The African Church is preparing itself for an important event in its history, which is the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of SECAM, to be held in 2019 in Uganda. Indeed, SECAM (Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar) was created in 1969 in Uganda. It is by essence an institution of organic pastoral solidarity.

Its creation, is first of all, a response, to the call of the Second Vatican Council to the bishops, to live the spirit of collegiality at all levels both universal, national, regional and continental. The Church in Africa has made its this vision of collegiality and communion to which the Council Fathers were invited. It is therefore without suprise that the bishops of Africa and Madagascar have developed this instance of collegiality, which was the first at the continental level of this nature in the Universal Church, and gave to it the name of “Symposium” . Even if today, for legal reasons, many are the bishops who would like to change the name “Symposium” to other approaches like “Conference”, it should be recalled to mind that the choice of “Symposium” was not fruit of pure chance. Indeed, the word “Symposium” in its etymological sense means “banquet”. “Banquet” refers to a climate of communion, friendliness, brotherhood, celebration and sharing. It is this spirit that animated the founding fathers of SECAM. They dreamed of a Church of Africa which is united, full of communion and fraternity, in one word, they dreamed of a church which is a family. It is this vision of church family and especially family of God, that they would try to live through SECAM in a spirit of organic pastoral solidarity and that they would celebrate with great fanfare at the first special synod for Africa in 1994 were clearly and explicitly the term “Church Family of God” would be presented to the world as the identity of the Church in Africa. However, who says identity, talk of mission and mandate. So what is the mission or mandate of this Church “Family of God” of Africa that embodies SECAM?

This mission can be perceived at three levels. At first, the bishops of Africa and Madagascar were invited by Paul VI to take over the destiny of their Church through this prophetic sentence that challenge time and space: “By now, you Africans are missionaries to yourself” (Paul VI, Homely, July 31, 1969). The African time, the African Kairos, has come. The Church in Africa is now mature enougth to fly on its own, and especially to take head on the fight that led the valiant foreign missionaries especially Europeans for the salvation of the souls of the African people. This implies, in secondo, that the Bishops of Africa and Madagascar should endorse the building of the Church in Africa. Paul VI reminded them this mission in strong terms : « So now, go forward methodically and courageously in the awareness of your great task : that of bulding up the Church”[of Africa]” (Paul VI , Homely, July 31, 2019). A construction that is both spiritual and material so that the Church in Africa can play its prophetic role at the heart of a continent plagued by so much suffering. Thus, during the second special Synod for the 2009 Africa, it was clearly stressed that the bishops of Africa and Madagascar should work for the establishment of a Church “Family of God” in the service of Reconciliation, Justice and Peace. Indeed, the bishops of Africa and Madagascar, in addition to having been tasked to take in hand the destiny of their people, to build the Church in Africa, are now invited to do to this Church of Africa an instrument of reconciliation, justice and peace. To carry out their mission, the Bishops of Africa and Madagascar have created this body (SECAM) in order, to join forces in a spirit of collegiality and communion, to respond effectively to the expectations of the people of Africa entrusted to them.

The major challenges facing the bishops of Africa and Madagascar, in their journey towards the golden jubilee, is to evaluate the two great visions that were the foundation for the creation of SECAM. 50 years later, can they say that SECAM is and remains an organ of pastoral organic solidarity, of collegiality, of effective and affective communion for the Church “Family of God” in Africa? 50 years later, can they say that the Bishops of Africa and Madagascar united through SECAM have really taken over the destiny of the Church in Africa? Are they both spiritually and materially built the Church of Africa? Does The Church in Africa really play its prophetic role of instrument of Reconciliation, Justice and Peace? So many questions that remain outstanding and which will be at the heart of the debates during the three years that will lead to the celebration of the golden jubilee. One of the major preoccupation will be to identify the kind of attitude and methodology to be adopted for a successful evaluation of the 50 years of existence of SECAM? The answer may be found in the prophetic words of Pope Francis who invites to “look to the past with gratitude” in order to establish its own identity, to “live the present with passion” in view to live the gospel with boldness and in a spirit of communion and to “embrace the future with hope” to avoid being caught up in discouragement and despair in front of the difficulties.

Fr. Donald ZAGORÉ, Sma