Christ's New Homeland - Africa: Contribution to the Synod on the Family by African Pastors

by African Bishops

Overview

In June of 2015, five cardinals and forty-five bishops representing fifty African countries met in Accra, Ghana, to prepare for the October 2015 Synod on the Family.

In his opening remarks—included in this volume—Robert Cardinal Sarah encouraged the bishops of Africa to speak with one voice during the synod:

""I encourage you to speak with clarity and with one credible voice and with filial love of the Church. Be conscious of the mission of the Church; protect the sacredness of marriage which is now being attacked by all forms of ideologies that intend to destroy the family in Africa. Do not be afraid to stress the teaching of the Church on marriage.""

In a major six-page interview released during the same period in the French magazine Famille Chr賩enne , Cardinal Sarah said:

""At the synod next October we will address, I hope, the question of marriage in an entirely positive manner, seeking to promote the family and the values that it bears. The African bishops will act to support that which God asks of man concerning the family, and to receive that which the Church has always taught. . . . Why should we think that only the Western vision of man, of the world, of society is good, just, universal? The Church must fight to say no to this new colonization.""

These African pastors provide much food for thought and reflection about modern Western culture and our personal lives, as well as an introduction to the Synod. The title of the book comes from a phrase used by Blessed Pope Paul VI, which in our time beautifully expresses the universality of the Church and the increasing role played by African Church leaders. Among the contributing cardinals and bishops are Robert Cardinal Sarah, Francis Cardinal Arinze, Christian Cardinal Tumi, Th认ore Cardinal Sarr, Archbishop Samuel Kleda, and more.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781681496795
Publisher:	Ignatius Press
Publication date:	08/19/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	229 KB

Table of Contents

Preface Francis Cardinal Arinze, Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments 7

Part 1 The Synod on the Family: From One Assembly to Another

Robert Cardinal Sarah: Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments: What Sort of Pastoral Mercy in Response to the New Challenges to the Family?: A Reading of the Lineamenta 13

Bishop Barthélemy Adoukonou, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture: Start from Living Faith: An African Take on the Instrumentum laboris 34

Part 2 The Gospel of the Family

Archbishop Denis Amuzu-Dzakpah of Lomé: The Importance of Recent Magisterial Teaching on Marriage and the Family 57

Philippe Cardinal Ouedraogo, Metropolitan Archbishop of Ouagadougou: The Indissolubility of Marriage: The Foundation of the Human Family 68

Berhaneyesus D. Cardinal Souraphiel, CM., Metropolitan Archbishop of Addis Abeba, President of the CBCE, and Chairman of AMECEA: Promoting a True Understanding of Marriage and the Accompaniment of Married Couples 88

Part 3 Pastoral Care of Families That Are Hurting

Christian Cardinal Tumi, Archbishop Emeritus of Douala, Cameroon: Marriage in Situations of Dysfunction or Weakness: Separation, Divorce, Remarriage 101

Archbishop Antoine Ganye of Cotonou: Monogamy and Polygamy: Challenge and Concern for the Truth of Love in African Cultures 112

Théodore Adrien Cardinal Sarr, Archbishop Emeritus of Dakar The Challenge of Mixed and Interfaith Marriages 127

Archbishop Samuel Kleda of Douala: Pastoral Care to Wounded Families 143

Epilogue: An Appeal from the Church in Africa to the State

Jean-Pierre Cardinal Kutwa, Archbishop of Abidjan, Côte d'lvoire: Why Should the State Support the Family? 167