Johannesburg, 11 August, 2025 / 11:47 pm (ACI Africa).
Members of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference (SACBC) who met for their Plenary Assembly from August 4-8 have highlighted “pastoral priorities” for the region that they say is experiencing a decline in faith practice, with the people of God said to be moving towards “practical atheism.”
In their one-page statement shared with ACI Africa on Monday, August 11 following their Plenary Assembly held at Khanya House in the Catholic Archdiocese of Pretoria, the SACBC Communications Office has outlined the various themes that guided the meeting of Catholic Bishops in Botswana, Eswatini, and South Africa, key among them the need to renew and strengthen Church institutions in the region.
The Catholic Church leaders “gathered to reflect on the Church’s pastoral priorities and social challenges in light of the ongoing synodal journey,” reads in part the statement dated August 8.
The statement further reads, “Key discussions included the renewal of Catholic higher education, strengthening diocesan synodal structures, lay formation, and financial sustainability within Church institutions.”
At the official opening of the SACBC Plenary Assembly on August 5, the concern that faith in some of the three member countries is on the decline came up.
