A meeting bringing together representatives of women belonging to the Catholic Women Associations (CWA) across Africa kicked off in Nairobi, Kenya, on Monday with women from nearly twenty countries in attendance.
The meeting has been organized by the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) in collaboration with the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) with the support of Missio.
The theme of the conference is: The African Women Moving Towards the African Year of Reconciliation.
The three-day conference started with the celebration of the Holy Eucharistic, which took place at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) presided over by the Executive Secretary for the Pastoral Commission of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB), Father Charles Odira.
In his homily, Father Odira used the example of his own family to illustrate how mothers can play a significant role in reconciliation, “ensuring that there is even justice” in the family.
“Reconciliation is not about muscles, it is not about shouting, it is not about who is good and who is bad, it is not about who is on the right and who is on the wrong, it is about the heart,” Father Odira advised, encouraging the workshop participants to allow the grace of God to work within their heart to enable them practice forgiveness.
“Women are best placed to foster reconciliation in our societies because they have a nonviolent approach; they do not use muscles,” Father Odira reiterated.
Participants who offered intercessory prayers during the Holy Eucharist prayed for peace and reconciliation in families on the continent and for the Holy Spirit to guide the efforts of women in Africa in bringing about reconciliation.
The fifty participants from across Africa are being hosted by CWA representatives from Nairobi Archdiocese, who had a PowerPoint presentation about their association just after the Eucharist and gave a luncheon in honor of the visiting women.
“We are so proud to host this big delegation of women from different countries of Africa. It is going to be an enriching encounter and we shall gain from the experiences we shall share,” the CWA Chairlady for the Archdiocese of Nairobi, Sabina Ng’ethe, told CANAA.
Meanwhile, Marie-Claire Nikiema who is the Chairlady of the Catholic Women in Burkina Faso hopes to learn from interacting with other African women how to continue with the reconciliation ministry she is already involved in back home.
“We organize women to enable them understand each other, console each other, and reach out to each other with the good news of evangelization through singing, devotions, and groups of prayer,” Marie-Claire told CANAA, looking forward to interacting with “sisters from other countries.”
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We are living in a world where families are very fragile and in challenging situations. Some of our countries are experiencing violent conflicts due to religion and even tribalism. We women are conscious of that and have the possibilities of reconciling the world because all begins with the family,” Marie-Claire shared with CANAA, giving details of how the Catholic association of women in her country ministers to families in conflict, separated couples.
“We insist on each woman to reconcile with herself first, then with God, and the rest will follow quite smoothly,” Marie-Claire concluded.
Among the topics the participants will reflect upon with the help of facilitators, beginning Monday afternoon at St. Joseph Retreat Centre, Karen, include the political, economic and socio-cultural context of Africa today, a theological overview of the social doctrine of the Church in the context of Africa today, the role of and opportunities for women in society and the Church with focus on the role of women for reconciliation in Africa in the context of the African Year of Reconciliation (AYR).
The meeting is expected to come up with suggestions on how to mark the AYR through regional groups and how these groups can be networked.
The following countries sent representatives: Burundi, DR Congo, Ghana, Angola, Zambia, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Eritrea, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa, Nigeria, Malawi, Djibouti, Zimbabwe, Uganda and Kenya.
CANAA || By Fr. Don Bosco Onyalla, Nairobi || 31 August 2015
