Pay attention to "family of local Churches" - Pope Leo XIV urges African Theologians

The 3rd Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society, and Pastoral Life, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, ended on Sunday, August 10, with a strong solidarity message from Pope Leo XIV, to the participants, urging them to give more attention to what he calls the "family of local Churches."

His Holiness charged the participants and Church leaders at the Congress, which started on Tuesday, August 5, "to continue making the local Churches in their respective countries places where members feel loved and supported."

In his recorded video, the Holy Father underlined the importance of building a network of support for Church members, especially on the continent that he admitted faces “its own set of particular difficulties.”

“The family is usually the first place where we receive the love and support we need to move forward and overcome the trials we face in life,” Pope Leo XIV told participants, adding that,, “For this reason, I encourage you to keep building up the family of local Churches in your various countries and areas so that there are networks of support available to all our brothers and sisters in Christ, and also to the wider society, especially those on the peripheries.”

Lauding the theme of the Congress, “Journeying together in Hope as Church, Family of God in Africa”, the Holy Father called on the Church on the continent to be the “beacon of hope” for the people going through various challenges in their life.

“Africa, like other parts of the world, faces its own set of particular difficulties. And faced with these challenges, and the perception that things do not change, it is easy to become despondent. However, it is precisely the role of the Church to be the light of the world, a city set on a hill to be a beacon of hope for the nations,” Pope Leo XIV said.

“While each one of us is called to nurture our own personal relationship with God, at the same time through our baptism, we are united as sons and daughters of our heavenly father. Therefore, we have certain responsibilities to look after each other,” he added.

The Congress, which has been hailed as “a historic gathering poised to profoundly shape the future of the African Catholic communities and influence the global Church", seeks to reflect on the faith of the people of God in Africa, evaluate the variety of pastoral and theological approaches and develop, through a joint forum, best practices for evangelization have proposed new ways of doing theology on the African continent, a region of the world continues to record the highest growth rate of Catholicism globally.

The Organizers describe it as “a sacred gathering” of African Church leaders, Theologians, women and men, Religious, youths, and lay leaders, and extended their deep appreciation to their ecumenical and global partners from Asia, Europe, Latin America, and North America.

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