Catholic Church Judicial Services in Angola Need “profound pastoral transformation”: Bishop at First National Canon Law

A pastoral transformation of the judicial services, he went on to say, “will help to unite science and virtue, which translates into study, prior preparation, constant updating, and examination of the activities.”

“All of this requires commitment, mental effort, and time to dedicate to wounded families,” the Angolan Catholic Bishop further said. 

He lauded the July 4-5 convention that brought together participants from the five Angolan ecclesiastical provinces of Luanda, Lubango, Malanje, Huambo, and Saurimo as “one of the most important for our Church judicial Courts.”

“Through our judicial Courts, the pending cases, of which there are many and the new ones to be introduced, will be dealt with swiftly by the officials, but always within the truth,” Bishop Sumbelelo said, adding that such will require that Church officials involved engage in an in-depth study of Canon Law.

The 60-year-old Catholic Bishop, who started his Episcopal Ministry in February 2007 as Coadjutor Bishop of Angola’s Uije Diocese emphasized the need for discipline and procedure in accompanying clients.

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“So that we can better accompany the many situations that we are confronted with in our day-to-day pastoral work,” he said, there is need to “always keep in mind the sphere of discipline and regulation.”

The Catholic Bishop cautioned against entertaining “the subversion of Dogmatic Principle of the Marital Bond or interfering with the substantial sphere of the validity of consent.”

On his part, Mons. Felipe Heredia Steban, Auditor of the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota, who was the guest speaker at the event described the July 4-5 convention as “historic because it is the first time that” a Catholic Bishops’ Conference has organized a convention and invited “us also to take part.” 

“We have come to serve in the name of Pope Francis, whose title is Servum Sevulorum Dei, which means the Servant of the Servants of God; and as Our Lord Jesus Christ said, if you want to be the first, then be the last, to discover the joy of service,” Mons. Steban said, and added, “Service is the essential note of our condition as children of God.”

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