Mgr. Samuel Kléda is new ACERAC president

The 10th Plenary Assembly of the Association of Episcopal Conferences of Central Africa, better known by its French acronym ACERAC, which was held in the capital of the Republic of Congo, Brazzaville, from July 06 to 13, 2014, witnessed a change at the association’s helm, as the President of Cameroon’s National Episcopal Conference and Archbishop of Douala, Mgr. Samuel Kleda, is now its new President.

Mgr. Samuel Kleda took over from the Bishop of Kinkala, Mgr. Louis Portella M’buyu, who has come to the end of his mandate and who participating Bishops thanked for the work he accomplished during his mandate.

The plenary assembly, which brought together Bishops from all the association’s six member countries, the President of the Pontifical Council for the Family, H. E Mgr. Vincenzo Paglia, Douala Emeritus Archbishop His Eminence Christian Cardinal Tumi, and the President of Congo Denis Sassou N’guesso, who took part in the solemn opening ceremony at the Brazzaville Congress Centre, focused on the family as reflected in the theme, “The Family In Africa Today.”

During the meeting ACERAC Bishops concluded that today’s family is threatened and therefore needs to be defended, protected and supported. They described the family as sacred, fundamental, and necessary and desired by God the creator. They also described the family as the basic unit of society and a place par excellence for personalisation, humanisation, socialisation and identification and a domestic Church where Man first encounters God.

The Bishops reiterated the importance of the Sacrament of Marriage and stressed the importance of assistance through long, pre and post marriage support and accompaniment for couples, the conciliation of tradition, civil and Christian marriage and the need to give priority to the family as a subject of Evangelisation. It is in this light that at the end of their meeting the Bishops issued a message to God’s People in their different countries on the family and the challenges it is facing today.

The Bishops also raised concern over the calamitous humanitarian situation from political conflicts for several years now in some brotherly member countries, particularly in the Central African Republic, which jeopardises the family. They saluted and encouraged the efforts of those working to ensure peace in the sub region. They assured families in the war-ravaged Central African Republic of their prayers and called on those who are killing others in that country to instead work for peace, dialogue and reconciliation.

The Bishops also listened to reports from ACERAC Secretary General on the association’s activities for the last three years and another from the Rector of the Catholic University of Central Africa, UCAC. Before they separated the Bishops thanked the Episcopal Conference of Congo for its hospitality and President Sassou N’guesso for his proximity and engagement which, they said, helped to ensure the meeting’s success.

The next ACERAC Plenary Assembly will hold in Cameroon in 2017.