AFRICA/ANGOLA - A missionary: on the outskirts of Luanda the poorest are always the most generous

Tuesday, 16 June 2020 coronavirus   poverty   solidarity  

Luanda (Agenzia Fides) - "Here in the great northern suburbs of Luanda, Kikolo area, the cases of infected by Covid-19 are many more than those declared by the government", writes to Agenzia Fides Fr. Renzo Adorni, priest of the Society for African Missions. "From civil society estimates across Angola, we are talking about a few thousand, instead of the hundred stated in official figures. Most of them are young people, but the dead are few. And then 'God is African', as people say here, and takes care of them with more benevolence"- adds the missionary engaged in the Bom Pastor parish".
Certainly our people have more strength and antibodies - he notes - also due to the various pandemics suffered throughout their history. However, we have now gone from 'curfew' to 'state of disaster': Luanda is always isolated and surrounded by the army. One cannot go out and enter our province. The rivers that serve as the border of the Province are also guarded. But at least they allowed to keep the market open three days a week, otherwise people would have starved".
"In our suburbs of Luanda - explains Fr. Adorno - there is great chaos: the large market in Kikolo is still closed because the government wants to delimit it with a very long fence. The small traders then turned the streets of the neighborhood into an immense and chaotic market. And so everyone pours into the streets, driven by hunger and the need for basic necessities. As a parish we have taken action to meet the needs of the most destitute and desperate. We have already distributed food aid to a few hundred people in dire need. Since we are a little more free to resume religious activities, I have already begun to receive people in our parish office (of course with a face mask, social distancing, and disinfectant). I confess, I listen to personal and community problems and collect the offer that our Christians make to financially support the parish. The poorest are always the most generous!".
The missionary stresses that "the most serious problem will arise when Sunday, June 21 mass celebrations will be allowed to resume in churches": "It is difficult to find ways to prevent the assault on our Church of the Good Shepherd (for 21 years entrusted to us missionaries of the SMA), after three months of Eucharistic abstinence for our Christians. At the 7 am mass there are about 1,500 normal participants; the children’s mass at 9 am is attended by about 600-700. And then again the 11 am mass, with a thousand young people. We have little space in the courtyard, occupied by the construction works for the expansion of the church. Not to mention the dozen chapels scattered throughout the parish territory, where catechists organize Sunday prayers. We call them chapels, but they are quite large".
Speaking of the conditions imposed by the health authorities, Fr. Renzo underlines the great work of the volunteers and scouts. "Here we are only two priests: Fr. Jacques (Ivorian, 43 years old, not in perfect health condition) and me, 81 years old. The danger will be in July: the government has decided to reopen the schools, although many health and public order experts have advised not to. Schools are overcrowded everywhere, thousands of pupils crammed in classrooms. The average number of pupils per class is over 50, in addition, public schools even lack toilets. With us it is customary to see teachers (and also pupils) go and ask neighboring houses for permission to use their toilets".
The missionari therefore highlights: "How can we maintain social distancing in our parish school? Maybe we will have to organize three shifts per day to decrease the number of pupils. But we need more teachers, so staff costs will increase. This is our daily reality: may the Lord continue to protect Angola". (RA/AP) (Agenzia Fides, 16/6/2020)


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