WASHINGTON—The
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Subcommittee on the Church in
Africa approved 54 grants totaling nearly $1.4 million in funding to support
dioceses and pastoral projects across the African continent.

Projects
approved to receive funding include:

·
In
Angola, the Episcopal Commission for
the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (CEPAMI) is a commission
under the Episcopal Conference of Angola and São Tomé that promotes the
pastoral care of migrant communities. CEPAMI will provide training to about 40
leaders over two weeks. With this training, leaders will be able to assist,
guide and organize the pastoral work for migrant communities in the 19 dioceses
of Angola.

·
In
West Africa, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Liberia will organize a summer
camp for 100 youth from each of the three dioceses located in that country.
Many of the youth are from poor families and have few resources. The country
itself has suffered greatly from a 14 year civil war and the Ebola outbreak.
This camp will provide a place for the children to stay, pray, receive basic
catechism lessons and play together.

“Our
brothers and sisters on the African continent often face challenges different
from what we know in the United States, but we are united by the same faith,”
said Cardinal Joseph Tobin, CSsR, of Newark, chairman of the Subcommittee on
the Church in Africa. “The generosity of Catholics in the United States to the
Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa has supported these communities as
they grow and strengthen their faith in the wake of wars, migration, and
disease.”

Additional
areas of funding include seminarian and religious formation, evangelization,
family ministries and lay leadership training.

The
Subcommittee on the Church in Africa oversees the Solidarity Fund for the
Church in Africa as part of the USCCB Committee on National Collections. It allocates
revenue received from the Solidarity Fund, which is a voluntary collection, as
pastoral grants to episcopal conferences and their regional associations in
Africa. To learn more about the work of the Subcommittee visit www.usccb.org/africa.

—

Keywords: U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, USCCB,
Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Subcommittee on the Church in Africa, grants, training,
pastoral care, Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa

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Source:: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops