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World Council of Churches
Update Up-03-39
For Immediate Use
23 October 2003

Angola visit: the task of healing

Cf WCC Press Update Up-03-38 of 13 October 2003
Cf WCC Press Release PR-03-31 of 2 October 2003

"The foundations for building a lasting peace are steadfast
love, faithfulness and, most of all, righteousness and justice,"
Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser told worshippers at an ecumenical worship
service in a Luanda stadium on 12 October.

Speaking to the assembled members of all the World Council of
Churches (WCC) member church congregations in Luanda, the WCC
general secretary focussed on "Healing the Land", the theme of a
7-16 October WCC visit to Angola. 

"In Angola, the land has suffered along with the people," Raiser
said in his sermon. "War action and land mines have disfigured
the land as they have destroyed people's lives. The land is being
despoiled of its riches, but the people are deprived of the true
benefits."

"When those in public authority enjoy the confidence of the
people, when they uphold justice and defend human rights, then
peace can grow and the wounds of the land can be healed," Raiser
stressed.

The 10-day visit to Angola by a WCC delegation began on 7
October with meetings in Luanda with the Council of Christian
Churches in Angola (CICA) and leaders of Angola's WCC member
churches, a visit to the annual meeting of the Western Conference
of the United Methodist Church, and evening meals shared with the
leadership of the Interchurch Committee for Peace (COIEPA) and of
Lutheran World Service. 

Next on the programme was a two-day trip to Huambo and Benguela
provinces. In Huambo, the delegation visited a transit camp for
displaced people, and a seminary where three WCC member churches
train their future pastors. In Lobito, the delegation attended a
seminar on "Healing the Land"; a second, day-long seminar on this
same theme was scheduled to take place later, in Luanda. 

Returning to the capital on 10 October, the delegation met with
a large gathering of young people, and received from them a
message from Angolan Christian youth. The message refers to AIDS,
lack of educational and employment opportunities and, more
generally, to extreme poverty among young people. It describes
the plight of displaced people and orphans, and the increase of
delinquency and prostitution in Angola's villages and small
towns. 

The message reports on what CICA's Youth Desk is doing "to help
young people overcome trauma, promote forgiveness and tolerance,
introducing them to a culture of non-violence in the light of the
Decade to Overcome Violence, launched in our country in May
2002". It acknowledges that what has been done so far is "a drop
of water in the ocean", but affirms that, as "the driving force
of any society", Angola's young Christians are determined to take
part in the task of "psycho-physical rehabilitation", restoration
of infrastructure and national reconciliation .

Another message, from church leaders, was delivered to Raiser at
the 12 October ecumenical service in Luanda. It asks in
particular for ecumenical assistance in resettling displaced
people, in the struggle against HIV/AIDS, and with regard to the
enormous challenges in the area of education and training.

"Angola, whom you love and have been supporting, has made
meaningful progress towards peace," the message says. "The guns
have been silenced, and we are working for the consolidation of
peace. We acknowledge that it is not an easy task, but we are
encouraged by the results already achieved."

Healing as transformation
In his many encounters with church leaders throughout the visit,
Raiser spoke of healing as a process of transformation in stages.
For the WCC general secretary, Angola, as it emerges from four
decades of civil conflict, is presently in the second of a
four-stage healing process that begins with emergency assistance,
continues with consolidation then re-convalescence and, finally,
ends with rehabilitation.

Speaking at the 13 October seminar in Luanda, Raiser suggested
that, for Angola, the second phase of healing means consolidating
peace. Peace cannot be taken for granted, he said. "The virus of
division, suspicion and fear is still present", and it is
important to learn how not to respond to the threat of violence
by violence.

In the next phase - re-convalescence - the main aim will be to
empower young people, since over 50 percent of the population are
under 25. Angola's youth have known only "broken promises and the
brutality of the struggle for power". How then can they "practise
faithfulness"? "Healing the land calls for patient efforts of
moral formation, planting the seeds of a new consciousness of
values into the hearts and minds of the people of the land,"
Raiser reflected.

It is in the fourth phase - rehabilitation - that changes in
public culture become critical, he said. Angola will need to
change from a culture where public funds are handled in secrecy
to a culture of transparency and accountability of those who
exercise power. And healing requires a just distribution of the
country's wealth rather than massive injections of outside
resources.

What role for the churches?
In a country with more than 500 years of Christian presence -
the longest in Africa - and, proportionately, its largest
Christian population (90%), Angola's churches "are best placed to
promote these processes of transforming a culture of violence
into a culture of peaceful settlement of conflicts", perhaps "by
opening the way to a spirituality of forgiveness", Raiser said.
But, he added, "in order to become credible agents of peace,
reconciliation and forgiveness, the churches must engage in acts
of reconciliation among themselves". (His comments were made at a
15 October public meeting with church leaders, diplomats,
politicians and civil society representatives, at which Raiser
lectured on "Peace-making in Africa - a Challenge for
Ecumenism".)

Gathering at the 13 October seminar in Luanda, Angolan church
leaders discussed how their churches can contribute to healing,
the immediate priorities in this process, and strategies and
visions for the future. Reporting on their deliberations, they
emphasized the need to work for church unity, and said that
churches should develop a spirit of dialogue, spread Christ's
message of peace, and work to physically and mentally dis-arm
their people. Integration of internally displaced people,
clearing land mines, combatting AIDS, poverty, violence,
delinquency, prostitution, illiteracy and tribalism are all
urgent needs, the leaders told the WCC delegation.

Another important role for the churches and ecumenical
organizations was mentioned by political leaders representing the
country's three main political formations - the MPLA, UNITA and
the FNLA - whom the WCC delegation met during its last two days:
that of preparing the people for elections expected in 2005, and
election monitoring. "Churches can play a decisive role in voter
education and education for democracy," Raiser agreed.

On its last day in Angola, the WCC delegation was received by
President Eduardo do Santos. The president referred to earlier
links between the Council and Angola, and appealed to the WCC to
continue supporting his country. The establishment of a new
political and social order requires building a new consciousness
among the people, but lack of education and widespread illiteracy
will be a serious barrier in this task, he said. The president
also stressed the urgent need for training, and expressed
appreciation for the crucial role churches played in education.

"The overall impression is less bleak than I expected," was
Raiser's comment on his return from Angola. "In fact, there is a
hopeful and energetic atmosphere among the people; they are
confident that the peace agreement will hold this time."
Confirming this impression, Rev. Dr Andri Karamaga, WCC programme
executive for Africa, who was part of the WCC delegation, said:
"In six months, the faces have changed. There is hope now!"

The texts of Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser's sermon, and lecture are
available on our website.
12 October sermon:
http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/regional/angola-sermon.html 
15 October lecture:
http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/regional/angola-lecture.html 

For further information, please contact Juan Michel, WCC  media
relations officer,  tel: +41 22 791 6153, mobile +41 79 507 6363,
media@wcc-coe.org 

**********

The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a fellowship of churches,
now 342, in more than 100 countries in all continents from
virtually all Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is
not a member church but works cooperatively with the WCC. The
highest governing body is the assembly, which meets approximately
every seven years. The WCC was formally inaugurated in 1948 in
Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Its staff is headed by general
secretary Konrad Raiser from the Evangelical Church in Germany.

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