ZEC Impact Magazine Sept - Dec 2015

The Official Online Journal of the Catholic Secretariat

IMPACT OnlineOnlineOnline September - December 2015 Issue 12/2 www.catholiczambia.org.zm

NEW IMPACT Online | Sept - Dec 2015 1

19 Sisters have graduated with Certificate in Lead-

ership and Formation from Kalundu Study Centre in

Lusaka on November 7, 2015.

And Speaking at the Graduation Ceremony, the

Centre Administrator Sr. Euphrasia Chanda urged all

graduands to be ambassador for Christ. Basing on

this years theme: Sent on mission to make disciples

of all nations and bear fruit in abundance, Sr. Chan-

da exhorted the Sisters to remain focus and willing

to do the work of

God in whichever

apostolates the

Sisters will be

sent.

And Lusaka

Archdiocese Vicar

General, Mons.

Oliver Mukunta encouraged all

the Sisters to live consecrated

life with the humility and sim-

plicity of life.

The 19 Sisters who graduated

come from different Religious

Congregations from Lesotho,

Malawi, Namibia, South Africa,

Zimbabwe, Tanzania and from

within Zambia.

Rev. Fr. Leonard

Namuvhumba has

been appointed by

AMECEA as vice

Rector of the

Blessed Bakanga

College in Nairobi, Kenya.

Until his appointment Fr. Namuvumba

has been Spiritual Director of the St.

Dominics Major Seminary for eight

years from 2008.

Fr. Namuvhumba was ordained for the

archdiocese of Lusaka in 1994. He holds

a PHD in Spiritual Theology, Bachelor

Degrees in Theology and Counselling.

Prior to his studies, Fr. Namuvumba

worked in many parishes of the Archdio-

cese of Lusaka. He was also appointed

Episcopal Vicar for three years before

Kabwe became a diocese.

The Independent Broadcasting

Authority (IBA) has granted

Zambia Episcopal Conference

(ZEC) national TV construction

permit.

ZEC Director for Communication Father

Winfield Kunda who disclosed the develop-

ment added that the national Catholic TV

station will be called LUMEN TV Zambia

and be based in Lusaka.

Father Kunda who says the development

has excited the Church in Zambia for it has

waited for more than 10 years for a TV li-

cence, however said the development is a

mammoth task that calls for support from

all Catholics and people of good will.

Father Kunda says that once Lumen TV (Z)

becomes operational it will be broadcasting

throughout the country and appealed for

content contribution from all the

church run media production houses

in Zambia to make it a success.

In a letter dated 10th August, 2015

and addressed to the Zambia Episco-

pal Conference Secretary General

Father Cleophas Lungu, the Inde-

pendent Broadcasting Authority Di-

rector general Josephine Mapoma

authorised the Catholic Church in

Zambia to be a content provider to

the Zambia National Broadcasting

Cooperation (ZNBC) bouquet via its

national TV station.

ZAMBIA CATHOLIC NATIONAL TV IN OFFING

Fr Winfield Kunda

Fr. Leonard Namuvhumba appointed Vice-Rector of Blessed Bakanja College

Sent on mission to make disciples of all nations and bear fruit in abundance

Reverend Sisters holding Certificates on their Graduation at Kalundu Study Centre


The Vatican says its bond with Zam-bia has been inserted into vibrant and active fabric of Zambian life. This has contributed to the promotion of freedom of activity for the church and dignity of the human person. Holy Sees Secretary for Relations with States, Monsignor Richard Gal-lagher said this at the Vatican Embas-sy in Lusaka during the reception to mark the 50th Anniversary of the es-tablishment of the diplomatic rela-tions between the Holy See and Zam-bia. Such relations have seen the fruitful growth the Catholic Church, with her institutions open to all, without dis-tinction and without any other aim, save that of the progress and the care of the dignity of each person Mon-signor Gallagher noted. He also acknowledged the apprecia-tion of the successive governments in Zambia of the Catholic Church. And Monsignor Gallagher said in a country identified with Christianity its unthinkable that the weak and the poor should be left behind saying any project for development must start with them and be directed to them , knowing that the one who does be-lieve in Christ cannot be concerned for the poor. By reason of the Christian quality that has always characterised the identity of the country, and of which Zambia is proud, being a champion of the values of unity, peace and equali-

ty, it is unthinkable that the weak and the poor should be left behind. He said. The Church has to cry for the poor, because they are her members and in her the find solace He added. Meanwhile Monsignor Gal-lagher has pledged the Cath-olic Churchs support and col-laboration in building an ever more beautiful and vigorous Zambia, where the care of the environment is an inte-gral part of the development, as the Holy Father Pope Fran-cis recently said in his encyc-lical letter: Love, overflowing with small gestures of mutual care, is also civic and political and it makes itself felt in eve-ry action that seeks to build a better world. Love for society and commitment to the com-

ZAMBIA AND VATICAN CELEBRATES GOLDENJUBILEE RELATIONS

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BISHOP ALICK BANDA

The Management and Staff of the Catholic Secretariat wishes

a happy birth day (15th November) to Rt. Rev. Dr. Alick Ban-

da, Bishop of Ndola and current Zambia Episcopal Conference.

mon good are outstanding expressions of a charity which affects not only rela-tionships between individ-uals but also macro-relationships, social, eco-nomic and political ones. The Holy Sees Secretary for Relations with States, Monsignor Richard Gal-lagher arrived in Zambia on November 7, 2015 to offici-ate at the 50th Anniversary celebrations of the estab-lishment of the diplomatic relations between the Holy See and Zambia. During his official visit to Zambia, Archbishop Gal-lagher he met President Edgar Lungu, Foreign affairs Minister Harry Kala-ba and celebrated Mass at Cathedral of Child Jesus. Pope Paul IV opened the Nunciature in Zambia on 27th October, 1965 with Archbishop Alfredo Pole-drini being the first Apos-tolic Nuncio.


Catholic Media Services (CMS)

Executive Director Father Win-

field Kunda has said the Commu-

nication family of the Catholic

Church in Zambia mourns with

deep sense of loss over the death

of Radio Icengelo trainee Journal-

ist Jessica Phiri.

Jessica Phiri died in the Nether-

lands after drowning in the sea.

Radio Icengelo Director, Father

Nicolas Mubanga who confirmed

the development, said 20 year

old Jessica was in Germany for 11

months on a volunteer pro-

gramme under the partnership

between the Catholic Diocese of

Ndola and the Catholic Diocese of

Limburg.

Father Mubanga said Jessica died

on 5th August 2015 after drowning

in the sea in Netherlands where

she had gone for a short holiday.

He explained that Jessica died in

the sea after losing contact with

the ground and a strong current

pulled her under water and her

body was found washed offshore

on Saturday 8th august, 2015.

Jessicas body arrived from in Zam-

bia from Netherlands on 18th

August, 2015 and burial took

place on 19th August, 2015.

Meanwhile Zambia Episcopal

Conference Director for Com-

munication expressed shock

that the cold hand of death

could steal a young life of Jessi-

ca Phiri who was dedicated to

communicating Christ through

the radio programmes she pro-

duced and presented on radio

Icengelo.

Father Winfield Kunda said that

the Communication family of

the Catholic Church in Zambia is

deeply saddened at such a loss

and prayed for the family dur-

ing such challenging time.

CMS DIRECTOR MOURNS RADIO ICENGELO JOURNALIST

Late Jessica Phiri

Pope Francis has substantially and significantly altered the process for those seeking annulments of marriages in the Catholic Church, eliminating some-times lengthy and redundant judicial procedures and em-powering local bish-ops to make judg-ments on their own in particularly evi-dent cases. The changes were announced at the Vatican on 8 September 2015 with the release of two formal documents signed by the pope known as motu proprios - which, translated from their Latin titles, are called The Gentle Judge, The Lord Jesus and The Meek and Merciful Jesus. These changes reflect a decided and new shift in delegating power from the churchs central command to local prelates around the world. The Changes are designed to speed up and simplify the often

lengthy procedure of marriage an-nulments. In a short introduction to the new changes, Pope Francis explains that he wanted to balance the churchs timeless worry to provide for the salvation of souls with the enor-mous number of faithful that too often are detached from the juridi-cal structures of the Church at the cause of physical or moral dis-tance. In total harmony with these de-sires, I have decided to give with this Motu proprio arrangements that do not favour the nullifying of marriages but the promptness of the processes, states Francis, so that the heart of the faithful that wait for the clarification of their state may not be oppressed for a long time by the darkness of doubt. The changes will eliminate a re-

quirement that all annul-ment decisions get a sec-ond judgment and will allow local bishops to expedite the annulment process for some cases. The annulment process will be free of charge. The revisions also expand the role of local bishops in judging nullifica-tion proceedings. An annulment in the Catholic Church is a de-cree from a church tribu-nal that a marriage be-tween two persons was invalidly contracted. Such a decree is often sought by persons who are seeking to celebrate a different marriage. Source: NCR, Vatican News,

Pope Francis makes changes to the Annulment Process

CARITAS-ZAMBIA, OTHER FAITH BASED ORGANIZATION TO

MONITOR ZAMBIAS 2016 ELECTIONS

As Zambia goes to the polls next in 2016, Zambia

Episcopal Conference (ZEC) through Caritas-

Zambia has joined other faith based organization to

monitor the elections.

The monitoring group consisting of Zambia Episco-

pal Conference (ZEC) , Council of Churches in

Zambia (CCZ), Evangelical Fellowship of Zambia

(EFZ) and the Jesuit Center for Theological Reflec-

tion (JCTR), has been named Christian Churches

Monitoring Group (CCMG).

And speaking at the launch of CCMG, Mongu Dio-

cese Bishop Evans Chinyemba,OMI, said that

CCMG was mindful of the fact that the outcome of

an election is not necessarily determined by the

events of the voting day but even more so by the

fairness and integrity of the entire electoral process

that leads to the voting day.

With such observation, he announced that CCMG thus

during the period leading to the 2016 tripartite elec-

tions, will monitor, document and publicise political

activities in the electoral process which will include

Voter Registration, the legal framework, and the gen-

eral campaign environment.

CCMG will place 110 highly trained district monitors

across the country with a few towns that are highly

populated having more than one monitor per district at

polling stations to observe the voting process include

conducting parallel Vote Tabulation (PVT) on the

Presidential Poll.

