The Inter-Regional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa (IMBISA) takes this opportunity to congratulate the Major Seminary of St. Augustine of Roma in the Kingdom of Lesotho on the occasion of the celebration of its centenary.
A centenary is a great historical milestone, worthy of being celebrated, as it is a long journey in the formation of workers of Evangelization, promotion of the common good and construction of a fraternal society as Pope Francis invites us in Fratelli tutti.
The Holy Scripture teaches that ‘Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain, unless the Lord guards the city, the sentries watch in vain’ (Ps. 127,1-2). It would not have been possible for the Major Seminary of St. Augustine in Rome to celebrate one hundred years of existence if the Lord had not put his hand. For this fact we have more than enough reasons to thank the Lord, the owner of the vineyard, for having inspired those who had the idea of building the Semiary of Rome, for not having abandoned his work taking care of those who over the years have contributed to its maintenance, leading and for continuing to call candidates to his vineyard.
All that remains is to ask the owner of the vineyard to continue blessing the Seminary of Rome, the Church of Lesotho, the Episcopal Conference of Catholic Bishops of Lesotho, the Seminary’s Staff Team, its teaching staff, support staff and seminarians, the reason for the Seminary’s existence and wishing for a good and renewing celebration.
Finally, we invite the Major Seminary of Rome to pray for the Golden Jubilee of IMBISA, which will have its concluding celebration on Sunday, 28 th September 2025 in Manzini, Kingdom of Eswatini
Fr. Rafael Sapato
Director of the IMBISA Secretariat
Photo Credit:
The Southern Cross magazine – https://www.scross.co.za/