He called on the Church to listen to the Holy Spirit who he said is reminding the faithful that the Church’s mission can only be accomplished through concerted action, not chaos.
“The Church does not live out its mission in a cacophony or disorder, like a rudderless ship tossed by contrary winds,” Archbishop Dogbo said.
He explained, “Within this Church, there is the bishop who is the successor of the apostles, priests who are collaborators of the bishop, deacons, members of the clergy and consecrated men and women, all taken from among the laity, who are the holy people of God.”
He clarified that the Church’s hierarchical structure is not meant to create a system of dominance but to coordinate efforts for effective pastoral care in a synodal Church.
“In this Church, bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, and laypeople are called to walk together, collaborate in communion, and truly engage according to their specific vocations, building the Kingdom of God as baptized members of the Church. This is the essence of synodality, a defining characteristic of the Church of Jesus Christ that we are called to embody in our daily lives,” Archbishop Dogbo stated.
The native of Ivory Coast’s Catholic Diocese of Yopougon raised concerns about the growing influence of materialism within the Church, warning against the “cancer of money” that he said threatens to corrupt the Church’s mission.
“This Church is not ruled by…the god of money, where the spirit of iniquity reigns and destroys everything in its path. This Church is not a marketplace where the Kingdom of God is sold to the highest bidder,” the Archbishop of Abidjan said.
The Catholic Church leader, who is one of the three papal nominees from Africa for the Synod on Synodality further cautioned against the deviations he said he had observed within the Church, particularly the “sensationalism and commercialization of miracles.”
“This Church is not a gathering of prophets of Baal, where the ridiculous competes with noise in a search for prefabricated, ready-made sensations, where miracles are publicized in a way that contradicts the teachings and actions of the Master,” Archbishop Dogbo emphasized.
The pastoral theme for the Archdiocese of Abidjan in 2024–2025 is “Living the Synodal Church.”
