Missionaries of Africa are committed to Encounter and Dialogue
(ED) because:
We believe
that:
- all people are created by one and the same God, and therefore
form one family, the human family, irrespective of colour, race, culture
or religion.
- the Holy Spirit is in dialogue with each and every person, and in
their respective cultures and religions, and therefore our encounter
and dialogue with others is encounter and dialogue with the Holy Spirit
working in them.
- there can be no peace without peaceful encounters and dialogue between
people of different cultures and religions.
We want
to:
- follow in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus Christ, whose life
and instructions remain for us the "way" and 'model' of
our encounters and dialogue.
- to put into practice the Church's teaching which has dialogue
(interreligious - Intercultural) as an integral part of its Evangelising
Mission.
It is
a legacy and responsibility inherited from our founder, Cardinal Lavigerie,
well stipulated in our "Constitutions and Laws" (Chapter
1 article 5); and especially encounter and dialogue with Muslims (Chapter
1 article 1) and repeatedly confirmed by our General Chapters.
The Churches
in Africa, our first collaborators, believe that peaceful encounters
and dialogue between religions (followers of different religions)
are an essential condition to bring about "justice, peace and
reconciliation" in Africa. (Cf. Synod of Bishops, " The
Church in Africa in service to Reconciliation, Justice and Peace,
Lineamenta Chapter III)
"The proclamation of the Gospel and the service
of others require that we feel a solidarity with the people among
whom we live. This may open the way to dialogue with other religions
and other cultures in an atmosphere of mutual respect."
(Constitutions and Laws, chapter I article 5)
Fr. Richard Nnyombi Coordinator for JPIC and Encounter and
Dialogue
Contact : Email
