AFRICA/SOUTH AFRICA - First African Assembly of the Scalabrinians

Monday, 10 July 2017 missionary institutes   missionary animation   migrants  

Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides) - Representatives of the missionary Sisters communities of St. Charles Borromeo, Scalabrinians, present in the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Mozambique and Angola, have gathered in Johannesburg for the first Assembly of the Scalabrinians in Africa.
"Africa is an important continent for the congregation", comments Sister Neusa de Fatima Mariano, Superior General, in the note sent to Agenzia Fides. In addition to being a formative and missionary development space, it is a place where the peoples, whose nations are in crisis or threatened by environmental emergencies, receive support. It is a land of refugees: desperate people who seek salvation in Europe and try to survive journeys of hope. Nigeria, Angola and Somalia are just some of the places where the crisis is even stronger". Sister Neusa points out that "Africa is among the protagonists of our reorganization", at the centre of this stage of study and work, and hopes that "our charisma is strengthened by the commitment in an extraordinary continent".
During their General Assembly, held in Portugal in November 2016 (see Fides 22/11/2016) on the theme "Reorganizing to revitalize the Scalabrinian consecrated life", Sister Neusa de Fatima stated: "We are aiming at a reorganization of the congregation, taking into account migration flows, the need for a numerical distribution of human resources and itinerancy, both of members and the type of services. For us migration is a resource for humanity, migrations are a sign of the times". (SL) (Agenzia Fides, 10/07/2017)


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