Construction Sites

 

Lanome

 

Construction Sites

 

26 April 2026

 

I don’t know about you, but I often find myself with several construction projects to start and keep track of.

It’s the same here in Bangassou!

Despite the rain, we are continuing or starting work on a number of projects in various parishes. Thanks to the help of so many people from all over the world!

Construction of the church in Lanome is progressing well. Whilst the bricklayers are putting up the walls, the carpenters are starting to build the trusses (13.5 metres long).

On Tuesday I am in Gambo, 75 km from Bangassou. Here, the Mission has endured numerous wars, and there is much to be done to repair and refurbish the presbytery.

On Thursday, together with Bishop Aguirre, we are going to Oungo, 70 km away. In just over a month’s time, we will celebrate the ordination of Guy Médard, a young man born in this parish. And on Thursday itself, we meet several priests here who have come to celebrate the anniversary of Abbé Clotaire’s ordination, which took place in Gambo on 23 April 2006!

On Friday we go to Niakari, 15 km away, where on Sunday Bishop Aguirre will celebrate Confirmations.

Meanwhile, on Sunday 26 April, I will be celebrating Mass in the Cathedral in Bangassou, to mark the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. And our 67 seminarians will be there! Let us pray with them, and for them, and for the other seminarians of the diocese, who are studying and continuing their formation in the seminaries of Bangui, or in Italy and Spain.

Ouango

Ouango

Niakari

Bangassou

The Pope in Africa

 

Campi di arachidi
Champs d'arachides
Campos de cacahuetes

The Pope in Africa

19 April 2026

 

We are following Pope Leo XIV’s trip to Africa with great interest. After Algeria, he visited Cameroon, our neighbour (in many ways), and is now in Angola, from where he will travel to Equatorial Guinea, the final stop on his tour.

It is interesting that Pope Leo chose Africa for his first major trip. His previous trips (to Turkey and Lebanon) had already been arranged by Pope Francis.

Africa is a continent of hope, both for humanity and for the Church.

The journey, and above all the speeches, are deeply meaningful and rich, and resonate powerfully here in the Central African Republic too. In Bamenda, an area torn apart by tensions between Anglophones and Francophones, whilst speaking of the challenges facing the country – poverty, corruption, violence, migration – he forcefully reminded everyone that “God is new” and that he makes believers “capable of confronting evil and building good”. And this does not apply only to Cameroon!

After the mission to Zemio, I had a few (slightly) quieter days.

On Sunday 12 April, I celebrated Mass in the chapel of Our Lady of Hope, in the Maliko district here in Bangassou. Inaugurated last year on 25 March, it is becoming a small, lively community.

On Monday I am in Lanome, where we have resumed work on the construction of the church.

On Tuesday, Bishop Aguirre returns to Bangassou after spending almost three weeks in Obo and Mboki.

We’re getting back to work together these days, partly because there are so many files to go through and so many decisions to make.

On Saturday morning I’m off to Bandoufou, 25 km away. There I’ll celebrate Mass, accompanied by a small choir and supported by a little boy playing a makeshift drum set!

After Mass, I meet with the local people, because we are going to build a school here for the more than 200 children. Until now, lessons have been held under some thatched shelters, and it is time to offer something better for the future of the village.

I bambini del centro orfani con i ceci arrivati dalla Spagna
Los niños del orfanato con los garbanzos que llegaron de España.

Bandoufou

Qui sorgera la nuova scuola di Bandoufou
Ici on batira la nouvelle école de Bandoufou
Aquí se construirá la nueva escuela de Bandoufou.

Lanome

Maliko