“Do not be afraid, put out into the deep”: Cameroonian Catholic Bishop to Laity at General Assembly

Yaounde, 05 December, 2025 / 4:05 PM

Bishop Sosthène Léopold Bayemi Matjei of the Catholic Diocese of Obala in Cameroon has called on lay Catholics to pursue their mission of evangelization without fear.

In his keynote address during the opening ceremony of the December 5-7 general Assembly of the Catholic laity, Bishop Bayemi urged the people of God to deepen their faith, embrace their baptismal vocation, and radiate the joy of the Gospel.

“Do not be afraid, put out into the deep, radiate the joy of the Gospel,” he said during the Friday, December 5 event that is being held in the Catholic Archdiocese of Yaoundé.

The President of the Episcopal Commission for the Lay Apostolate at the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon (NECC) encouraged lay people to confront societal and spiritual challenges with courage, including economic fragility, social crises, ecological emergencies, and the erosion of family values.

Calling the meeting far more than a conference, he said, “It is an act of faith of the Church-Family of God in Cameroon… a tangible sign of the synodality to which the Church urgently calls us: to walk together, to listen together to the Holy Spirit who speaks through the entire People of God.”

To be a layperson today, the Cameroonian Catholic Bishop said, “is to be a man, a woman, a young person rooted in Christ,” drawing courage from baptism as “an immersion into the death and resurrection of the Lord… a holy audacity that makes us not anxious spectators but actors of hope.”

He said delegates will be called to “put out into the deep concretely,” returning home “not with mere minutes, but with missionary fire and decisions to implement.”

Bishop Bayemi exhorted laypersons to “dare to speak truth in charity… Leave here not with heavy files but with fire in your hearts.”

The Catholic Church leader urged participants to take inspiration from Mary’s example of faith and courage, saying, “Let us go forward without fear, putting out into the deep, and radiate the joy of the Gospel. Return to your dioceses as pilgrims of hope, sowers of joy, and builders of communion.”

The Assembly aims to reinforce the Church’s mission in Cameroon, equipping laity to actively evangelize in secular spheres — from family and education to politics, culture, and social media — while fostering spiritual growth, unity, and mission-oriented leadership throughout the country.