For Immediate Release
Clerics: The Church is at the World Social Forum as a Deserving Entity
(NAIROBI) 24 January: The Church in Africa is now mature and can tackle global challenges on an equal footing with the rest of the world, according to Archbishop Zaccheaus Okoth of the Kenya Catholic Church
Archbishop Okoth said the Church was participating in the World Social Forum (WSF) to convey the message that "we want a better world" and contribute to making the people of Africa be conscious of who they were.
The Archbishop who is the President of CARITAS said the Church wanted to state very clearly that the dignity of the human person had neither race nor colour. He said the Church wanted to promote the dignity that appreciated an African as equally a dignified person in front of God just like any other. It therefore meant that the challenges that were there should be seen for all. He was responding to a question on what unique thing the Church was bringing to the World Social Forum.
Archbishop Okoth said Africans were not inferior since they had values that were admired by other nations He pointed out Africa's generosity of caring for their brothers as an example that made them a people that valued life.
Responding to the same question, the General Secretary of the AACC, Rev. Dr. Mvume Dandala said the AACC/CARITAS platform represented more than 300 million Christians in Africa. He noted further that the church was with their flock every day and, therefore, understood their plight better.
"We are touching them when they are hurting most. We are with them when they are affected by the consequences of the global climatic change that is happening, where people are hit by tornados and things like that. These are new things to our continent and churches are always there in the frontline of being with the people in those situations," noted Rev. Dandala.
Rev. Dandala said the uniqueness of the Church at the WSF was that it was not speaking from a philosophical or ideological position, but rather from a day to day experience of the suffering of the people.
Ends.
www.aacc-ceta.org Tel: 254 - 20 - 4441483, 4441338/9 " Fax: 254 - 20- 4443241, 4445835 " Email: secretariat@aacc-ceta.org
General Secretariat: Waiyaki Way, P.O. Box 14205 , 00800 Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya