Pope says church can contribute to peace in Republic of Congo

Published: 2007-10-19

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Catholic Church can contribute to the consolidation of peace and democracy in the Republic of Congo by educating its members in Gospel values, strengthening family life and improving services to the poor, Pope Benedict XVI said. Meeting Oct. 19 with Congo's bishops, who were at the Vatican making their "ad limina" visits to report on the status of their dioceses, Pope Benedict expressed his hope that the nation's Catholics would "remain untiring workers for justice and peace." Bishop Louis Portella Mbuyu of Kinkala, president of the Congolese bishops' conference, told the pope his country had lived through three armed conflicts in the 1990s, and efforts continue "for the reconstruction of the country and the education of consciences." Pope Benedict called on the Congolese "to open the paths to reconciliation so that ethnic and social differences, lived with respect and in mutual love, would become a common richness and not a reason for division."

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