“We can’t serve Jesus Christ in church, and devil outside”: Cardinal Condemns Corruption, Injustice Rise in Madagascar

In the report, the Cardinal expresses worries about the authenticity of faith in Madagascar, where he says churches are always full. “Do we pray just because everybody prays? Or is it really with conviction?” he posed and urged Church ministers to guide the faithful to practice the Gospel message.

“The change has to start with us,” Cardinal Tsarahazana said, adding, “Do we really believe in the Gospel?”

Addressing the need for proper formation for future Priests in Madagascar to deepen evangelization, the Catholic Church leader said, “It is essential to give a good intellectual and spiritual formation to these young men so that the honour associated with being a Priest does not spoil them.”

“The discernment of vocations is already a very big challenge for us,” he said.

Cardinal Tsarahazana has been working tirelessly to strengthen pastoral and spiritual life in his Metropolitan See through ACN projects, including a two-day meeting he organized for 320 Catechists, the charity foundation has indicated in the April 28 report.

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In Madagascar, Catechists ensure continuous evangelization, especially in remote areas where they serve the people of God in the absence of Priests.

“It is the Catechists who spread the Gospel,” the Cardinal told ACN, and emphasized that because Catechists are deeply anchored in the faith, they serve the Church devotedly, even as volunteers.

In the ACN report, commending the Catholic Archdiocese of Toamasina for its dynamism, amid numerous challenges, Maxime François-Marsal, who is responsible for ACN projects in Francophone countries of Central Africa noted the extreme poverty and lack of infrastructure that Madagascar faces.

“Many Catholic communities find themselves isolated because of the lack of roads,” François-Marsal said in the April 28 report, recalling his visit to the nation.

François-Marsal also highlighted critical issues in the country, including a rapidly growing population that doubles every 25 years, the impact of climate change turning parts of the Island nation into a desert, and prolonged drought affecting the southern region for over three years

Noting that Madagascar is on the United Nations’ list of least developed countries, the ACN official said that there is also considerable insecurity in the country. “A third of the country is a red zone, meaning that it is among the most dangerous regions,” he said.

Cardinal Tsarahazana pointed out that Madagascar’s challenging situation has led many young people in the country, especially young girls, to dream of leaving in search of better prospects, sometimes hoping to find a foreign husband to escape poverty.

Sabrine Amboka is a Kenyan journalist with a passion for Catholic church communication. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from St. Paul's University in Kenya.