By Hilltopvoices Team
The Archbishop and Auxiliary Bishop of Bamenda have addressed a letter to those they describe as “the faithful and people of Good will.”
The signed by †Cornelius FONTEM ESUA Archbishop of
Bamenda and his collaborator †Michael MIABESUE BIBI Auxiliary Bishop of Bamenda
dated March 6 focuses on the sacredness
and dignity of human life. The letter comes at the killing has become a regular
recurrence in armed conflict battered NW/SW regions of Cameroon. Here is the
Full letterThe Archbishop and Auxiliary Bishop of Bamenda have addressed a letter to those they describe as “the faithful and people of Good will.”
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| Photo Credit Bamenda Archdiocese |
PASTORAL
LETTER OF THE ARCHBISHOP AND AUXILIARY BISHOP OF BAMENDA ON THE SACREDNESS AND
DIGNITY OF HUMAN LIFE
TO ALL THE
FAITHFUL AND PEOPLE OF GOOD WILL
“God created
man in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him,
male and
female he created them.” (Genesis 1:27)
Dear
brothers and sisters,
1. “I thank my God whenever I think of you;
and every time I pray for all of you, I pray with joy” (Phil. 1:3). This is
particularly true now because of the difficult socio-political situation in
which we have been living during the last few years. We thank God, the Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has called all of us to be saints (cf. Rom. 1:7),
for your faith and endurance. You are all present in our thoughts and prayers
in a special way as we begin once more the holy Season of Lent. Lent is a time when
we contemplate the Passion, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the unique Saviour of the world. By his Passion, Death, and Resurrection, Jesus
conquered sin and death, reconciled us with God and restored us to the dignity
of the children of God. Lent is a time when we endeavour to open up to God and
to our neighbour through prayer, fasting and almsgiving. That is why we invite
you to meditate on the sacredness and dignity of human life during this Season
of Lent.
The Biblical
Foundation of the Sacredness and Dignity of Human Life
2. Human life is the most sacred gift with
which God, the author of life, has endowed the human being. Right from creation
humanity has been called to share in the divine life because “God created man
in the image of himself, in the image of God he created him, male and female he
created them” (Genesis 1:27). This is the basis of the sacredness and the
dignity of human life. Without this divine dimension the human person will be
nothing but dust as the Ash Wednesday liturgy reminds us: “For dust you are and
to dust you shall return” (Gen. 3:19). Aware of this the Psalmist exclaims:
“what is man that you should spare a thought for him, the son of man that you
should care for him?” (Ps. 8:4).
3. This sacredness and dignity of the human
person has been made even more wonderful by Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son
of God, who became flesh and dwelt among us (cf. John 1:14).By the Incarnation,
the Son of God “was for a short while made lower than the angels” (Hebrews 2:7)
and “emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave, and became as men are;
… and humbler yet, even to accepting death, death on a cross” (Phil. 2:7-8). By
his Resurrection he was raised high by God “so that all beings in the heavens,
on earth and in the underworld, should bend the knee at the name of Jesus and
that every tongue should acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord, to the glory of God the
Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). By his Incarnation, Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
identified himself with every human being and raised human dignity even to a
higher level. He tells us that whatever we do to any human person is done to
him (Mt. 25:40). Our human dignity is a gift of God’s tremendous love for which
we should continuously thank him and of which we should jealously take care.
4. The first incidence of the profanation
of human life recorded in the Bible is the brutal and senseless murder of Abel
by his brother Cain (Gen. 4:1-16).This is because he cannot control his
emotions of anger against God and envy of his brother (vv. 5-7). The blood of
his innocent brother that he sheds will continue to cry out to God from the
ground that had opened its mouth to receive it (v.10). Nevertheless God
continues to protect the life of Cain, who is afraid that he might be killed in
revenge, by putting a mark on him. He tells him that anyone who kills him will
pay for it sevenfold: “if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken
for him” (Gen. 4:15). Later on the Decalogue formally forbids the shedding of
human blood: “You shall not kill” (Ex. 20:13).
Rampant
Profanation and Disrespect of Human Life and Dignity
5. When human beings forget about their
sacredness and dignity, they consequently often behave as irrational beings and
become a prey to one another. This seems to be the case in the situation in
which we now find ourselves. Since the beginning of the crisis of the
Anglophone Problem which escalated on 21st of November 2016, there has been
increasing and rampant profanation and disrespect of human life and the dignity
of the human person. This has taken unimaginable and alarming proportions.
