Thiès, 18 Sept (APS) – Priests from the seven dioceses of Senegal met in Thiès for the 46th general assembly of the National Union of Senegalese Clergy (UCS), APS noted.
More than 300 priests were expected at the meeting, which began on Monday and will continue until Thursday.
This general meeting coincides with the closing, on Tuesday, of the 50th golden jubilee of the UCS.
During these meetings around the theme “Jubilee of the Union of Senegalese Clergy, 50 years of lived fraternity: let us rejoice!”, Senegalese priests should revisit the achievements of their organization born in 1973, to reflect on their consolidation, while projecting themselves into the future.
Beyond the life of the Senegalese Church, the prelates are keen to take a look at current issues of interest to the country.
The participants in these meetings received from the Archbishop of Dakar the recommendation to reflect on irregular emigration, on a “better network of the national territory” by the Catholic Church and on the material life of the seminaries, reported Mgr André Guèye, Bishop of Thiès.
The Church cannot remain indifferent to illegal emigration, he said.
For André Guèye, the closing of this jubilee of the 50th anniversary of the UCS “marks a new beginning for a stage full of promise, given the rich experience lived”.
The mayor of Thiès, Babacar Diop, present at the closing ceremony of the golden jubilee on Tuesday, expressed his joy at hosting these meetings of the Senegalese clergy in the city of the rail.
Saying he was “very moved” to be in the presence of men who have “dedicated their lives to God” and to serving the poor, the mayor of Thiès stressed the need for politicians to “draw inspiration” from this commitment.
He cited a passage from the Bible telling the story of the Good Samaritan, one of the “most beautiful political texts” he said he found in this sacred text.
The 46th UCS General Assembly is scheduled to close this Wednesday.
ADI/BK
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