Support Ongoing Formation for 45 Priests and Deacons in the Central African Republic
The Central African Republic is one of the poorest and most underdeveloped nations in the world. It is a country that is plagued by constant unrest and attempted coups; many areas are under the control of armed rebel groups.
In the midst of these difficult circumstances, the Church continues to proclaim the Good News of the Gospel and bring the Sacraments to the people. The Church has also stepped in to help in many areas that are normally the responsibility of the state, including providing basic health care, running schools and kindergartens, providing development aid, negotiating with various armed groups, and offering sanctuary for victims of rebel attacks.
The challenges facing priests and pastoral workers are immense. To help with the physical, psychological and spiritual difficulties of working in such an environment, every year the Diocese of Bouar organizes a few days of meetings for the support and ongoing formation of its current pastoral team of 45 priests and deacons. The program includes training in the safeguarding of minors and questions of parish administration, something for which many priests have little prior training when they are allocated to parishes which require this kind of knowledge.
This year, a psychiatrist will be helping them to understand the crucially important issue of how to interact with people who have been traumatized by the violence they have experienced. Sadly, many people in the country have suffered the trauma of rebel attacks on their homes and villages. They have been forced to witness family members and neighbors brutalized and murdered, or their own homes burned down. The priests themselves have frequently witnessed this kind of violence and found themselves obliged to try and help its victims, or they themselves have been the victims of such attacks and threatened with guns or other weapons.
More recently, landmines have emerged as another danger, buried on roads and tracks by the rebels. Many people have been wounded or killed. Already in 2023 two missionary priests from the Diocese of Bouar have been affected. On February 10, Italian Carmelite Father Norberto Pozzi, 71, drove over a landmine, which exploded directly under his front wheel. Astonishingly, he survived, but was seriously injured—he lost his left foot. Then on April 16, another Italian priest, Sacred Heart Father Arialdo Urbani, 83, also drove over a landmine. He himself was uninjured, but four of his passengers were killed, including two children. He had already survived an earlier landmine explosion in 2021, which killed his co-driver.
As the Church continues to do its work in such dangerous circumstances, ongoing formation sessions for priests and pastoral workers have already proved to be extremely valuable in previous years, and so we are keen to support them again this year, with a contribution of $4,600.
Can you give to help these priests and deacons better fulfill their mission as they attempt to serve in such a poor and insecure environment in the Central African Republic?
We are sure they will remember you in their grateful prayers.
Aid to the Church in Need commits to invest your funds where they will have the greatest impact for the Church that we serve. Funds donated to Aid to the Church in Need’s projects will be used towards the greatest need in our programs to help keep the Faith alive.
Code: 142-08-79