Bishop Chinyemba, OMI, who is also ZEC Bishop

Director for Caritas Zambia, further expressed concern

by the sustained intolerance among politicians across

political parties saying Zambia is a multiparty democ-

racy with opportunities for all for freedom of associa-

tion and speech.

The Lord Bishop also appealed to the media to exert its

professional ethics and avail the public with quality

and objective information that will help the voters

make informed choices during elections adding that the

media must not hire itself to be a fora for politicians to

insult each other and slender as this will not benefit

voters in any way in knowing what the candidates

stand for.

Christian Church Monitoring Group (CCMG) has re-

ceived financial support from the United States Agency

for International Development (USAID) for monitoring

work as well as technical assistance from the National

Democratic Institute (NDI). However, CCMG is re-

sponsible for all aspects of the project.

Editorial Team

Managing Editor

Rev. Fr. Winfield Kunda

Executive Director

Catholic Media Services

Production Editor

Mwenya Mukuka

Communications Officer

Zambia Episcopal Conference

Design & Layout Fr. Winfield Kunda Contact Us Editorial Offices Catholic Secretariat Kapingila House 6 BRT Kabulonga Rd, Lusaka P O Box 31965 Lusaka Tel: +260 211 26 2613 Fax: +260 211 26 36 26 Email: [email protected]

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The Zambia Episcopal Confer-ence (ZEC) has acknowledged the continued improvement in services offered to member coun-tries at the Association of Mem-ber Episcopal Conference in East-ern Africa (AMECEA) Secretari-at. ZEC Bishop Director for Com-munications, Right Reverend Mo-ses Hamungole made the obser-vation when he addressed 50 par-ticipants to a capacity building workshop from all Curial Offices of the 11 Catholic Dioceses in Zambia held at Kasisi Retreat Center in Lusaka from 1st to 5th September, 2015. He said such development makes AMECEA relevant to its mem-bers and contribute to enabling the pastoral agents get necessary skills for their collaboration in the evangelisation mission and ad-ministration of the local church and ultimately the universal church. Right Reverend Hamungole who is also the Bishop of Monze Dio-cese said that after getting new skills, participants of the capacity building workshop should be the first ones to suggest some chang-


uty Secretary General Father Chrisantus Ndaga noted the highlights of the train-ing workshop as Leadership and Man-agement, Youth ministry and chaplain-cy, Information Communications and Planning and project management. The training conducted by the Catholic University and AMECEA also had a session on planning and methods of fundraising. Other key benefits of the Capacity Building program which was supported by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) included supporting the Catholic Bishops in ca-pacity building to establish and main-tain an effective, diverse and motivated workforce at diocesan level to ensure excellence in support of the regions pastoral outreach by empowering all the parts of the region. Father Ndaga also announced that mo-dalities are underway for a possibility to hold a similar training in Eritrea where VISA challenges still exist. AMECEA is a regional catholic body consisting of eight countries namely Malawi, Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania, Eri-

trea, Zambia, Uganda and Ethiopia.

es for the good of the diocese and entire family of God in the local church, especially this time when most Bishops are worried about how to mobilise financial and hu-man resource. He also appealed for capacity building workshop for Bishops saying they also need to sharpen their skills to respond to new chal-lenges in the local and universal church. The Monze Diocese Bishop further challenged the Zambia Catholic University to make itself more vis-ible and publicise its activities through participating in various diocesan programmes and events. The workshop had Vicar Generals, Pastoral Coordinators, Financial Administrators and other Adminis-trators as participants. Meanwhile speaking at the start of the workshop, Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC) Secretary Gen-eral Father Cleophas Lungu said the development shows how AME-CEA is relevant to the Zambian Church said the training workshop is a privileged moment to share best practices in terms of manage-ment of personnel, structures and resources. And AMECEA dep-

ZEC GIVES KUDOS TO AMECEA

Workshop participants posing for a photograph

PHOTO FOCUS

President Edgar Lungu with Pope's Secretary for Relations Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher (R)

and Archdiocese of Lusaka Archbishop George Mpundu (L) when he paid a Courtesy call on the

Head of State at State house in Lusaka.

Archbishop Gallagher (C) celebrating mass at the Cathedral of the Child Jesus on Lusaka to

celebrate Golden Jubilee of Zambia-Holy See Diplomatic Relations. Besides him on the

altar is Archbishop Telesphore George Mpundu, His Excellency Archbishop Julio Murati

President Edgar Lungu with Pope's Secretary for Relations Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher and

the Apostolic Nuncio to Zambia Julio Murat when he paid a Courtesy call on the Head of State at

State house in Lusaka.

From Left : Apostolic Nuncio Julio Murat , Zambias Foreign Affairs Minister Harry Kalaba

and Pope's Secretary for Relations Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher with other people

at the Nunciature In Lusaka.

Catholic Bishops posing for a photo with Catholic Secretariat staff after cele-

brating with them. This was before the staff of their last plenary meeting of

2015.

Catholic Bishops inspecting their Foxdale land in Lusaka.



Mongu Diocese Bishop, Rt.

