Pope Francis to Educators "It is therefore important that all people involved in Catholic Teaching are animated by the desire to communicate the Gospel with their lives..." for 1st African Cath. Education Congress
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MESSAGE OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS,
SIGNED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE PIETRO PAROLIN,
ON THE OCCASION OF THE 1st AFRICAN CONGRESS OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION
[Abidjan, 7-10 December]
________________________________________________________
To the S.E. Mons. Philippe Rukamba and Don Bernard Lorent,
Co-Presidents of the International Religions and Society Foundation (Kigali)
His Holiness Pope Francis joins you in heart and thought as you gather for the first African Congress of Catholic Education on the reception of the African Educational Pact. The Pope is pleased to know that this Educational Pact, which you presented to him last June 1st in the Vatican, was not the end of a work undertaken for many years by the International Religions and Society Foundation, but marked a new stage of your commitment in view of promoting education in Africa.
His Holiness therefore applauds the reception of the African Educational Pact and hopes that it will increasingly become «a local reality, the result of reflections carried out starting from its own context and its own cultural resources, and [...] attentive to the educational needs of the territory» ( Speech by Pope Francis to the delegation of the Promoters of the African Educational Pact, 1 June 2023).
Africa is not safe from the crisis that the education system is going through today, which has become, as in other places, too selective and elitist (see Speech to participants in the World Education Congress, 21 November 2015), aimed at training only the intelligence and not the person as a whole. Faced with this situation, Catholic Education, enriched by the African Educational Pact, will be able to offer a renewed, more open and more inclusive education, creating in young people a beautiful harmony between thought and action. It will also be able to help form a generation that draws on the socio-cultural values of the African continent, without giving in to the temptation of turning in on itself, but capable of dialogue with other cultures and religions.
This objective can only be achieved to the extent that Catholic Education, while imbuing young people with their African identity, does not lose sight of its primordial objective which is to offer everyone "the Christian proposal, that is, Jesus Christ as the meaning of life , of the cosmos and of history" (Address to Participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Congregation for Catholic Education, 13 February 2014). It is therefore important that all people involved in Catholic Teaching are animated by the desire to communicate the Gospel with their lives, demonstrating coherence and adopting a pedagogical style that favors the human and spiritual growth of students.
The Holy Father invites each of the actors to work so that Catholic Education can prepare young people not for the spirit of competition, which leads to selfishness, but for the spirit of community and solidarity. May they be capable of making positive and constructive choices, of being the decision makers of tomorrow, having at heart the building of an increasingly fraternal society at the service of all, with respect for the common good. Indeed, quality education is a sign of hope and a solid basis for the peaceful coexistence that Africa needs today.
The Pope encourages you in your desire to give new impetus to Catholic Education in Africa and thanks you for the work you carry out with dedication every day. He invokes upon you the graces of the Holy Spirit to give you strength in your delicate mission in favor of the education of young people in Africa. His Holiness wholeheartedly imparts the Apostolic Blessing to you.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin
His Holiness's Secretary of State
___________________________________
L'Osservatore Romano, Year CLXIII n. 281, Thursday 7 December 2023, p. 5.
SIGNED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE PIETRO PAROLIN,
ON THE OCCASION OF THE 1st AFRICAN CONGRESS OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION
[Abidjan, 7-10 December]
________________________________________________________
To the S.E. Mons. Philippe Rukamba and Don Bernard Lorent,
Co-Presidents of the International Religions and Society Foundation (Kigali)
His Holiness Pope Francis joins you in heart and thought as you gather for the first African Congress of Catholic Education on the reception of the African Educational Pact. The Pope is pleased to know that this Educational Pact, which you presented to him last June 1st in the Vatican, was not the end of a work undertaken for many years by the International Religions and Society Foundation, but marked a new stage of your commitment in view of promoting education in Africa.
His Holiness therefore applauds the reception of the African Educational Pact and hopes that it will increasingly become «a local reality, the result of reflections carried out starting from its own context and its own cultural resources, and [...] attentive to the educational needs of the territory» ( Speech by Pope Francis to the delegation of the Promoters of the African Educational Pact, 1 June 2023).
Africa is not safe from the crisis that the education system is going through today, which has become, as in other places, too selective and elitist (see Speech to participants in the World Education Congress, 21 November 2015), aimed at training only the intelligence and not the person as a whole. Faced with this situation, Catholic Education, enriched by the African Educational Pact, will be able to offer a renewed, more open and more inclusive education, creating in young people a beautiful harmony between thought and action. It will also be able to help form a generation that draws on the socio-cultural values of the African continent, without giving in to the temptation of turning in on itself, but capable of dialogue with other cultures and religions.
This objective can only be achieved to the extent that Catholic Education, while imbuing young people with their African identity, does not lose sight of its primordial objective which is to offer everyone "the Christian proposal, that is, Jesus Christ as the meaning of life , of the cosmos and of history" (Address to Participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Congregation for Catholic Education, 13 February 2014). It is therefore important that all people involved in Catholic Teaching are animated by the desire to communicate the Gospel with their lives, demonstrating coherence and adopting a pedagogical style that favors the human and spiritual growth of students.
The Holy Father invites each of the actors to work so that Catholic Education can prepare young people not for the spirit of competition, which leads to selfishness, but for the spirit of community and solidarity. May they be capable of making positive and constructive choices, of being the decision makers of tomorrow, having at heart the building of an increasingly fraternal society at the service of all, with respect for the common good. Indeed, quality education is a sign of hope and a solid basis for the peaceful coexistence that Africa needs today.
The Pope encourages you in your desire to give new impetus to Catholic Education in Africa and thanks you for the work you carry out with dedication every day. He invokes upon you the graces of the Holy Spirit to give you strength in your delicate mission in favor of the education of young people in Africa. His Holiness wholeheartedly imparts the Apostolic Blessing to you.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin
His Holiness's Secretary of State
___________________________________
L'Osservatore Romano, Year CLXIII n. 281, Thursday 7 December 2023, p. 5.
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