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| Obo |
A Christmas as a bishop
Many people have asked me what the first Christmas as a bishop is like.
It has been beautiful!
On Tuesday 24 I flew out to Obo, the easternmost parish of the diocese, 520 km from Bangassou.
I arrived late in the morning, and at 1:30 p.m. we left for Mboki, where we arrived after more than four hours, crossing the forest and encountering a few antelope and dozens of guinea fowl.
Mboki is a parish closed two years, due to the war. Throughout the area, and particularly here, the various rebel groups (UPC, Seleka, LRA, etc.) for years have made it a land of raids, looting, violence and killings: all along the road there is not a village left! Even these days, almost every night I hear some gunfire...
The pastor of Mboki, in April 2023, had been threatened and shot, wounding him in the arm.
For the past few months the area has been under the control of the regular military and Minusca, and life is slowly resuming.
I chose Mboki to celebrate this Christmas: it is here, where life is hardest and where people have suffered most that God is most at home!
We arrive greeted by so many people, and after a quick shower, I celebrate Christmas Eve Mass under two very large trees, forming one of the most beautiful cathedrals in the world!
The news of the birth of Jesus, God becoming man, is the most beautiful news, offering hope and dignity, especially to those who have suffered so much.
On the 25th we gather together with the whole community for Mass . The mayor, the head of the military and the imam are also there: it is a time of hope, and everyone wants to be there. In addition to Christmas, today I celebrate the baptisms of 4 children!
In the afternoon we visit the parish: the church is occupied by the Central African military, while the rectory has become the base of the Blue Helmets (Nepalese and Pakistani).
I also visit the elementary school: there are more than 600 pupils, and there are 6 teachers, all volunteers. So I make a decision to help the teachers (they are not paid, and the community should ensure their salary, but it can't!). I call them, and explain to them that every month I will give them a small amount (30 euros each), and they are very happy about it. This will help them to work better and more peacefully, and to secure the school for the whole year.
I also stop by to greet the imam, who greets us warmly, offers us tea, and we chat with him for a long time: the war was terrible, but it was a Muslim who rescued the wounded pastor and took him by motorcycle to Obo last year!
On the morning of the 26th we celebrate Mass, and after a visit to another group of military personnel, we leave around 9:30 a.m. for Obo, where we arrive at 4 p.m…. and it is only 75 km!
The flight to Bambouti, the town on the border with South Sudan, has unfortunately been cancelled. So we organize my presence and work these days differently.
Obo is a border land, and here, for decades, Sudanese, Congolese and Central Africans have found refuge. On Friday and Saturday we visit the various communities and chapels in the city, and on Sunday we celebrate a beautiful Eucharist, on the very day when, in all the cathedrals of the world, the bishops open the Jubilee of 2025. The theme is "Pilgrims of Hope," and it is a word that comes to touch deeply those who, for decades, have seen the various rebel groups come and go!
On Monday evening I celebrate Mass in a chapel in a neighborhood in Obo. Gathered here are the inhabitants of the road to Bambouti, who have had to leave their villages.
And here, too, the Word, the Word made flesh, illuminates our lives, and brings joy and dignity back to those in such need.
Tuesday 31, after a week, I return to Bangassou. Pilgrim of Hope: the Hope brought, but also the Hope received by the children, youth and adults of this extreme area of the country!
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| Ligoua |
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| In strada per Mboki En route pour Mboki |
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| La scuola di Mboki L'école de Mboki |
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| Mboki |