Rev. Evans Chinyemba says Catho-

lic Christians that remain mute

when political power is being mis-

used are neglecting their baptismal

duty towards the attainment of a

just society.

Bishop Chinyemba said Catholics

have a duty and responsibility to be

actively involved in the countrys

governance issues.

If you cannot speak as a con-

cerned laity, who else will speak?

When power is misused and you

remain silent, know that you are

neglecting your duty as a lay faith-

ful. When attempts to silence mass-

es are made and you remain mute,

you as laity you neglect your duty

as a baptised person who is mis-

BISHOP CHINYEMBA URGES CATHOLICS TO

SPEAK AGAINST MISUSE OF POWER

sioned. To remain silent is to

have sold ones conscience,

he said.

Bishop Chinyemba said, in-

spired by the Gospel and

their political involvement,

the laity have a duty to shed

light on issues of justice, cor-

ruption, quality leadership,

economic well-being, hous-

ing, education, health care,

security, issues of youths

and many other interven-

tions that would help build a

better Zambia.

He urged the laity to be the

first to speak out when na-

tional resources are being

misused.

Bishop Chinyemba said

while there are Catholic poli-

ticians who try to discharge

their duties well, sadly, some

of them have compromised

their faith and have neglect-

ed the spirit of service for

political gain saying they

chosen to lie in order to con-

tinue holding on to power at

various levels.

He added that other bad ex-

amples of Catholic lay faith-

ful have entered politics not

to serve but to enrich them-

selves.

Take your rightful place

and present what is valua-

ble to politics. I urge you

to bring to the political

field the values that make

you a good Christian and a

credible Catholic, He said.


this in his latest monthly

bulletin; Banahaesu ad-

dressed to his diocesan

faithful under the theme

Catholic lay faithful and

their participation in the

political life of a country.


Catholic Christians have a

duty and responsibility to

be actively involved in the

countrys governance is-

sues saying the Church

leadership has clearly ex-

pressed such aspect at

various fora and through

some of its doctrinal docu-

mentation.

Bishop Chinyemba,OMI


News from Dioceses

Bishop Emeritus of Mansa

of Mansa Diocese, Rt.

Rev. Aaron Andrew Chi-

sha, on August 15, 2015,

celebrated his Golden Ju-

bi-lee at St. Johns Cathe-

dral Parish in the Archdi-

ocese of Kasama.

A good number of Priests

and especially Sisters of

Mercy (SOM) from Mansa

Diocese attended the occa-

sion.

Sisters of Mercy remember

Bishop Aaron An-drew Chi-

sha, in a special way, for the

The Congregation of the Sisters

of Mercy have elected Sr. Rose-

mary Mushibwe as their Superior

General for the next six years.

She will be assisted by Sr. Mary

Mwila as Vicaress and three

Councillors namely, Srs. Anna

Mbobola, Elizabeth Mutale and

Patricia Mulenga.

This was their first chapter after

the demise of their Father

Founder Most Rev. James Mwe-

wa Spaita, Archbishop Emeritus

Bishop EmeritusA. A. Chisha cele-

brates Golden Jubilee

Sisters of Mercy (SOM) elect Sr. Rosemary Mushibwe as their new Superior General

The Catholic Nurses of Zambia had their Na-tional Annual Retreat and AGM from 25th 28th September, 2015 at the Selesian Centre, Bauleni. The retreat Director was Fr, Justine Matepa, National Pastoral Coordinator. The theme for the retreat was consecrated Hands for Love and Service.

In attendance there were three dioceses and two archdioceses:- Lusaka Archdiocese 10 members; Kasama Archdiocese- 1 member; Kabwe Diocese- 1 member; Ndola Diocese- 4 members and Mongu Diocese 5 members. After the retreat elections were held and the following were ushered into office at that Na-tional level. President Stella Chisunka- Lusaka Archdiocese; Vice President- Stephen Mpabal-wani- Ndola Diocese; Secretary Justina Yamba Lusaka Archdiocese; Vice Secretary- Febby Simusonkwe; Treasurer Josephine Chimpinde Lusaka Archdiocese and Vice Treasurer Maggie Mwila- Kasama Archdiocese; Commit-tee members- Martina Mwala- Mongu diocese. The other committee member will be selected later from the Archdiocese of Lusaka. The pre-siding officer was Mr. Masuksu a member of the National Council for the Laity.

CATHOLIC NURSES GUILD OF

ZAMBIA HOLDS ANNUAL RETREAT

Hundreds of youths from parishes in Mongu Diocese camped at St. Martins Parish is Kaoma for four days 27th 31st August, 2015. Dur-ing the camping a book suitable for youth was launched by the Com-boni Sisters. The title of the book is Download Jesus this book was written by a Comboni Sister. Apart

from launching the said book a number of topics were discussed such as Vocation, Sac-raments, Mariology, HIV and AIDS to mention but a few.

The youth had a privilege of encounters with Bishop Evans Chinyemba, OMI for the whole day and he celebrated Mass with them to con-clude the day.

MONGU DIOCESAN COUNCIL FOR THE CATHOLIC

YOUTH (DCCY) GOES CAMPING

The NEW SECRETARY GENERAL OF

MALAWI EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE

VISITS CATHOLIC SECRETARIAT

The Episcopal Conference of Malawi

(ECM) Secretary General, Fr. Henry

Saindi, undertook a 10 day long visit to

Zambia Episcopal Conference (ZEC)

Catholic Secretariat in Lusaka. Father

Saindi who landed in Zambia on Thurs-

day, 15th October, 2015 toured various

ZEC institutions and held meetings with

departmental heads.

And speaking to Catholic Media Ser-

vices (CMS), Father Saindi described

the Catholic Secretariat in Zambia as

very organised and beautiful. I find

this place very organised and beautiful.

You have good structures too and the

people are so friendly they dont look

like they are carrying funerals Fr.

Saindi said. Father Saindi was appoint-

ed Episcopal of Malawi Secretary Gen-

eral in June, 2015.

Fr. Saindi who described his familiarisa-

tion tour of ZEC as a learning moment

to him and whatever he was going to

Fr. Henry Saindi (C) with CMSTV staff

Reflection

By Mwenya Mukuka, ZEC Communications Officer

Have you ever been hurt by

someone you love? I suppose you

have. Most of us have had the

experience of being hurt by

someone who loves us. It does

not take much. Someone who

loves us is able to hurt us much

more deeply than someone who

does not. An action or a word

that could have been ignored had

it come from another person is

not easy to ignore or forget.

Suddenly we find questions in our

hearts and minds. We find an

ache that will not easily go away.

We think our questions have been

put to one side, and then they

start all over again. We try to

search for a reason why the hurt

has been inflicted upon us. The

more we love the one who hurt is,

the more we struggle to find a

reasonable explanation for their

behaviour. It is all the harder if we

cannot find that reasonable expla-

nation.

Once upon a time, man sought medical

attention at a clinic after beaten by his

son. The mans tongue was very badly cut

and the bleeding was profuse. The son

had been looking for money for beer. His

father had refused to give him the money

he wanted.

Time and again the man said that the real

hurt was not the physical wounds his son

had caused. The real wound was in his

heart, where we could not see. The real

injury was the knowledge that his own

son could beat his father.

And how would you feel that as a man a

woman you intend to marry be impreg-

nated by someone else?

Joseph must have also felt very hurt

when he realized that Mary was pregnant

and that the baby in her womb was not

his. There must have been so many ques-

tions he would have asked. Why did she

do this to him who loved her so much?

How could Mary be unfaithful? How

could someone who seemed to be so

good seem to have done something so

wrong?

Joseph was a normal man. He did not want to

marry a girl who was pregnant with someone

elses child. Yet Joseph knew that if he a pub-

lic the fact that Mary was not pregnant for

him, she would be stoned to death. Could Jo-

seph bear to see the woman he loved being

insulted by the people of Nazareth? Could he

see her put on trial? Could he watch every-

body drag her to the execution site and throw

rocks at her until she was killed and her beau-

tiful body broken beyond recognition?

No, Joseph was an honourable man. He was a

good man, actually a gentleman. That is why,

of all the men throughout history God chose

him to be the protector of Mary and Jesus.

Joseph must have been so grateful to the an-

gel who appeared and told him that Mary had

not been unfaithful to him. He must have felt

so humbled when he gradually began to real-

ize that there was something very special

about this baby. He must have felt very inade-

quate when he realized the importance of the

vocation God had given him. He must have

thought many times that God was choosing a

strange way in which to save the world. God

had chosen a village girl and a carpenter to be

the family to which he would send his son.

What a strange way to save the world.

Lord, its not always easy to see your plans for

my life. Sometimes, when situations cause me

pain, I find it hard to accept that you are help-

ing me grow towards you. I find it difficult that

you are leading me to fulfil the vocation you

gave me. Help me to be like Joseph.

Help me to trust and be faithful to your plans

for me, Amen.

HURT !


Barely a year after Zambia gained its politi-

cal independence, Pope Paul VI appointed

Archbishop Alfredo Poledrini on 27th Octo-

ber 1965 as the first Apostolic Nuncio to

Zambia. Thus, the diplomatic relations be-

tween the Holy See and the Republic of

Zambia were duly established. In turn,

President Kenneth Kaunda appointed H. E.

Mr Simon Chikwanda Katilungu as the first

Zambian Ambassador to the Holy See. To

mark the 50th anniversary of the same, we

were blessed with the official visit of Arch-

bishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Secre-

tary for the Relations with States of the

Holy See, who presided over a jubilant cel-

ebration of the Holy Mass in the Cathedral

of the Child Jesus in Lusaka, on 8th Novem-

ber 2015. With and through him, we re-

ceived personal greetings and the apostolic

blessings from the Holy Father, Pope Fran-

cis, who through the Apostolic Nunciature,

is ever close to us and wishes the peo-

ple of Zambia well. Archbishop Gal-

lagher did well to quote the famous

words of Pope Francis, which he ad-

dressed to the Catholic Bishops in Zam-

bia during their Visit Ad Limina on 17th

November 2014: It is at once evident

how plentiful the spiritual harvest in

your vast country already is blessed

with Catholic run clinics, hospitals and

schools, many parishes alive and

growing across Zambia, a wide diversi-

ty of lay ministries, and substantial

numbers of vocations to the priest-

hood. With the whole Church, we can

give thanks to God for what he has

already accomplished in the people

entrusted to your care. Indeed, the

mission of Holy See rendered through

the Nunciature, is the mission to

strengthen the faith of the Local

Church and bonds of communion

with the Successor of St. Peter.

