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Institute for Church Life's Solidarity with Africa Conference Makes Headlines
Recently Origins, the weekly publication produced by Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops dedicated its entire October 9, 2003 issue to the Institute for Church Life's Solidarity with Africa Conference, September 21-25, 2003 .
The conference, based on the U.S. Bishops' 2001 statement "A Call to Solidarity With Africa" was sponsored by I.C.L. at the University of Notre Dame, with the additional sponsorship of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Nigerian Catholic Bishops' Conference.
Inside Origins there is a text that describes the conference: "The conference A Call to Solidarity With Africa: Americans and Africans in Dialogue About Africa's Promise, Needs and Image held September 21-24, 2003 at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, represented the first of two sessions of the conference. The second session will be held in Nigeria January 4-11, 2004 . The two-part conference is organized in conjunction with that country's bishops' conference, laity council, conference of women religious and the Catholic Institute of West Africa and Spiritan International School of Theology in Nigeria. Organizers said the purpose of the conference was to help 'people both in the West and in Africa think differently about the continent', to 'bring Africa 's needs and promises to greater prominence' and to 'dispel some of the cynicism which is also prevalent within Africa about life on the continent itself.'"
Bishop John Ricard's Remarks
The cover of the October 9, 2003 , Volume 33, Number 18 issue of Origins features the conference's September 21 remarks by Bishop John Ricard of Pensacola-Tallahassee , Florida , the chairman of the U.S. Bishops' Committee on International Policy. Bishop Ricard's speech is quoted in its entirety continuing through the issue, with the following introduction:
"Our faith and the reality of the tremendous challenges confronting the peoples and nations of Africa require a greater engagement and commitment on the part of the church and the American people. Failure to respond could lead to yet another experience of disaster and missed opportunities for millions of brothers and sisters on the continent,' Bishop John Ricard of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Florida, the chairman of the U.S. Bishops' Committee on International Policy, said in an address September 21 at the University of Notre Dame to a conference on the relationship of the United States and the church in the United States with Africa. The conference was based on the U.S. bishops' 2001 statement "A Call to Solidarity With Africa" and was sponsored by the university's Institute for Church Life, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Nigerian Catholic Bishops Conference. ' Africa holds a commanding place in the history of the development of many nations. Yet the peoples of Africa have frequently been the victims of so-called progress, providing opportunities for others but rarely experiencing the fruits of such investments,' Ricard said. Africa 's 'enormous problems demand a response from Africans themselves. But the burden of Africa 's development does not rest solely upon the shoulders of her leaders and her people,' said the bishops. Examining the many ways the church in Africa and the church in the United States are forging new relationships, Ricard said that 'fundamentally, the engagement of the Catholic Church with the church in Africa is a matter of justice'; this growing relationship should reflect 'mutuality, respect and accountability, among other qualities.' Respect, said Ricard, requires 'that we develop an authentic understanding and appreciation for the traditions, cultures, gifts and obligations that each of us brings to this new relationship,' while mutuality means that each is a giver and each a recipient. Accountability 'requires openness, transparency, truthfulness and effective structures of collaboration on the part of all of us,' said Ricard. Justice, he insisted, demands 'that we support the nations and peoples of Africa as they recover, rebuild, restore and reinvent their social, economic, political and cultural institutions.' Justice also demands that the world's nations recognize Africa 's contributions 'to the global community and the historical price paid by the peoples of Africa .'"
Address by His Excellency President Olusegun Obasanjo
Origins included the entire text of the Nigerian President's address under the title The Wind of Change in Africa Today , with the introduction, "Although 'the battle is still raging against the twin evils of inefficiency and corruption in our system', democracy 'has indeed taken root in the country,' Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo said in his keynote address to the conference on solidarity with Africa co-sponsored September 21-24 at the University of Notre Dame by the university's Institute for Church Life, the U.S. conference of Catholic Bishops and the Nigerian Catholic Bishops' Conference. Obasanjo said, ' Nigeria cannot afford to fail because it is widely acknowledged that the progress and rate of Africa in many respects is contingent on what happens to Nigeria and how she conducts herself.' The president, a Christian, acknowledged that, 'tragically, the last four years witnessed a spate of rather violent ethnic and religious conflicts in Nigeria ,' but he added that 'with patience and dedication we are putting our country back on track.' Some 50 percent of Nigerians are Muslim, and 40 percent are Christian, with Muslims dominating the north and Christians the south. Obasanjo spoke on the state of Africa today and said a wind of change is blowing across the continent. 'The majority of African countries have chosen the democratic option. Indeed, totalitarianism and military governance are no longer an option for African countries,' said the leader, who under Nigeria 's military dictator General Sani Abacha was jailed in 1995, charged with plotting a coup, a charge he always denied. Obasanjo was released in 1998 after Abacha's death. In his speech, Obasanjo spoke of the role of the New Partnership for Africa 's development, a program of the African Union. 'We in Africa are convinced that NEPAD offers us an opportunity to identify our resources and find out how best to channel them for the growth and development of our continent and our people. At the same time, we aim to use NEPAD to create a bridgehead through which Africa can optimally benefit from the good will and support of our development partners abroad.' Obasanjo discussed 'a few ways I think the rest of the world can be in solidarity with Africa .' He said, 'First, try and keep Africa on the discussion table.' Second, he said, is to advocate 'for debt reduction for African countries.' Said Obasanjo, 'It would be no exaggeration to say that the debt burden is killing Africa .' Third, he said, is to visit Africa , because 'what you know you tend to love and appreciate.'"
Origins then included the president of the Nigerian bishops' conference, Archbishop John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan's speech in its entirety in an article entitled The Image of Africa in the World's Perception , with the following introduction:
"The image of Africa in the world's perception 'is a major obstacle to the emergence of the continent, Archbishop John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan of Abuja, president of the Nigerian bishops' conference, said September 22 in an address to the University of Notre Dame conference 'A Call to Solidarity With Africa: Americans and Africans in Dialogue About Africa's Promise, Needs and Image.' He said, 'Talk of Africa, and people immediately begin to think about wars, famine, disease, corruption, of rulers and military coups.' Onaiyekan said that 'this image of Africa will change if first and foremost the realities of our continent change.' And the church in Africa 'is involved in changing the realities of poverty, suffering, corruption and injustice,' the archbishop said. He commented that Africa 's 'generally negative image' is a product of its history. With the slave trade, 'the image of Africa took a tragically negative turn', he said. Onaiyekan spoke of the church's role in each era of African history and noted that in the last 40 years 'the church was often one of the very few credible agencies left in the midst of total breakdown of civil society. Africans 'stand at a point in history where we believe a lot can change for the better,' Onaiyekan said. 'It seems our political leaders have finally begun to be truly concerned about our poor record of self-governance.' The church, he said, must advocate for Africa 'both at home and abroad', and make use of its assets - including trained personnel, not just clerical and religious but also laity, many of whom hold responsible positions in public life. Globalization, he said, has made it 'possible for the whole of humanity to live as one family. This possibility will become a reality only when the principle of solidarity is taken seriously.' Here, he said, the church 'must play a major role.' The conference at Notre Dame was sponsored by the university's Institute for Church Life, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria."