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Mgr Fulgence Muteba, Metropolitan Archbishop of Lubumbashi denounced “the abyss between the insolent way of life of the political oligarchy” and the misery of the people who continue to grow in “the general indifference of those to whom falls the responsibility of manage public affairs”.
He said it in his speech delivered this Sunday, June 11 at the closing mass of the third national eucharistic congress organized by the National Episcopal Conference of Congo in Lubumbashi. Mass was celebrated at the TP Mazembe stadium in the commune of Kamalondo, by the pope’s special envoy, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, proprefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization.
“In these unjust and revolting conditions, the Congolese people do not despair. These people firmly believe in a better tomorrow. This people is aware that its destiny is in its hands,” said Bishop Fulgence Muteba.
The Metropolitan Archbishop of Lubumbashi also castigated the poor distribution of national wealth:
“Whether it’s copper, cobalt here in Katanga, whether it’s diamonds from Kasai or timber from Ecuador and customs revenue from the borders with the nine countries around us, the dividends of these immense riches are monopolized by the rare gluttony of an elite in power and unscrupulous multinationals. During this time, the population of all Congo, which is the official owner, stagnates in misery”.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, in his homily, insisted on the love that should characterize Christians.
The president of CENCO, Mgr Marcel Utembi, for his part condemned any division and any balkanization of the country by confessing national unity.
The 3rd National Eucharistic Congress of the Democratic Republic of Congo opened on Sunday June 4 in Lubumbashi in the province of Haut-Katanga. Bishops and delegations made up of the faithful, priests, consecrated and laity of the 48 dioceses of the DRC and elsewhere made the trip there for this national event.
This third Eucharistic Congress was placed under the theme: “Eucharist and family”.
The National Episcopal Conference of Congo had already organized two Eucharistic congresses. The first in Kisantu in 1933 and the second in Kinshasa in 1980. The importance of this third congress was to emphasize the family, which is part of the concerns of the Church both at the universal level and at that of the local church.