The Council of European Bishops‘ Conferences (CCEE) and the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), united in the name of the family, will meet from 28 to 31 May, in Maputo, Mozambique, for a seminar they have organized together under the title "The Joy of the Family."
 
In view of the upcoming Synod, the Bishops of CCEE and SECAM—for whom this kind of meeting together, aimed at strengthening their common reflection on the great challenges of the Church, is not new—will discuss issues concerning the family on the two continents. They will speak in particular about society‘s basic cell in its dual role as an agent of evangelization and as a community that needs to be evangelized. The most important topics on the agenda range from the anthropological, social and ecclesial challenges on the family to the Bishops‘ mission of proclaiming the Gospel of the family, including also the pastoral challenges related both to the family‘s joys and suffering and to the definition of the role of the Church and the Bishop in the dialogue about family issues with society and the State. It is foreseen that the Bishops will publish a final message, with all their deliberations, at the end of the assembly.
This seminar, hosted by Msgr. Lucio Muandula, President of the Bishops‘ Conference of Mozambique, will be chaired by Archbishop Gabriel Mbilingi, President of SECAM and a representative of Cardinal Peter Erdo, CCEE President.
 
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