Dar es Salaam, 18 June, 2021 / 7:59 pm (ACI Africa).
Catholic Bishops in Eastern Africa have, in a statement, acknowledged with appreciation the role Tanzania’s Polycarp Cardinal Pengo has played in fostering pastoral solidarity in the region ahead of the Church leader’s Priestly Golden Jubilee celebration.
In the Friday, June 18 statement shared with ACI Africa, the Bishops under their collective forum of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences for Eastern Africa (AMECEA) say since Cardinal Pengo became a member of the regional body, he remained “a recognized anchor of pastoral solidarity in the region, more especially when you became one of the patrons in February 1998.”
“Apart from being a loving and caring shepherd, you never missed out from Executive Board and Plenary Assembly meetings except for good reasons such as health problems,” the Catholic Bishops in Eastern Africa say in the statement signed by AMECEA Chairman, Bishop Charles Kasonde of Zambia’s Solwezi Diocese.
The Bishops recall Cardinal Pengo’s message on the occasion of AMECEA Golden Jubilee celebration in 2011 saying, “You reminded us that ‘the ever-changing cultural and political environment, both in Eastern Africa and the entire continent still call for even greater collaboration.’ You called on the church leaders in the region to be ‘committed to the goals of working together.’”
AMECEA has achieved a lot because of the Cardianl’s “generosity and commitment,” they add.
