Br. Singfred Sinior, BSM.
On Saturday January 14, hundreds of consecrated persons and apostolic workers from 27 of the 30 Religious Institutes serving in the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda converged at Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish of the Conceptionist Fathers at Njimafor - Mankon, Bamenda, to celebrate their Annual General meeting. A concelebrated Mass, presided at by Fr. Arnold Ven Hoeven, who sat in for Archbishop paul Verdzekov, preceded the deliberations at the meeting. Fr Ven Hoeven is a Mill Hill Missionary and serves as Vicar General for the Diocese of Mamfe. The Novices of the St Ann Sisters, Sisters Servants of Mary and the Holy Rosary Sisters novices animated the Liturgy. Fr. Ven Hoeven in his homily, charged the consecrated persons to serve God's people without reservation and without greed.
He observed that some church ministers siphon church funds for their private projects. 'The alms that the faithful give to the church is for the poor and the church. The Church's documents are clear about this", emphasised Fr. Arnold.
After Mass the participants gathered at the Parish hall to review the just-ended year in order to face the New Year. Rev. Sr. Alphonsa Kiven, TSSF, while introducing the day's agenda, asked for a minute's silence to be observed, for the deceased members of the conference who died in the course of the year.
Reverend Sister Alphonsa said that it will be an opportunity for the conference to thank the Archbishop on all that he has been doing for CESR and also to celebrate his 75th birthday. The Archbishop came in amidst applause from all present. The excitement and enthusiasm that infested everyone present was quite indicative of how fond the religious of the Bamenda Ecclesiastical Province are of their archbishop.
Father Paul, as the Archbishop is fondly referred to, responding to a welcome address, commended the conference members for all they have been doing for the church in the province. He paid special tribute to Sr. Magdalen and Mother Felix, Holy Rosary Missionaries, who founded the CESR.
The Archbishop went down memory lane and cited several documents of the church on consecrated life, to show its importance in the life of the church.
He mentioned that it was for this importance that he had seen the need to and introduced a course on consecrated life in the training of future priests.
He informed all that on the 22nd of January 2006, he would be exactly 75 years and would officially hand over the Crosier to his co-Adjutor Archbishop on the 23rd.
"I have asked the organising committee for that occasion to make sure that there is enough space reserved in the Church and in the Hall for all the religious", he said, personally extending his invitation to the conference members. Fr. Paul, who has served the metropolitan see of Bamenda for 35 years, also announced that for the first time ever in more than 83 years of their mission in Cameroon, the first Cameroonian Mill Hill Missionary, Elvis Berka, would be ordained Deacon in Kenya that same day.
The meeting continued with a talk captioned 'Ecclesia in Africa, EIA, and our pastoral plan in action' by Fr. Arnold Ven Hoeven. Fr. Arnold emphasised the importance of the document, EIA in the new evangelisation of the church and portrayed the Religious as a focus for hope among Christians. He called on the local church to give the religious every opportunity and assistance to live their charisma for the benefit of the church with their own full identity, status and autonomy in their work and sources.
The talk was followed by a workshop in which the participants brainstormed on how to contribute in the implementation of the Pastoral plan of the Province.
The meeting continued with reports from CESR Diocesan chairpersons, Financial reports and others.
The next AGM will take place on the 14th of January 2007.
Fr. Stephen Verla, Sch P. and vice president of CESR, expressed their respective appreciations to the executive for the fruitful discussions.
He blessed the food and concluded the meeting.
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