(Archbishop of Prague, Ceska Republic;
President of the CCEE)
For us who come from other continents, it is a historical event to be able to experience together with you a "common way" (Synodos). "Exchange of gifts" was the key word of the Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for Europe. With this Assembly for Africa this exchange broadens. I wish to say from now how much I wish to thank for all this wealth that Africa has to offer the whole Church.
Hearing them speak of the big problems of evangelisation in Africa, I thought of that fall of all the structures and all those means which we experience in Eastern and Central Europe under the Communist persecution. In that situation only Jesus remained, only his Gospel remained, including the sacraments, communion among us in small clandestine groups where reciprocal love reigned. Hence the Church and its evangelising mission developed, stripped of everything, we have discovered God close, the presence of Christ who has risen from the dead there "where two or three are reunited in his name" (cf. Mt. 18,28).
If evangelisation means building the family of God, it must have without doubt this deep christological and ecclesiological dimension. It must be Christ himself in his Church the announcer of the Word of the Father (cf. SC 7 & EN 7): Therefore we must be reunited "in His name", that is to say, in His Spirit, in His love to ensure the live presence of Christ among us.
Christ is his Church - this is according to me the "agent" and the main "structure" of evangelisation (cf. Relatio n. 3). It is he who is the strength that comes to help our human weakness before the great task of evangelisation. It is he who is the light in the darkness of our thoughts. In him, in his relationship with the Father, we find the model of how to create the family of God. In his love we find the key to establish fraternal relations with everybody and have an authentic and vital dialogue in the image of that Eternal Dialogue which is the life of the Most Holy Trinity. And what is evangelisation if not establishing this dialogue and making everybody one (cf. Jn. 17,21).
Original
text: Italian