Violence has become common place because of the frequent confrontations between
the military and the secessionists. Nearly every day we hear gunshots which are
now jokingly referred to as “popcorn” from various corners of our towns and
villages. There is indiscriminate killing of innocent people with impunity. It
seems that human life has lost its value and sacredness and the dignity of the
human being is rubbed in mud. Hospitals and health facilities are vandalized
for reasons hard to explain. Human Rights are being violated with impunity in
such a way that some wounded persons are denied medical care and are taken away
from hospitals and health centres for summary extra judicial execution. Cold
blooded killing has become rampant and sometimes it is actually celebrated by
opposing parties. In fact, people are quick to kill those they suspect or
consider as their enemies. The breaking into houses, the burning of houses,
leaving hundreds of people homeless, and the looting and burning of property no
longer make news. Some men and women, students and teachers, parents and
children, religious men and women are not only molested but kidnapped for
ransom. Life seems to be valueless and meaningless. The question on every lip
is: what is life?
6. We are also experiencing a frightening
disrespect for the dead. Human corpses, sometimes terribly mutilated, are
abandoned in the streets and in the mortuaries without identification. The corpses
of some of those who have been killed are thrown into streams and rivers or
dumped near others’ compounds to make them suspects. Some of those killed are
burnt to ashes. We have seen dead bodies with heads, legs or other parts of
their bodies chopped off. It has now become normal to hear an announcement over
Radio that there are unidentified corpses in the Bamenda Regional Hospital
Mortuary. It is now not unusual to see fresh or decomposing dead bodies on the
public high way. A lot of disrespectful things have been and are being done on
dead bodies. Many people have been prevented from taking and burying their
loved ones. All this is against the sacredness and dignity of the human person.
This is unheard of in our African tradition where the dead are venerated.
The Teaching
of the Church on the Sacredness and Dignity of Human Life
7. The teaching and tradition of the Church
upholds that the bodies of the dead must be treated with respect and charity,
in faith and hope of the resurrection (CCC, n. 2300). The triviality with which
many seem to consider human life in the present moment in the North West and
South West Regions is a cause for great concern. We are deeply concerned about
the many innocent people who have lost their lives, about the plight of the
many people who are destitute, sick and suffering, the men and women struggling
for survival, and who are forced to seek refuge and livelihood outside their
homes, outside their region of origin and outside their country because of the
ongoing senseless, fratricidal war. All human life is a precious gift from God
and every human being has dignity, worth, value and meaning, regardless of
size, shape, gender, ability, tongue or race because he/she is created in the
image and likeness of God (Gen.1:26-27). The Second Vatican Council teaches
that “the dignity of man rests above all on the fact that he is called to
communion with God. This invitation to converse with God is addressed to man as
soon as he comes into being. For if man exists, it is because God has created
him through love, and through love continues to hold him in existence. He
cannot live fully according to truth unless he freely acknowledges the love and
entrusts himself to his creator” (G.S. n.19).
8. Human life is the most precious and sacred
gift from God, the author of life. It is “sacred because from its beginning it
involves the creative action of God and it remains forever in a special
relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. God alone is the Lord of
life from its beginning until its end: no one can, under any circumstance,
claim for himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being”
(C.C.C. n. 2258).Its value is intrinsic, for it derives from God. “Of all
visible creatures only man is ‘able to know and love his creator. He is ‘the
only creature on earth that God has willed for its own sake’ and he alone is
called to share, by knowledge and love, in God’s own life. It was for this end
that he was created, and this is the fundamental reason for his dignity” (C.C.C.
n. 356). The Catechism of the Catholic Church goes on to state that: “being in
the image of God the human individual possesses the dignity of a person, who is
not just something, but someone” (C.C.C., n. 357).
9. Human life is sacred from conception until
natural death. This teaching of the Church is based on the belief that our
lives have their origin in God and return to God when we die. We believe that
we live our lives under God’s providential love and care. At times this is
difficult to understand, especially when tragedy and sorrow enter our lives.
However, as Christians, we believe that our lives come from, and are cared for
by someone greater than us - a loving God and Father, who has given us the
dignity of his adopted children and wants all of us to discover him, live in
the security of his love and return to Him. Every human life, regardless of his
or her stage of development is sacred. As Pope Francis emphasizes, “equally
sacred, however, are the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute,
the abandoned and the underprivileged, the vulnerable, infirm and elderly
exposed to covert euthanasia, the victims of human trafficking, new forms of
slavery and every form of rejection” (G.E. n. 101).
10. The divine injunction “Thou shall not kill”
equally prohibits all acts of the abuse and disrespect of human life and human
dignity. Such acts include torture “which uses physical or moral violence to
extract confessions, punish the guilty, frighten opponents, or satisfy
hatred" (C.C.C., n. 2297). The abuse of human dignity sometimes leads to
the loss of life. Taking delight in torturing the dying person, removing the
wounded from hospital or abandoning the wounded to die unattended to are all
sins against the Fifth Commandment. It is sad, shameful and totally
unacceptable that even ambulances and private cars carrying patients, wounded
persons and pregnant women have not enjoyed the freedom they need to bring such
people speedily to hospital for treatment, as should be the case. This is to
the disgrace of all those who apply rules disproportionately, or to those who,
acting arbitrarily, have ignored international conventions regarding behaviour
during war.
