Within the framework of the service of communion, accompaniment and animation proper to the General Government, Fr Félicien Mouendji travelled to Equatorial Guinea to preside over the General Canonical Visitation in this country on behalf of the Father General, Carles Gil i Saguer. The Piarist presence in Equatorial Guinea belongs to the Province of Central Africa and unfolds within an ecclesial and social context offering significant educational opportunities at different levels.
The Visitation made it possible to meet the communities and works of the Pious Schools in the cities of Bata, Akurenam, Akonibe and Ebibeyin, where the Piarist mission is concretely expressed through educational and pastoral initiatives of wide impact. In all these places, a clear orientation towards the integral promotion of children and young people is evident.
A significant feature of the Equatorial Guinean context is the learning of the Spanish language from the stage of Initial Formation, an element of great relevance for the formative itinerary and for responsible insertion into the local environment. The Visitation highlighted the value of the daily witness of intercultural communities, made up of brothers from Congo, Spain and Cameroon. In each community, reflections were shared in the light of the keys of inspiration, with particular emphasis on the need to strengthen the mechanisms that sustain an integrally sustainable Piarist presence.
The Piarist presence in Equatorial Guinea continues to transform the reality of Guinean society through the sustained effort of the religious brothers and their educational proposal. At the same time, there is a clear commitment to create and strengthen strategies that promote vocational ministry directed towards young Guineans, ensuring serious processes of accompaniment that foster discernment, perseverance and the maturation of religious vocations.
Fr Félicien Mouendji expresses his gratitude for the fraternal welcome received. He encourages the communities of Equatorial Guinea, and all the brothers and collaborators involved in the Piarist ministry, to continue with renewed vigour in the building up of the Pious Schools.
Visit to Congo
The second part of Fr Félicien Mouendji’s activities involved travelling to Congo. This time, not for a canonical visitation, but for a fraternal visit. In Kinshasa, progress was made in the construction of the formation house for the juniorate. Meanwhile, in Kinonka, Fr Félicien was present at the presbyteral ordination of the deacons Henri Mwanangulu and Cédric Mbembe Nikita, who were ordained by H.E.R. Mons. Pedro Aguado Cuesta, Sch. P.
