DRC: 30 years of wartime evangelization

The Rwandan genocide is known worldwide, but fewer people know that it seriously rattled the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which has suffered from decades of war and crisis. But with the help of ACN, the Congolese Church brings hope to the population.

“For 30 years, we have been in a cycle of violence and eternal new beginnings. One knows when the war starts, but not when it will end,” said Monsignor Floribert Bashimbe, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Bukavu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), during his visit to Aid to the Church in Need (ACN)’s international headquarters. “For 30 years, we have evangelized amid war and tried to convey this message of hope to the people: God created man for life, not for death! We must not give up.”

In the past three decades, every family in the DRC has lost a loved one to war, he said. The Archdiocese of Bukavu, in the eastern province of South Kivu, has been particularly affected by violence. Over a period of nine years, between 1996 and 2005, three bishops lost their lives in the war. “Despite all this, the number of faithful in the archdiocese has increased. And our schools and hospitals are among the most renowned in the country.” Over the past 30 years, 16 new parishes have been established, and the archdiocese boasts 25 female and 13 male religious congregations, and 106 seminarians.

After the genocide, a large part of the Rwandan population fled to the DRC, plunging the country into a major crisis: “The situation exploded and caused many problems, because the refugees included not only the poor and persecuted, but also criminals and military groups,” said the Vicar General.

The country experienced three wars. And since 2021, the M23 militia has again spread terror in the east of the country. Two million internally displaced people live in the city of Goma, which has been surrounded by militants since the end of February. According to media reports, two of the refugee camps were bombed by rebels at the beginning of May.

“To support the priests, religious, and faithful in these difficult times, Archbishop François-Xavier Maroy, myself, and other members of the diocesan curia are available to hear their concerns and see how the various challenges can be met,” said Monsignor Bashimbe. This personal pastoral care is of immense value.

He emphasized that none of the archdiocese’s 42 parishes have closed. “Despite the violence and the threat of death, all our priests have chosen to remain in their parishes. Because experience has shown us that when they are abandoned, places are looted and destroyed. And when a priest leaves his parish, especially in rural communities, where a priest has more influence among the population than government representatives, most of the people flee, too.”

The help the archdiocese has received from ACN is very valuable, the Vicar General said. He is impressed by ACN’s loyalty and courage, and was especially moved by the visit of a delegation in 1996, during a critical phase of the war: “Half of our parishes had been destroyed and looted. And everyone was in fear. Nobody dared to come to this region. But ACN came to us and helped us to get back on our feet.”

To express their gratitude, all the parishes in the archdiocese celebrate Mass for ACN’s donors on the first Friday of every month, the Friday of the Sacred Heart, the Vicar General said. “We have received great support from you for many years. We can only thank you most sincerely for this constant presence at our side.”

—Sina Hartert