Nothing is the same in Bangui

Nothing is the same in the capital city of the Central African Republic, after the visit of Pope Francis called it the “spiritual capital of the world.” Fidelia is a Congolese focolarina who has been living in Bangui for seven years. From 2012 until last September, she has seen with her own eyes the constant onslaught of armed clashes that over and over wiped out cities and villages, sowing seeds of horror and death everywhere. Now things appear quite changed and general opinion is that it was the visit of the Pope which marked the change in course. Fidelia comments: “Even in the provinces they’re talking about a before and an after. For example, the second round of presidential elections was held, and everything went fine. It was the same for the electoral campaign. But either one of them could have turned violent. Everyone is saying that when the Pope came, it was as if God himself had come, and so we can’t turn back now. They feel that the Pope took us ‘to the other shore’ and that we should continue moving forward all the way to true and lasting peace. Everyone seems convinced that if we want to reach social cohesian, forgiveness will be required, mercy and reconcilliation. You can sense a change of mentality beneath those words, a change of behaviour. Also the way we speak to one another – Muslims and Christians – has changed!

Fidelia’s words are truly encouraging, not only for the Central African Republic, but for all the places in the world where the sound of weapons needs to stop so that solutions can be found through dialogue.

Fidelia also showed us other aspects of the life of Central Africa. She told us, for example, that in recent weeks she and three others of the Bangui had treked 400 km to reach the small city of Bambio, where a small community animated by the spirituality of the Focolare was begun with the help of a Capuchin missionary. Fidelia recounts: “We met several families there, many young people, all of them very motivated. Even though Father Umberto had to return to Italy, they carried on for all these years, continuing to gather and encourage one another in living the Gospel, with the help of a book by Chiara Lubich which he had left to them.”

Meeting this community that had kept the flame of the Gospel burning for over twenty years, filled her with joy and amazement. But they had no idea that there was another surprise in store for them in that village. There are several Pygmy villages in the surrounding areas. They are known for their small stature and living primarily in the forests with their own customs and rules. Fidelia explained: “Many people think that it’s not easy to establish a relationship with them, but having to cross through their settlements, it was only natural that we stop and visit with them, and tell them what we were doing in those parts. Encouraged by their openness and their willingness, we got to know each other and shared about the values we believe in. Some of them showed great feeling for the spirituality of unity that we told them about. We agreed to return at Easter, to continue knowing and sharing with one another.”