The Catholic Bishops from the two neighboring countries will be interacting among themselves “to know the problems each Bishop faces in his Diocese with regard to the pastoral works, the lives of the people and the services they render to the people under their pastoral care,” the South Sudanese Priest told ACI Africa.
The member of the Clergy of South Sudan’s Catholic Diocese of Tombura-Yambio (CDTY) SCBC members will seek some “common understanding” of their Episcopal Ministry and how to further their pastoral service among the people of God under their care.
“From these issues the Bishops will develop decisions and come up with resolutions that can help them at the Conference level in order to find ways to tackle some of these problems,” the SCBC Social Communication Coordinator said.
He further said, “For the time being we cannot determine the pressing issues but what we know is that it’s a pastoral planning meeting that the Bishops will be having.”
“The meeting will begin with a day of recollection in which they will pray before beginning with their sessions,” Fr. Gbemboyo told ACI Africa, and added, “Each Bishop will share with his brother the good things that are happening in his Diocese.”
Some of the input from the Bishops will including “how Christians are responding to the pastoral work, the services given to the communities like schools and hospitals on how they are progressing,” he said.
“The plenary will also be a moment for the Bishops to draw up plans for the Secretariat for the next one year,” the South Sudanese Catholic Priest said, adding, “It will also be a moment for the Bishops to produce a document for their pastoral message of encouragement to the people in both nations.”
He appealed for spiritual solidarity with the SCBC members “especially this month of the Holy rosary to make sure the Plenary is successful.”
“We should also pray for their health because they are involved in so many traumatic work and experiences, which we need to support them through prayers,” Fr. Gbemboyo said and added, “When the Bishops succeed in their planning, our communities will also succeed in going forward in faith.”
Patrick Juma Wani is a South Sudanese journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. Patrick holds a Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication from Makerere Institute for Social Development (MISD) in Uganda. He has over 7 years of extensive experience in leading the development and implementation of media, advocacy, communication and multimedia strategy and operations, with an excellent track record of editorial leadership, budget management, and stakeholder outreach. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.