In the words of Archbishop Gal-

lagher, ... the active role of the

Catholic Church in Zambia has

been appreciated and recog-

nised by successful govern-

ments. We are grateful to vari-

ous Presidents, for such re-

spectful relations and recogni-

tion. Looking to the future with

hope, he was quick to add that

his prayer was that the cordial

relations between the Church

and the State would continue to

mature and grow strong. The

Popes envoy also underlined the

need for the Church and State to

pay special attention to the cry of

the poor and the weak while

pledging that The Catholic

Church is happy to collaborate,

as she always has done and will

continue to do, in the hope of

building a country ever more

beautiful and vigorous, where

the care of the environment is

an integral part of develop-

ment. As we prepare to cele-

brate the forthcoming Extraordi-

nary Jubilee Year of Mercy, the

Catholic Church in Zambia will do

well to remember, ponder and

act upon the challenging words

of His Holiness, Pope Francis, in

his discourse to the Bishops of

the Zambia Episcopal Confer-

ence: irrigate with your cor-

poral and spiritual works of mer-

cy the vineyard of the Lord

which stretches across Zambia

like the great Zambezi River.

Celebrating a Golden Jubilee of Diplomatic Relations between

the Holy See and Zambia By Fr. Cleophas Lungu, ZEC Secretary General

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Secretary for the Relations with

States of the Holy See addressing guests (not in picture) during a recep-

tion at the Vatican Embassy in Lusaka to celebrate 50 year relationship

between Zambia and the Vatican.



ANNULMENT- THE MARRIAGE THAT NEVER WAS. An explanation on the meaning of marriage annulment that the Catholic Church carries out

By Father Winfield Kunda, ZEC Communications Director

Recently a number of media houses carried a

story suggesting that the Catholic Church

through Pope Francis has allowed divorce.

This was when Pope Francis made some

changes to the process of marriage annul-

ments.

When Pope Francis made a few changes to

the process of marriage annulments, it be-

came clear from the discussions among Cath-

olics and none Catholics alike that not every-

one knows what marriage annulment really

means. Most people think marriage annul-

ment is another term to describe divorce.

Some were even saying Pope Francis was

changing the Catholic Church laws and that he

was going against the teaching of Christ. Some

even went to attack the Pope by stating that

he was becoming too

liberal in so far as it

comes to the matters of

the Catholic Church.

What is really marriage

annulment? First and

foremost, annulment is

not divorce. According to

the teaching of the

Church, the Church cannot

allow divorce of a validly contracted marriage.

The Church holds that no a marriage which is

ratified and consummated cannot by dis-

solved by any human power or by any cause

other than death (cf. Canon law 1141). This is

also in fidelity to the teaching of Jesus Christ

who said that marriage is indissoluble (Mark

10:11-12; I Cor 7: 10-11).

A declaration of nullity is not dissolution of

marriage. It is not a Church divorce as others

put it. Annulment simply means that the

marriage, after examining information avail-

able now, on what was considered to be legal-

ly taken place at the time of the wedding, was

from the beginning not validly contracted. In

other words, the marriage was never there

because it lacked what constitutes a valid

marriage according to the laws and teaching

of the Church. Annulment is the Churchs

judicial finding that a marriage had not been

brought into effect on the wedding day, as the

faith community had presumed.

People can enter into what is purportedly to

mean marriage only to discover that some

information was withheld which, if known at

that time to either one of the contracting par-

ties or even the Church, the marriage ceremo-

ny would not have taken place. This invalidates

the marriage.

The Church law declares that marriage is

brought about through: (1) the consent of the

bride and the groom, (2) legitimately manifest-

ed, (3) by those qualified according to the law

(the bride and the groom). So if the consent

was defective marriage was not brought

about. If the consent was not legitimately

manifested marriage was not brought about

either and if one or both of the people were

unqualified according to law the marriage

was not brought about.

A person ready for marriage should be one who

freely, knowingly enters into marriage knowing

that it entails permanent partnership ordered

toward the procreation of children. Union (one

man, one woman) and indissolubility (marriage

is for life) are essential properties of marriage.

If either or both parties exclude, one such es-

sential properties, that marriage is invalid

from the word go. Consent is paramount for

those entering marriage. If a person was forced

into marriage, e.g., fearing to be bewitched if

one does not marry in in a particular family,

may defect the consent and thus invalidate

marriage. One must also have knowledge of

whom he or she is marrying. If one is in error

of the one he or she is marrying,

then the marriage is invalid.

The other aspect that validates

marriage is the legitimate mani-

festation of marriage itself. The

celebration of the marriage

should be done before the wit-

nesses - priest and other church

witnesses and that it should be

consummated or else the mar-

riage could be considered invalid.

The Church law outlines those

who do not qualify to validly con-

tract marriage, e.g., impotents

(not infertility), age, close rela-

tions, those who have made vow

of celibacy, or those already valid-

ly married and so on. If at the

time of the wedding one person

or both contracting marriage had

any of these impediments, then

the wedding was invalid.

