IMBISA’s Plenary Assembly “a synodal act”: President at Opening Ceremony in Eswatini

In a press briefing on August 27, Bishop José Luís Gerardo Ponce de León said 120 delegates drawn from the nine countries of IMBISA, including Cardinals, Archbishops, Bishops, Clergy, women, and men Religious, and Laity are expected to grace the Jubilee celebration.

IMBISA brings together members from Angola, São Tomé and Príncipe, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe.

In his introductory remarks on Thursday, September 25, the IMBISA president said that by holding the Plenary Assembly, the Bishops in the region are only expressing their commitment to the legacy they received from the founders of the regional body.

The member of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) said the Bishops are also demonstrating their alignment with Pope Francis' vision of a true synodal Church.

Archbishop Nasheda recalled that, during the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis emphasized the need to “continue on this path” of the Synodal journey.

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“The world in which we live and which we are called to love and serve, even in its contradictions, demands that the Church strengthen synergies in our areas of its mission,” he said.

The IMBISA President said that the path of synodality is “precisely the path that God expects of the Church of the Third Millennium.”

He explained, “Fifty years ago, when the founders of IMBISA, in embracing the innovations of the Second Vatican Council, had the happy idea of founding IMBISA, they had no other objectives than to further strengthen ties, to share life and challenges in the ecclesial and social spheres of the region.”

“We wish to express our gratitude for this achievement, which constitutes a great commitment for us,” he said, and added, in reference to an African Proverb, “If you want to go far, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Referring to Jesus’ prayer of unity in the Gospel of St. John, Archbishop Nasheda said, “I pray that we emerge from this plenary session stronger in our journey of communion, in building a Church that builds bridges, promoting dialogue and non-violence at all levels, being seeds of peace.”

“I ask that during our work or deliberations, we keep in mind all the members of IMBISA, who for various reasons cannot be here with us, but who are undoubtedly united with us,” he said.

He added, “let us raise our prayers to the Lord for all those who have been and continue to be tested by natural disasters and by conflicts of various kinds in the world, and particularly in the South African region.”

In his remarks, Bishop Ponce de León of Manzini Catholic Diocese said the synodal journey is the best way the Church has offered for the people of God worldwide to understand dialogue.

“I believe that our region and the world is in deep need of learning to dialogue. The Church has offered a unique way of understanding it,” Bishop Ponce de Leon said.

The Argentine member of the Institute of the Consolata Missionaries (IMC) noted that understanding dialogue is about journeying together, listening to one another and together listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

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“The goal is to be able to listen to that voice, the only one that can give us, all of us, without exception, fullness of life,” he said.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.