SOUTH SUDAN: “Do not Fear,” Pope Francis to Msgr. Carlassare Ahead of His Episcopal Ordination

Sr. Jecinter Antoinette Okoth, FSSA

As Rumbek Diocese prepares for episcopal ordination of Monsignor Christian Carlassare which is slated for Friday, March 25, on the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, Pope Francis has had a private meeting with the Bishop-elect at the Vatican where he encouraged him to serve God’s people fearlessly.

“The Pope said, “Do not fear,” Msgr. Carlassare a member of the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus (MCCJ) shared with AMECEA Online Monday, March 14, after the meeting, adding that the Pope blessed him afterwards.

The Bishop-elect further narrated that in their sharing with the Pontiff “showed his closeness to the people of South Sudan and looks forward to the visit of July,” adding that the Pope also remembered the past encounters with leaders of the nation.

Sharing on the same day his Lenten message with AMECEA online, Bishop-elect promises to journey together with the people of Rumbek in a renewed spirit saying, “A year after my appointment as Bishop and the attack I suffered, I return to Rumbek for the Episcopal Ordination and to celebrate Easter. I leave with feelings of renewed trust in God who never abandons us, and in the Local Church and Christian community to walk together hand in hand.”

In his message themed “Starting anew from forgiveness,” the Italian-born missionary disclosed that we all need mercy and “we must welcome it (mercy) to make truth in our life, to repent and discover that life is a gift. So, we are called to spend ourselves at the service of one another for the life of all.”

He narrates that the Church of Rumbek “demands truth and forgiveness,” and amidst continuous misery and violence in South Sudan, the country will only experience peace after it welcomes the gifts of “truth and Mercy.”

According to Msgr. Carlassare whose episcopal ordination was to be last year but was postponed as he was recuperating after gunshot from unknown gunmen, “The South Sudanese Church is a poor Church with only few means, but rich with a lively community of people who are resilient and generous.”

He acknowledges that “It is a wounded and suffering Church, but there is no lack of faith and hope in healing. It is a young Church that has a long way to go before it. It is a fragile and imperfect Church that experiences the compassionate love of God and is called to be a witness of mercy.”

Expounding on the gift of mercy, the Bishop-elect recalls Pope Francis’ message for the Year of Mercy in 2015 when he said that “Mercy is the very substance of the Gospel,” and he adds that Mercy calls for nurturing “in the heart a feeling of compassion for the moral or material misery of others.”

“Our heart is compassionate when the misery of others makes us recall our own misery, inadequacy and emptiness which are filled only by the merciful love of God,” Msgr. Carlassare who has served in South Sudan’s Malakal Diocese since 2005 said in his Lenten message stressing on developing of an open heart that is able to welcome our fellow brothers and sisters.

Additionally, he narrates that when he will be ordained Bishop of Rumbek Diocese on March 25, the Solemnity of the Annunciation, he takes the occasion as a “gift.”

“The yes of Mary is a beautiful answer to the first yes of God when he called human beings to exist. I too am called to repeat my ‘Yes’ to the Church and people of South Sudan in a way that is perhaps a little more radical than I have managed to live up to now,” he said and continued, “I pray that the people of Rumbek may also say their ‘Yes’ to a communal ecclesial journey. For this I entrust myself to the Lord and to your prayers.”

He further appreciated the prayers that the people of Rumbek recited every day in his name which he says “has been source of great strength.”

In concluding his Lenten message, Bishop-elect borrows Saint Augustine’s message for his Episcopal Ministry saying, “Pray for me so that I will be able to bear the burden, and join me to bear all burdens together. If Christ did not carry our weight, we would be crushed by it; if he didn’t carry us, we would end up succumbing. Where I’m terrified by what I am for you, I am given comfort by what I am with you. For you I am a bishop, with you, after all, I am a Christian.”