It is often common to discover

later that some information were

not available at the time the wed-

ding ceremony took place. As a

person who has worked as a par-

ish priest before, I know what I

am talking about. People are able

to withhold information at the

time the wedding ceremony is

about to take place. There are

many reasons why persons in-

tending to contract church mar-

riage may withhold information

from either their partner or the

witnesses, in this case the Church.

Some of these reasons would in-

clude simulation, fear, and tradi-

tional beliefs, or even deception.

For instance, a man who at the

time of the wedding was already

in other relationships with other

women would not want his bride

or the priest to know about this

for fear that the wedding will not

The Church holds that no a marriage

which is ratified and consummated

cannot by dissolved by any human

power or by any cause other than

death

take place. This person has already excluded one es-

sential properties of marriage union. It is doubtful

whether he believes or consents to be in a one man-

one woman exclusive relationship.

That invalidates marriage. So once the church carries

out its own investigations and discovers any defect

such as this, it invalidates that marriage. This is what

we call annulment.

The Church carries its own process to judge whether

the marriage was invalid from the moment it was con-

tracted or not. The Church does this through its own

courts called the Marriage Tribunal. Anyone faithful

claiming that or suspecting that their marriage is inva-

lid can bring the case before the tribunal which sits

usually at the Diocesan Offices. The tribunal then ex-

amines all the facts in view of the Churchs teaching

and laws on marriage before it passes

judgement on a particular case. The

tribunal will declare whether the

nullity of marriage is proven or not

proven. If it is proven, it simply

means there was no marriage even

if the ceremony was conducted in

the Church. In this case, either par-

ty is now free to contract marriage

in Church if they so wish.

If the tribunal judges that the nullity

of marriage is not proven, then the

marriage from the first instance was

valid. Here the Church will not do anything on the mar-

riage because it has no authority to grant divorce. In

situation where couples are no longer living together,

and most probably have been granted divorce by civil

authority local courts or other courts- the Church

considers that as separation.

One may ask, what happens to the relationship that

existed between the man and the woman during those

marriage years? What of

the children, if any, born

out of that union? The

declaration of the nullity

does not deny that love

existed in that relation-

ship and that cannot be

wiped away. Even the

wedding ceremony that

took place will not be

wiped away either. That relationship

remains part of individual and collec-

tive history. The children born out of

that union are considered legitimate

in church law, similar to those born

out of wedlock. However what we

have is a declaration that marriage did

not come about on the wedding day.

The declaration of nullity or annul-

ment does not dissolve or erase the

ceremony or whatever has happened

after the ceremony. But still in the

eyes of the Church there was no mar-

riage.

The process of nullification is a tedi-

ous long and at times frustrating pro-

cess especially on the part of the per-

son who want the church nullify their

marriage. At times it can even take

longer than ten years. This process is

also very expensive. In the meantime

one cannot participate fully in the life

of the Church especially if they have

already starting leaving in another

relationship. This is the process which

Pope Francis has changed. He

wants to shorten the process. This

does not imply that any case or

cases sent to the marriage tribu-

nal will be nullified. The proce-

dure of declaring annulments still

remains the same. What has

changed is the time it will be tak-

ing for the tribunal to pass judge-

ment on the case to declare it

annulled or not annulled.

It is import to note that annul-

ments have existed in the Church

for centuries. This is not some-

thing new. It would be sad to

think that it is Pope Francis who is

introducing a new teaching in the

church. The Church has been deal-

ing with marriage cases through

the same process as far back as

the middle ages. We hope that

those affected with marital cases

may find easer through this pro-

cess so that their cases may be

disposed off more so that Pope

Francis has proposed that it be

done freely without any cost to it.

It is also paramount to

note that any person

intending to enter mar-

riage- church marriage

should be mature

enough, fully aware of

the teaching of the

Church and that they

do not exclude any law

or teaching of the

church as they enter

marriage.


ANNULMENT- THE MARRIAGE THAT NEVER WAS.

From page 8

We hope that those affected with

marital cases may find easer through

this process so that their cases may

be disposed off more so that Pope

Francis has proposed that it be done

freely without any cost to it.


IS THE HOLY SEE A SECULAR OR

POLITICAL STATE?

Recently the Holy Sees Secretary for

Relations with States, Monsignor Rich-

ard Gallagher was in Zambia to officiate

at the 50th Anniversary celebrations of

the establishment of the diplomatic re-

lations between the Holy See and Zam-

bia.

The Celebration started with Sunday

Mass on 8th November 2015 at the Ca-

thedral of the Child Jesus in Lusaka and

concluded with a reception at the Vati-

can embassy on Monday, 10th Novem-

ber, 2015.

Archbishop Gallagher received favoura-

ble media coverage during his visit to

this nation. This development brought

some questions especially on social me-

dia.

Some people asked how a

Church can have a relation-

ship with a country. Many ob-

served that such a relationship

can only be there on political

understanding. Some conclud-

ed that the Vatican is an ac-

tively political state no wonder

it can afford an ambassador

even Secretary for Relations

with states.

