, promote good governance and better management of human and natural resources. All Africans ought to safe guard forests, water sources and air.
- Poverty alleviation, prosperity and protection of the environment in the spirit of Caritas. The Bishops acknowledge that while Africa is rich, the Africans have remained miserable for many generations
and the situation is even worsening. They want Christian communities to be more attentive to interpersonal relationships, to sharing, to the struggle against misery; to be involved in the pastoral care of health, both spiritual and physical; and to be committed to responding to integral ecological challenges of our time. Poverty in the sense of misery, disease and ignorance are like wild animals under our beds, if we don’t hunt and eliminate them, they end up eating us alive. The African has to start getting afraid of living a poor and miserable life.
- It is the Opportune Time for Africa
The SECAM Golden Jubilee has been a time of great opportunities for Africa and surrounding Islands. This is the time for Africa to “rise, pick up your mat and walk” (John 5:8); a time of deliverance; a time of honest ecumenical communion since witness demands transparency, hospitality and solidarity with all our neighbours despite their religious and racial affiliation; the time to say no to terrorism all that accompanies it; the time to sustain our Catholic faith for another half a century so that like Jesus our model all “may all be one, so that the world may believe” John 17:21.Conclusion
In a nutshell, entrusting the continent and the Church’s mission to Mary, Queen of Africa; to St. Joseph, the Martyrs of Uganda, and all the Saints of Africa and Madagascar, the Bishops of Africa are praying for us a renewed zeal to follow Jesus Christ so that the Jubilee we have just celebrated becomes the springboard for a new life in Jesus Christ, and for service of the Gospel in Africa and beyond.
∽End∽
By Fr Paulino Mondo
