AFRICA/CENTRAL AFRICA - "Pope Francis' visit will leave a deep mark in the hearts of Central Africans" says a missionary

Tuesday, 1 December 2015 evangelization dialogue area crisis

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Bangui (Agenzia Fides) - "It was a very nice atmosphere, something we hadn’t experienced for years". This is the impression Pope Francis left thanks to his visit to the Central African Republic, on 29 and 30 November, in the words of Fr. Aurelio Gazzera, a Carmelite, parish priest in Bozoum, who speaks with Agenzia Fides from Bangui, where he went with a delegation of his parish of about fifty people, to attend the meeting with the Holy Father.
"People made sacrifices to be there, because they understood that the Pope's visit is a historic event. We have to thank Pope Francis for having had the courage to come here despite the threats, even though they had tried to dissuade him to travel to Central Africa", said Fr. Aurelio.
The missionary talks about an episode that struck him most during the visit. "On the morning of November 30, shortly before 9:30 am, we heard a roar in the stadium where the faithful were gathered waiting for the Mass with the Holy Father. We thought it was Pope Francis, but instead it was Imam Oumar Kobine Layama, who works closely with Mgr. Dieudonné Nzapalainga, Archbishop of Bangui, and with the President of the Evangelical Alliance, Pastor Nicolas Guérékoyaméné-Gbangou, in the platform of religious leaders for peace. It was nice that we received him in this way. President Catherine Samba Panza was not welcomed in such a warm manner"
"This shows - continues the missionary – that the Central African civil war, presented as a religious clash, is actually a conflict where politics and economy and the fight for control of raw materials, etc enter...".
"At the exit of the stadium, thousands of people were forced out through a gate which was 3 meters wide. You can imagine the crowd. But luckily there were no accidents, I only saw smiling and relaxed faces. It was really a different atmosphere from the usual".
"I think Pope Francis' visit will leave a deep mark, because many are no longer willing to allow a few hundred people sow hatred and violence. The Pope's words were much clearer and even more so were his gestures", concludes the missionary. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 01/12/2015)