Cardinal: African priests should stay in Africa and not come to Europe

"Vatican: African priests should go into the slums.  A Curial Cardinal complains that many African priests would rather work in Europe than in the slums of their homeland. He calls on the clergy to have more missionary zeal.


The Vatican calls on African priests to be more willing to stay in their home country and not to go to Western countries. Many African priests wanted to work as missionaries in Europe and the US, but were not as willing to go to the poor regions of their own country or continent, said Cardinal Fernando Filoni during a visit to Uganda, as Radio Vatican reported on Thursday.

Filoni is the Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, the Vatican official responsible for the local Churches in Africa.
Filoni urged the African priests to visit the slums of the big cities. The Italian Curial Cardinal told priests, religious and priesthood candidates in the capital of Uganda, faith should be proclaimed not only within the church walls. What is needed is a genuine missionary zeal. The celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Archbishopric of Kampala is the occasion of Filoni's visit, which lasts until Sunday. "


Source

See also Cardinal forced to apologise for remarks about Africans. The Cardinal does not seem to be aware of the great contribution Africans make to the Church at a time of acute crisis in the European Church (and beyond).

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