Pastoral Agents in Mozambican Archdiocese Urged to Serve with Humility, “reject vanity, rivalry, and careerism”

The Catholic Bishop warned that “no project built on injustice and pride can endure,” urging pastoral agents to “reject vanity, rivalry, and careerism.”

He reaffirmed that true service only has meaning when it comes from “humility and fidelity to the Lord.”

The 53-year-old Catholic Bishop emphasized that pastoral mission is weakened when contaminated by internal disputes and a lack of service spirit. 

He encouraged pastoral agents to approach the meeting with simplicity and honesty, asking themselves not “what have I achieved,” but “what have I done for Christ and His people.”

For him, the authenticity of pastoral work is not measured by human results, but by faithfulness to the Gospel.

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Bishop Muananoua underscored the importance of hope, affirming that faith in the resurrection “is not just a distant hope, but a present force that transforms the way we live.” 

He noted that those who serve God already participate in new life, even amid difficulties, because “life in Christ is not measured by human success, but by faithfulness and love.”

Amid the social and pastoral challenges in the Metropolitan See, the Auxiliary Bishop of Maputo reaffirmed that “Christian hope must guide all the work of pastoral agents, especially when service becomes demanding or little recognized.”

“Even in difficulties, the Holy Spirit sustains, strengthens, and renews,” he said, addressing particularly those agents who feel tired or demotivated. 

He insisted that faith in the resurrection shapes pastoral work in three fundamental dimensions: an active hope that moves to action rather than passivity; courage and witness, following the example of St. Cecilia.

He noted that the pastoral agent “works not for immediate results, but so that Christian communities may already experience the new life that comes from God.”

“God trusts each one of us. Let us be living agents of the Church, witnesses of hope, and servants of communion, so that our pastoral work becomes a true song of new life in Christ,” he said.

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate.