For half a century, missionaries have guaranteed a precious presence in the most remote areas of the country and in the most difficult situations. A simple and at the same time strong testimony: life that itself becomes an announcement
Fifty years of mission in the Ivory Coast. A journey that becomes increasingly rich in presences and initiatives. An inheritance? Father Gabriel Costa reflects on it for a moment: «The most important one, in my opinion, was and is our testimony of life. A simple and at the same time strong testimony: it is life itself that becomes an announcement”.
In this month of April, the PIME missionaries celebrate an anniversary which inevitably becomes an occasion for taking stock, but also for new challenges: precisely that of the half century of presence in the Ivory Coast. A story of sharing many moments of growth, but also some critical periods in the recent history of what was called the “Switzerland of Africa” and which today is struggling to recover from the ashes of an absurd internal war.
The PIME missionaries, who arrived in 1973 in the wake of the priests the gift of faith of the diocese of Gorizia, have always remained. And this too, underlines Father Gabriel, «certainly represents one of the most important signs we have left in this country. People have always known that we were there, even in the most tragic moments: even when, like all the local population, they ran risks or put their lives in danger”.
Father Gabriel, 61, originally from Bangladesh, lived the mission in the Ivory Coast in two stages: as a young priest he was sent to the country in 1998; then, after a long period in Italy (2003-2021), he returned in February two years ago. Last March he was appointed superior of PIME’s Africa region.
Currently, six other missionaries from three continents and four different nationalities share the mission in Côte d’Ivoire with him. It is one of the characteristics that is gradually establishing itself in all the mission countries. And this is also what is happening in the Ivory Coast where, after a historic and important presence of Italians, who have traced the furrows along which some pastoral and human promotion lines still develop today, today the reality of PIME is decidedly more international and younger.
“Currently – Father Gabriel reconstructs – we are two Italians, two Indians, two Brazilians to whom a deacon will be added in June, and I come from Bangladesh. The youngest is 35 years old, the oldest 65. We are a small community and even if we live in missions far from each other, we try to have regular moments of sharing».
The celebration of the fiftieth anniversary in this month of April is one of these, but it also represents an occasion to retrace and reflect on a mission that has changed and continues to do so. “Several parishes founded by PIME, for example, have been handed over to the dioceses – explains Father Gabriel -. This is part of our charism: when a community is well established, we dedicate ourselves to new contexts of first evangelization”. In the diocese of Bouaké, in the centre-north of the country, this transition is well witnessed by parishes such as those of M’Bahiakro and Prikro, where PIME has given great testimony especially in moments of difficulty and suffering during the war. And the fruits can also be seen in terms of vocations. “In these parishes, many young people said they wanted to be missionaries like us – Father Gabriel recalls – and in fact some have already become so!”.
«We have never had large development projects – he points out – but we have always shown great closeness to the people». Father Dino Dussin, who today with his 65 years is the “veteran” of the mission in the Ivory Coast, where he arrived in 1981, is one of those who remained in Prikro even in the most difficult and dangerous moments: «The missions Catholics – he recalls – had become reception points for thousands of displaced persons. Luckily we had some rice and peanuts to give people with nothing to eat.’ Father Gabriel himself experienced a similar emergency not far away, in M’Bahiakro, where the crisis lasted for a long time. Then, as often happens in these contexts, even small miracles happen. “We have received many gestures of solidarity, even from Muslims – recalls Father Dino – which have allowed us to go forward in difficult times and to help many people”.
In 2004, the bombing of a French military camp in Bouaké by an Ivorian plane flown by Belarusian mercenaries precipitated the situation again. “Many displaced people from villages arrived in our missions – recalls Father Dino -, but also local people who were looking for a safe place. Mass graves were found near Bouaké with very many people killed». In that period, Father Dussin also dealt a lot with boys forcibly enlisted by the rebels and forced to fight and with girls reduced to sexual slaves: “Both of them lived in terrible contexts of degradation and wickedness”.
Now that the situation is calmer, PIME missionaries have returned to dealing with what is in their charism: first evangelization in the savannah villages of the centre-north of the country, dialogue with Muslims who are the majority, educational, health and social wherever there are situations of difficulty and suffering that – in a context that is very backward and abandoned by the institutions – are never lacking.
«Today – concludes Father Gabriel – we are present above all in the diocese of Odienné, the poorest in the whole country, also due to the lack of local priests, men and women religious. Our parishes include many villages which we visit regularly for celebrations and catechesis. We don’t have major charitable projects, but we try to promote education through distance support from the Pime Foundation in Milan. And we are often forced to take care of many malnourished or anemic children”.
Furthermore, in Kani, a town of about 10,000 inhabitants, PIME has created a socio-cultural center with a library, the only one in the city. “In recent years – says the missionary – the number of Christians has increased both due to our presence and to the more stable social situation. After the years of war, the context is now more peaceful and we can look forward with greater confidence”.
Half a century, looking ahead
The first PIME missionary, Father Gennaro Cardarelli, arrived in the Ivory Coast in December 1972, in collaboration with the the gift of faith of the diocese of Gorizia. In January 1973 he was joined by the first group of missionaries from Gorizia which was followed, in 1975, by a second crew which also included father Giovanni De Franceschi and brother Fabio Mussi of PIME. In fifty years of presence, the Institute has sent twenty-eight priests, four lay missionary brothers, two associate priests and five members of the PIME lay association (Alp): in all, thirty-nine people. The superior general, Father Ferruccio Brambillasca, will be in the Ivory Coast for the fiftieth anniversary celebrations. A solemn Mass is scheduled for April 23 in the cathedral of Bouaké, presided over by Archbishop Paul-Siméon Ahouanan Djro. After the assembly of the missionaries, the celebrations will continue in Ouassadougou, where a Marian grotto will be inaugurated. Finally, on May 7, there will also be a moment of celebration in Kani, where the parish, founded by the Society for African Missions (SMA) and then entrusted to PIME, will be 25 years old. Before leaving, the superior general will inaugurate a new church in the village of Djélisso.