As youthful followers of Christ, he said, “you are a source of light for those who are yet to be converted. Youth must make everyone feel welcomed by God.”
“We must begin implementing the resolutions of this assembly in the Diocesan communities so that the fruits may multiply, making what you have lived and learned during these days available to other young people,” Archbishop Mbilingi told the participants in the July 18-21 National Youth Pastoral Assembly, who were from the 19 Dioceses in Angola.
He continued, “May a climate of openness, true dialogue, sharing of initiatives, and sense of belonging always prevail among you.”
Archbishop Mbilingi further called upon young people to renew their commitment to “live and promote a climate of fraternal communion, solidarity, respect, and love.”
He went on to highlight the importance of the 28th National Youth Pastoral Assembly, saying, “It certainly renewed the ardour of the young participants and served to clarify the motivations for the pastoral action of young people in the context of our Angolan society, which is marked by so many challenges, especially in the field of social justice.”
“The Assembly helped the young participants to make transparent the intentions that move them in their pastoral action and to adapt and update their working methods according to the synodality we are experiencing,” the 66-year-old Catholic Church leader, who previously served as President of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) said.
He linked the national assembly with the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year, which Pope Francis announced would start with a Year of Prayer on January 21, the second in his Pontificate after the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy in 2015.
The National Youth Pastoral Assembly, Archbishop Mbilingi said, also served as “a new starting point for the 2025 Jubilee Year and the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Angola's independence.”
“I believe that the Assembly was an opportunity to take stock of the various areas of youth ministry in Angola, a starting point for a new beginning, preparing this time for the experience of these great events,” the Catholic Church leader said.
He called upon youths to take their participation in furthering the mission of Jesus Christ seriously. “Christians are simply witnesses to Jesus' mission. All mission spaces must be verified by Jesus, the word made flesh,” the Local Ordinary of Lubango said.
