The season of Advent is a time of grace, because it is one of the highest times of the Church. It is a special time when God showers us with blessings. This is why it is a joyful time as we wait for our Savior Jesus who will come to break our bonds with evil and wipe away our tears. He will come to give us freedom and life as He himself says: “I have come so that men may have life and have it in abundance” (Jn.10:10). This is also why it is a time of great hope.
However, it is important to revisit our understanding of hope. Our hope must not only be passive, but it must also be active. This is why the Advent season is a time of preparation. A time for action. A time for action that calls for the courage to undertake important and decisive changes in our lives, in our families, in our communities to allow new humanities to emerge. The objective is to work to give birth to something new, something beautiful and good, especially for the mission in Africa, which remains our “raison d’être”. Africa, our land of mission and our mission in Africa need a new lease of life, a new hope which takes root in courageous and prophetic actions. It is this spirit that must drive our actions, especially for our SMA family which is already in preparation to celebrate the next General Assembly in 2025.

If the hope of Christmas invites us to action, this action must be done in a spirit of synodality, as Pope Francis continues to remind us. An action which invites us to consider all actions, however small they may be, so that together we can build this new world that Christ comes to inaugurate. Let us keep our eyes always fixed on the Lord, and our feet firm on the paths that the rising sun illuminates in the night of our world. Happy and Fruitful Advent Season!

Fr. Fabien SOGNON, SMA