Has the church explained itself fully on

this matter? There are various schools of

thoughts which argue that the church

should not involve itself in politics and

worse still become Secular. Many peo-

ple have noted that the Church should

only be concerned with spiritual matters

and detach itself totally from politics.

These schools of thoughts have said

leadership of the church should leave

politicians run the affairs of society.

However, this is not the case. The

Church has time and again involved itself

in the political sphere of society. It

should be taken note of that the Pope is

not just a spiritual leader of about 1.2

billion Catholics of the world; he is also

the head of state of the smallest state

called the Vatican. The Church through

him, develops diplomatic relations with

other nations.

After the fall of the great Roman

Empire in the early centuries, the Church

assumed the responsibilities to run the

secular affairs of society in most of Eu-

rope. The Church became the centre for

education, health, social and cultural

learning. It also exercised the right to

send and receive official representatives

to those empires not under its Christen-

dom. When, towards the end of the 15th

century, states began to emerge, the

Pope exchanged representatives with

them.

As Archbishop Richard Paul Gal-

lagher, Holy See Secretary for Relations

with States observed, The Church has

participated in the international

[relations] from its very origins, and in

that manner has contributed, through

the centuries, to the formation of the

practices and the proper institutions of

diplomatic life.

ROLE OF VATICAN DIPLOMATIC SERVICE

The role of diplomatic service of the Holy

See is to represent a moral authority and

By Fr. Winfield Kunda

independent juridical institution of

the Catholic Church so as to make it

operate freely with regards to its spir-

itual authority. It is through diplo-

matic service that the Holy Father,

exercises as head of the Catholic

Church communion with the bishops

world over and acts to guarantee the

life of the local churches with respect

to the civil authorities. The Church

through diplomatic relations pro-

motes and supports areas where the

advancement of common good for

human development should be en-

riched:

The Holy See is called to act in facili-

tating co-existence and a common

life among the various nations,

in promoting collaboration,

cooperation among peoples,

with a structured solidarity that

favours the common good and

the good of each oth-

er (Cardinal Pietro Parolin,

Vatican Secretary of State,

2015).

The Catholic Churchs diplo-

matic services have contributed great-

ly toward human development, inter-

national cooperation, justice and

peace. It has facilitated championing

of concern for the poor to which its

master, Jesus was particularly sent

for. In this case the Vatican despite

being the Holy See, has used secular

interventions in nations to propagate

the Gospel demand of being disciples

to all nations and preach the Word of

Christ to all creation (Mark 16:15).

Congratulations to Zambia and the

Vatican for the 50 year relationship.

Looking forward to another half a cen-

tury association.

It is through diplomatic service that the

Holy Father, exercises as head of the

Catholic Church communion with the

bishops world over and acts to guaran-

tee the life of the local churches with re-

spect to the civil authorities


SECOND SESSION OF THE SYNOD ON THE

FAMILY COMMENCES IN ROME

The Second Session of the Synod on the Family opened on 5th October in the Vatican in Rome with Pope Francis call-ing on the Bishops to remain open in their de-liberations to the call of the Holy Spirit, repeating his frequent assertion that God is a God of sur-prises.

Pope Francis opened a three week gathering calling on the gathered prelates to work in their deliberations with apostolic courage, evan-gelical humility, and trust-filled prayer.

The Synod, the pope said, is not a parliament or a senate, but an ecclesial expression of a church that walks to-gether to read reality with eyes of faith and the heart of God.

It is the Church that questions itself on its fi-delity to the deposit of the faith, so that it does not represent a museum to be looked at or only to be safeguarded, but a liv-ing spring from which the church drinks to quench thirst and illuminate the deposit of life, the pon-tiff said of the Synod. The Synod is also a protected space where the Church goes through the action of the Holy Spirit, said Francis. In the Synod, the Spirit speaks through the lan-guage of all people who allow themselves to be guided by God who al-ways surprises, by God who reveals to the little

ones that which he has hidden from the wise and intelligent, he said.

By God who created the law and the Sabbath for people and not vice versa, by God who leaves the 99 sheep to find the one missing sheep, by God who is always greater than our logic and our calcula-tions, he continued. Calling on the prelates to exercise evangelical humility and trust-filled prayer, the pope said the first quality means emptying oneself of ones own convictions and prejudices in order to listen to our broth-er bishops and fill ourselves with God. Such humility, he said, leads us not to point a finger in judgment of others, but to extend a hand to help them up again without ever feel-ing superior to them. Trust-filled prayer, Francis said, is the action of the heart when it is open to God, when it keeps quiet our own moods to listen to the soft voice of God who speaks in silence. Without listening to God, all of our words will be just words that dont quench or satisfy, the pontiff told the assembled gathering. Without leaving ourselves to be guided by the Spirit all our decisions will be just decorations that instead of exalting the Gospel cover and hide it. Pope Francis spoke to the Synod Monday in short remarks after a morning prayer service. A total of 279 priests and prelates are attending the synod and all the prelates have been appointed by Francis as voting members of the synod. Others whoa are attending and are participating in the discussions include , a number of auditors and a few married couples. These do not have voting power to the final documents.

Story by NCR

Pope Francis waves as he leaves the opening session of the Synod of Bishops on the family at the Vatican Oct. 5. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Documents

ZEC Impact Magazine Sept - Dec 2015