Catholic Theologians Schedule Prayers for Africa’s Participants in October Synod on Synodality Session in Rome

PACTPAN’s weekly palavers brought together African theologians, Priests, women and men Religious, as well as Laity, who sought to deepen the understanding of the Synthesis Report of the multi-year ongoing Synod on Synod that Pope Francis extended to 2024.

Every Friday for the past three months, over 200 people followed the online conversations that the team of theologians organized in collaboration with the Conference of Major Superiors of Africa and Madagascar (COMSAM).

Speaking to ACI Africa ahead of the start of the palavers on June 7, Fr. Stan recalled that Catholic Bishops in Africa had, during a meeting of Africa’s Delegates to the Synod in Kenya “urged African theologians and pastors to continue the discussions that began at the seminar.”

At the Africa’s delegates meeting in Nairobi in April, Fridolin Cardinal Ambongo, the President of the Symposium of the Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), also urged the theologians in Africa to work in close partnership with the Bishops in deepening an understanding of “the issues at hand” and focusing the attention of the people on the priorities of the Church in Africa.

Participants in the palavers explored a wide range of topics that were hinged on the second session of the Synod on Synodality.

In his address at the final palaver on September 6, Fr. Stan highlighted the successes of the virtual conversations, noting that participants who gathered every Friday for two hours “gained a sense of unity in a shared space of love and friendship as God’s people in Africa.”

“I personally looked forward to every Friday since June 7 when we began this journey because every session was rich with wisdom, insights, hope, inspirations of faith, and a spirit of respect for the opinions of others,” the widely published U.S.-based Nigerian Professor said.

He said that he had observed “a genuine desire by all participants to learn from, and in the presence of their brothers and Sisters” who participated in all the palaver sessions.

Additionally, participants in the palaver sessions gained an understanding of how to be a Synodal Church in a mission in Africa, the Chicago-based Catholic Priest said.

Fr. Stan said that from the synodal conversations, participants accepted the role they have in leading the African Church that he said continues to grow at an exponential rate.

“As the Christian faith continues to cross different spiritual and cultural frontiers in Africa, and as the population of Christians continues to grow at an exponential rate on our continent, these palavers showed us the rich treasure of faith that we possess as Africans,” the Priest who organized conversations between African youths and Pope Francis in November 2022 said.

He added that the palaver sessions showed participants the opportunities God is opening to Africa amid the challenges that the people on the continent face.

“From what we shared, we all have learnt that Africa is now the centre where the future of the Catholic Church and indeed the Christian faith is being defined,” he said, and posed, “The question is, are we Africans ready to lead the Church? From these palavers, we have said a strong ‘Yes’.”

“We are the continent, we live on the continent, and we are the people with the rich spiritual, cultural and Catholic heritage,” Fr. Stan said.

Reiterating a message from one of the palaver sessions in August, he added, “Our faith is not only African. It also is truly Catholic.”

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Fr. Stan said that Africans have embraced the challenges they face as opportunities to bear witness to God in their own unique ways.

He said that at the palaver sessions, voices of African Catholics had “resounded as loudly and as clearly as possible” on their commitment to the synodal journey.

“We have learnt that we as Africans can work together. There is nothing that is impossible for us,” he said, and added, “We do not need to look to Europe or to China or Asia in order to do anything on the continent. Once we put our minds to it, we pray for it, and hold hands together we can do it.”

In his address, Fr. Stan also reflected on the topic of the 14th session, “The reception of the fruits of the ecumenical journey in ecclesial practices”.

He noted that the future of Christianity in Africa would depend largely on how the people of God journey together. “That is why in this session, we have invited our brothers and Sisters from other Christian communities.”

“COVID-19 that ravaged the world, and Mpox that is in some parts of Africa does not discriminate between Catholics and members of the other denominations,” Fr. Stan said, and added, “We therefore need to work together. In facing challenges, we need different perspectives from diverse religious backgrounds.”