“Marriage is not a game”: Catholic Bishop in São Tomé and Príncipe Denounces Infidelity, Calls for Family Renewal

In his considered view, “many of the wounds we see in families today stem from the emotional and spiritual disorganization of couples.” 

For him, “The wives who cry today did everything to keep their homes: they carried rice, sold fish, washed clothes, helped build the house, and today they are abandoned.” 

“This suffering is real. We hear mothers say they no longer know what they are worth; children who tell their mothers to their faces: ‘You are good for nothing.’ This is not only ingratitude. It is the result of a broken family structure,” the 51-year-old Catholic Bishop who started his Episcopal Ministry in March 2024 said.

He denounced marital infidelity, describing it as a “silent social wound that slowly disintegrates the family and spiritual fabric.” 

“We have families built on lies. The husband has two women, and neither of them knows she is being betrayed. Or she knows but endures it because she fears being alone. And the children? They grow up in confusion. They grow up without an example,” Bishop Nazaré lamented and posed, “How can we want a strong youth if the model we give them is one of lies, abandonment, and wounds?”

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The Catholic Bishop also spoke of the role of women in the family and in the Church, referring to Mary, the Mother of Jesus, as a model of humility, service, and dedication. 

“Mary did not disappear. She ran to serve. She carried the Son of God in her womb, but she never exalted herself. So too are our mothers. When they are faithful, they uphold the world. But today, many have been betrayed, wounded, forgotten. We need to once again recognize the value of women, of wives, of mothers. They are not replaceable,” he said.

On the responsibility of men, especially fathers, husbands, and godfathers, he noted that “to be a real man is not to collect relationships but to keep your heart in one place: with your wife and children.” 

He denounced the behaviour of those who, he said, “lie, cheat, and then show up in Church with the face of saints.” 

For Bishop Nazaré, “The true Christian is the one who lives his faith at home, at work, and in marriage. You cannot be a Christian on Sunday and unfaithful on Monday.”

He appealed for the reconstruction of the family as the foundation of society and of Christian faith, warning that “if we want to change this country, we must start at home. Start by being faithful, truthful, and honest.”

“The Church can preach a thousand sermons, but if couples are not faithful, the children will continue to grow up wounded. Let us not allow betrayal, lies, and selfishness to destroy what God has united in love,” Bishop Nazaré said in his August 31 homily.

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