Catholic Official in Angola Advocates for Collective Responsibility “to rescue moral and ethical values”

He continued, “Every citizen is invited to make an examination of conscience, understood as a means of philosophical action about our existence first and foremost, as a citizen, who wants nothing more than to live in tranquillity and order, that is, to live in a society founded on moral and ethical values.”

In carrying out the mission to safeguard moral and ethical values faith leaders need to “work with families and advocate before the government ... in public and private schools and beyond,” the CCJP Executive Secretary of CEAST said.

“It is the Church's mission to form men and women who are aware of their social, political, and civic responsibilities,” he said, adding, “We are all called to be the salt of the earth, the light of the world, and the yeast that leavens the dough, the transforming force of society.”

Faith leaders, Fr. Epalanga reiterated, “must cooperate with the government. The Church must mobilize society to rescue moral and ethical values.”

“Pope Francis stresses that we religious leaders cannot expect everything from the government; that would be childish,” he said.

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“Many people believe that the responsibility for mobilizing society to rescue moral and ethical values does not lie with the churches, because in doing so, as many politicians and clerics defend, the church would be playing politics,” he said, and warned, “The church cannot play politics or else we would be violating the principle of the secularity of the state.”

The Jesuit Priest decried the attempt to “exclude the Church from social participation, based on the Biblical passage: give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's.” 

This Biblical passage, he said, is “often interpreted out of context, and should not serve as a limit for the Church not to commit itself to promoting the common good.”

“Even Caesar himself must be guided by God, through the evangelization of politics understood as the art of living together in society with a view to the common good because the common good involves all the members of society,” Fr. Epalanga said on June 12.

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate.