Vatican, 28 October, 2025 / 11:51 PM
Pope Leo XIV has recognized with appreciation Africa’s vibrant faith and missionary dynamism, describing the Church on the continent as “a gift of life” to the entire Universal Church.
The Holy Father made the remark in response to a presentation by the Secretary General of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), Fr. Rafael Simbine Junior, during the three-day Jubilee of the Synodal Teams and Participatory Bodies in Rome, which concluded on October 26.
In his presentation, Fr. Simbine outlined Africa’s lived experience of Synodality, highlighting how, in line with the theme of the multi-year XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which the late Pope Francis extended to 2024, local Churches continue to foster dialogue, shared responsibility, and participation in mission.
At the end of his address, the SECAM Secretary General asked Pope Leo XIV how the Church in Africa could continue to walk in communion with the Universal Church “without imposing uniform models or undermining local initiatives.”
He asked, “During the implementation phase, how can the local Churches, particularly in Africa, both receive support from and inspire the universal Church, working together in a spirit of exchange of gifts, respecting the principle of subsidiarity and local discernment, without imposing uniform models or undermining local initiatives?”
The Holy Father responded warmly, acknowledging Africa’s dynamic contribution to the Church’s missionary identity.
The Holy Father praised Africa’s youthful vitality and the continent’s witness of family, community and faith lived amid diversity. “The Church in Africa offers to all of us a gift, the gift of life, of youth, of family and of building bridges across cultures and religions,” he said.
Highlighting the need “to be missionary,” Pope Leo XIV said, “Synodality is not a campaign. It is a way of being, and a way of being Church. It's a way of promoting an attitude, which begins with learning to listen to one another.”
He urged all delegates at the Jubilee celebrations in Rome to resist the temptation of uniformity and to embrace a spirit of listening that allows each local Church to live Synodality authentically.
“We are not looking for a template where everyone does the same. Synodality is a conversion of heart, to listen, to build communion and to be missionary,” Pope Leo XIV said.
The October 24-26 Jubilee of Synodal Teams and Participatory Bodies, which was part of the ongoing Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year, brought together some 2,000 members from across the world in a meeting with the Holy Father, to mark a key stage in implementing the orientations of the multi-year Synod on Synodality that was concluded on 27 October 2024 in Rome.
The purpose of the three-day event was to deepen the Church’s journey of communion, participation and mission, the key elements of the Synod on Synodality theme.
The first session of the multi-year Synod on Synodality took place from 4-29 October 2023, concluding with a 42-page summary report. A 67-page Final Document of the XVI Assembly followed the 2-27 October 2024 second session of the Synod on Synodality.
Among delegates in the October 24-26 Jubilee of the Synodal Teams were three from the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) Commission for the Implementation of Synodality. These were Fr. Nhlanhla Mchunu, the SACBC Secretary for the Implementation of Synodality; Laurika Nxumalo, the deputy secretary representing the laity; and Kati Dijane, who represented the youth.
The three joined delegates from across the globe for three days of reflection, dialogue, prayer and celebration as the Church continues to live out the fruits of the Synod on Synodality.
A Jubilee of hope and communion
The Jubilee opened on 24 October, with registration and morning introductions, followed by the opening prayer and address by the Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, Mario Cardinal Grech. His reflection, rooted in Charles Péguy’s The Portal of the Mystery of Hope, set the tone for the three-day gathering.
“Faith sees what is, Hope sees what will be and Love loves what is,” Cardinal Grech said, inviting delegates to contemplate the three theological virtues as the foundation of a synodal Church.
He described love as the heartbeat of the Church’s mission and the glue that sustains communion even amid tension and uncertainty. Love, he said, “is the decision to remain present, the refusal to disengage when tensions arise, the willingness to listen when voices clash and the courage to stay at the table when consensus seems distant.”
Cardinal Grech reminded participants that faith anchors the Church in truth, while hope points her toward the future that belongs to God. “The Church is not perfect, far from it, but within her we see something divine. Faith allows us to see the grace amid imperfection,” he said.
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The Maltese-born Cardinal concluded by calling the Jubilee a celebration not only of achievements but of hope in the Church’s future.
“We are here because we love the Church and believe in the Church, but perhaps more importantly, because we hope in the Church. Hope reminds us that the future is in God’s hands, and that the Church, guided by the Spirit, always has a future,” he said.
Listening, learning and walking together
The second day of the Jubilee began with a pilgrimage and passage through the Holy Door at St Peter’s Basilica. Delegates were then dispersed into smaller groups to participate in 24 workshops and six seminars, covering key themes such as dialogue, inculturation and participatory leadership.
In one of the sessions, Archbishop Timothy Costelloe of Perth, Australia, reflected on the dangers of replacing clericalism with new forms of domination.
“We run the risk of creating a new type of clericalism, not by priests alone, but by anyone who ‘lords it over’ others. That’s the opposite of what Synodality seeks to achieve,” Archbishop Costelloe cautioned.
He spoke of the “spirituality of Synodality” as the foundation for renewal in the Church, saying, “We are not a multinational corporation. We are the Body of Christ, the universal sacrament of salvation. Renewal begins not with structures but with a culture of the Gospel.”
He reminded participants that “culture eats structures for breakfast,” stressing that no reform will last without a change in mindset rooted in the Gospel’s logic of love and service.
At the heart of his reflection was a call to deep listening, what he described as “hearing the voice of the Spirit in what others say.” He urged that this attentive posture must define every parish council, diocesan body and episcopal assembly.
“You don’t have to agree with everything you hear,” the Vatican Cardinal said, and continued, “but you must truly listen, because the Spirit may be speaking to you through the very person you disagree with.”
The voice of the youth: A vocation to holiness
Another highlight was the workshop on “Youth and Synodality: A Vocational Perspective”, which Fr. Clemens Blattert facilitated.
Fr. Blattert invited delegates to reflect on young people who inspire faith through how they live their vocation.
The member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits/SJ) encouraged a broader understanding of vocation, not limited to Priesthood or marriage, but as God’s invitation to live a holy and joyful life.
Youths, he said, “are not just the future of the Church; they are its present, the now of the Church.”
Fr. Blattert spoke of the tensions young people face in their process of growth between desire and direction, restlessness and hope and how the Church must accompany them patiently.
Synodality, the Jesuit Priest explained, “means walking together, listening to the Spirit and helping the young to hear how Jesus calls them to serve and live in love.”
Pope Leo XIV’s homily: “A Church that walks together”
The Jubilee culminated in the Sunday, October 26 Eucharistic celebration at St Peter’s Basilica, presided over by Pope Leo XIV.
The Holy Father’s homily invited the faithful to rediscover the Church as a mystery of communion sustained by the Holy Spirit.
“The Church is not merely a religious institution, nor simply hierarchies and structures,” he said, adding that the Church “is the visible sign of the union between God and humanity, a family of beloved children united in the one embrace of God’s love.”
Pope Leo XIV emphasized that relationships in the Church must follow the logic of love, not power. “The supreme rule in the Church is love. No one is called to dominate; all are called to serve. No one should impose his or her ideas,” he said, and added, “We must all listen to one another.”
Drawing on the Gospel of the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, the Holy Father warned against pride and individualism that destroy communion. “The Pharisee’s prayer was a mirror of self-justification. When the ego prevails, we lose the sense of walking together.”
Instead, he called the people of God to imitate the humility of the tax collector, recognizing dependence on God and one another. “Christ belongs to the humble, not to those who elevate themselves,” he said.
Pope Leo XIV commended synodal teams and participatory bodies for embodying a Church that listens, discerns and seeks truth together.
“You help us understand that before any differences, we are called to walk together in the pursuit of God. By clothing ourselves with the sentiments of Christ, we expand the ecclesial space so that it becomes collegial and welcoming,” the Holy Father said.
He urged the people of God to allow the Holy Spirit to transform tensions into sources of harmony rather than polarization. “Truth is not possessed but sought together through prayer, humility and mutual trust,” he said.
In closing, Pope Leo XIV prayed for a humble and servant Church, saying, “Let us dream of and build a Church that does not stand upright like the Pharisee, but bends down to wash the feet of humanity; a Church that welcomes all, listens to everyone and remains rooted in love.”
Invoking the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, he concluded with a prayer from Don Tonino Bello, “Holy Mary, woman of conviviality, nourish in our Churches the desire for communion… extinguish the fires of factionalism and reconcile our hearts.”
Mario Cardinal Grech expresses joy at the jubilee turnout
In an interview with ACI Africa, Cardinal Grech expressed his delight at the remarkable turnout for the Jubilee of the Synodal Teams and Participatory Bodies in Rome, saying, “It is marvellous, not only the number of participants but also the diversity and the many nations represented. This gives hope.”
The Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops emphasized that the journey of Synodality is rooted in dialogue and openness to one another, even among Bishops who he said may still be hesitant to embrace it.
“Synodality is, first and foremost, a conversion of the heart before a conversion of structures,” Cardinal Grech said, and added, “I understand that some have questions or doubts, and that’s okay. Let’s come forward and learn from one another. It’s a new culture for the Church, and I understand the challenge.”
Kati Dijane contributed to this story
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