Introduction
At the beginning of the history of salvation the God of Creation held us accountable for each other’s welfare. Jesus, too, gave us the Great Commandment to love one another. The way we respond to that Commandment, by coming to the assistance of our brothers and sisters in need, will determine our eternal destiny (Mt. 25:31ff).
We, the Bishops of IMBISA gathered together in Harare, Zimbabwe, pondered on how our people live. Many of our brothers and sisters live in poverty and hunger. Violence, war, corruption and despair corrode their lives. AIDS devastates our youth and our families. In many countries of our Region, 700 people die of AIDS-related illnesses each day. Corruption, poor education, unemployment and political instability blight the future.
Poverty
About sixty percent of the labour force is unemployed. Sometimes thirty-five people are found to be living off the pension of an elderly parent. In most of our region there is no pension.
Poverty is about people – real men, women and children – who have no food and nowhere to sleep. Yet, like you and us, they are people with feelings – feelings of loss and despair. If their families have not yet been ravaged by AIDS, they have a child who cannot go to school or a father who has no work and who will quickly lose all his dignity in his family because he cannot provide for them.
The hunger that pains little children at the beginning of each school day deprives them of the strength to learn. In their hunger, many have no alternative but to resort to scratching out roots and leftovers – while others scramble in the streets for food. Legions of our children are undernourished and malformed.
Yet when we read the Scriptures, we discover that God Himself provided for those in need – especially the hungry. Again and again, Jesus identified with the poor and the suffering. One of Christ’s best-known miracles tells of how he fed the multitude. …
Looking forward
As we enter into our new millennium, we desperately need to bring to our communities a Christian approach to poverty and economic justice. The Church has contributed magnificently to the welfare of our people especially in the areas of education and health. Africa owes an enormous debt to Sisters, Priests and Brothers who spend their whole lives in the service of our peoples.
In recent times, the Church has repeatedly condemned injustice. The task of the Church is to be Christ to the world. “He who listens to you listens to me” (Lk. 10:16). To build our future we must remember that God has made us co-creators with himself. What the future will be also depends on us. Every one of us is called to the making of a new world in Southern Africa.
Sources
IMBISA. 2001. Minutes of the IMBISA Sixth Plenary Assembly 2001. Poverty and economic justice in the new millennium. A Christian approach. 30 July – 8 August 2001, Chishawasha Seminary, Harare, Zimbabwe. Harare: IMBISA.
On synodal journey for 50 years
In celebration of the golden jubilee of IMBISA, formed in 1975, we publish snippets of history once a week.