THIRD GENERAL CONGREGATION
TUESDAY, 6 OCTOBER 2009 - MORNING
At 9.00 today Tuesday 6 October 2009, in memory of the monk, St. Bruno, in the presence of the Holy Father, with the Hour of Tierce, the Third General Congregation began, to vote on the Commission for the Message and to begin the interventions by the Synodal Fathers in the Hall on the Synodal theme The Church in Africa at the Service of Reconciliation, Justice and Peace. “You are the salt of the earth ... You are the light of the world” (Mt 5:13,14).
The President Delegate, His Eminence Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier, OFM, Archbishop of Durban (SOUTH AFRICA) presented His Holiness Abuna Paulus, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Tewahedo Orthodox Church (ETHIOPIA), with the following words:
I am certain that I express the sentiments of all of you when I say that we are very grateful to the Holy Father for inviting His Holiness Abuna Paulos, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, to address this Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops.
In His Holiness Abuna Paulos we will hear the voice of a Church that for nearly two thousand years has lived and borne testimony to the Gospel in Africa, giving rise to a Christian civilization of holy men and women, of social and cultural values and institutions that have farmed and informed the people and the nation at their very heart.
Just as the continent of Africa faces enormous challenges, so too do the Churches in Africa face painful tests and trials. His Holiness has personally experienced the rigours of jail and exile. The rich monastic, spiritual, liturgical and cultural life of the Ethiopian Church is a heritage of the Christian tradition to be cherished and loved by all of us.
Your Holiness, we will listen to your words with appreciation and gratitude.
Then His Holiness Abuna PAULUS offered a Reflection
[I have posted the intervention in the CHURCH&VATICAN thread. It is a very informative, eye-opening overview of the history of Christianity in Africa.]
At the end, the Holy Father Benedict XVI responded to the Patriarch, with the following words, delivered in English:
BENEDICT XVI'S RESPONSE
TO PATRIARCH PAULUS
Your Holiness, I thank you wholeheartedly for your thoughtful presentation and for accepting my invitation to take part in the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops. I am sure that my gratitude and appreciation are shared by all the members of the Assembly.
Your presence bears eloquent witness to the antiquity and rich traditions of the Church in Africa. From apostolic times, among the many people yearning to hear Christ's message of salvation were those coming from Ethiopia (cf. Acts 8:26-40).
Your people's fidelity to the Gospel continues to be shown not only by their obedience to his law of love, but also, as you have reminded us, by perseverance amid persecution and the supreme sacrifice of martyrdom for the name of Christ.
Your Holiness has recalled that the proclamation of the Gospel cannot be separated from the commitment to build a society which conforms to God's will, respects the blessings of his creation and protects the dignity and innocence of all his children.
In Christ we know that reconciliation is possible, justice can prevail, peace can endure! This is the message of hope which we are called to proclaim. This is the promise which the people of Africa long to see fulfilled in our day.
Let us pray, then, that our Churches may draw closer in the unity which is the Holy Spirit's gift, and bear common witness to the hope brought by the Gospel.
Let us continue to work for the integral development of all Africa's peoples, strengthening the families which are the bulwark of African society, educating the young who are Africa's future, and contributing to the building of societies marked by honesty, integrity and solidarity.
May our deliberations during these weeks help Christ's followers throughout the continent to be convincing examples of righteousness, mercy and peace, and a light to guide the path of coming generations.
Your Holiness, once again I thank you for your presence and your valued reflections. May your participation in this Synod be a blessing for our Churches.”
At this General Congregation, which ended at 12.30 with the prayer Angelus Domini, 226 Fathers were present.
One must commend the Secretariat of the Bishops' Synod for the efficiency, promptness and comprehensive reporting of the synodal assembly conveninetly posted by language on their webpage
www.vatican.va/news_services/press/sinodo/documents/bollettino_23_ii_speciale-africa-2009/bollettino_23_ii_speciale-africa-2009_index...
They are posting bulletings twice a day, even, one for each session.
Fr. Lombardi would do well to find out what the Synod secretariat is doing right and adopt the procedures to the Vatican Press Office. It's a shame that the main Press Office itself cannot do as well as the Press Office of a Curial organism that's not even a dicastery!
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 07/10/2009 00:41]