The
Necessity and Urgency to Safeguard the Sacredness and Dignity of Human Life
11. The situation we are living now cannot
leave us indifferent. All acts that rub human beings of their life and dignity
should be vehemently condemned no matter who their perpetrators are. Human life
and its God-given dignity should always be respected and protected, even during
war and in situations such as the one in which we find ourselves. It is
therefore urgent and imperative that we do something and immediately to prevent
the situation from getting worse as it has happened in other countries. In order
to achieve this, all are invited: individuals, families, groups, Christian
communities, the civil society, the government and the International Community
to work towards finding a lasting solution to stem the abuse of human life and
dignity that is going on now in the North West and South West Regions of
Cameroon. We want to reiterate that violence and the approach of “neutralising”
the secessionists is not the right solution because violence only begets
violence.
12. We, therefore once more earnestly appeal
to the competent authorities that the military should desist from the wanton
killing of innocent civilians and the burning down of houses which is the basic
cause of the displacement of the populations. We plead that there may be no
more delay in addressing effectively the real causes of the present crises. “No
matter what difficulties we face in our country, a solution will never be found
in violence, but rather in a dialogue between opposing groups”. This message that was sent to the Heads of
State of all African countries 26 years ago by the Standing Committee of the
Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) is still
relevant to us today. We call on all the protagonists to put down their arms,
stop this senseless fratricidal and suicidal war and have the courage to enter
into dialogue with one another. There is
no other way outside frank and meaningful dialogue. Might is not always right.
True dialogue calls for humility. The process is not just about sitting around
a table, but changing the way of thinking, talking and communicating with one
another. Participants must be willing to address the root causes of a crisis,
not just the symptoms. There can be no way forward without dialogue.
13. We appeal to the separatists to put down
their arms in favour of dialogue as the most appropriate way of solving the
Anglophone Problem. This dialogue should first be among themselves because a
household divided among itself cannot stand. We call on them and on other armed
groups which are exploiting the situation to refrain from the use of violence
and stop shedding the blood of their brothers and sisters which like the blood
of Abel is crying out to God from the ground (cf. Gen. 4:10). We pray that they
refrain from all forms of abuse of human life and dignity such as intimidation,
harassment, torture, abduction, extortion and maltreatment which inflict untold
suffering and hardship on their brothers and sisters. We must all unite to
fight against exploitation, corruption and injustices of all kinds if we want
to build a better society for ourselves. We should respect the common good, our
own lives and the lives of other people.
14. During this crisis the fundamental human
right of the children to education has been greatly violated. We would like to
reiterate the importance and necessity of the education of the youth as the
indispensable instrument of the liberation and development of the human person.
The best way of preparing a better future which we are all dreaming of cannot
be through stopping our children from going to school. What is needed is the
education of the heart. As someone said; “The heart of education is the
education of the heart”. We should always treat others as we would like them to
treat us. This is the golden rule (cf. Mt. 7:12).
15. The Church recognizes the importance of
the media and the fact that if the means of social communication are properly
utilized they “can be of great service to mankind, since they greatly
contribute to men's entertainment and instruction as well as to the spread and
support of the Kingdom of God. The Church recognizes, too, that men can employ
these media contrary to the plan of the Creator and to their own loss. Indeed,
the Church experiences maternal grief at the harm all too often done to society
by their evil use” (IM, n. 2). While
social media have made the world a global village and eased communication which
can strengthen relationship among the people of God and enhance the quality of
life, they can become a dangerous tool in unscrupulous hands, when they are
used to misinform the people, propagate hate language and division instead of
love and unity. It is regrettable that some of the information presented by the
media during this crisis has not always promoted the sacredness and the dignity
of human life. We call on all and sundry to refrain from the spread of false
information, horrible and degrading images of the human person and incendiary
language which instil fear and hatred in the hearts and minds of the people.
The advice of Pope Francis to young people on Tuesday 21 March 2017 immediately
comes to mind “Don't let yourselves be led astray by this false image of
reality! Be the protagonists of your history; decide your own future”. This
advice holds good for us today.
16. There is the need for education especially
about the evil of torture which degrades both the tortured and the torturer. In
fact, Article 10 of the International Convention against Torture, and Other
Cruel, Inhuman and Degrading Treatment or Punishment says: “Each State Party
shall ensure that education and information regarding the prohibition against
torture are fully included in the training of law enforcement personnel, civil
or military, medical personnel, public officials and other persons who may be involved
in the custody, interrogation or treatment of any individual subjected to any
form of arrest, detention or imprisonment”. We appreciate the efforts which
some members of the military and the forces of law and order are making to
protect human life and dignity. However, while the hierarchy congratulates the
military on the work they do, they should not fail to condemn when they do the
opposite of what they are called to do, to protect human life.
17. Our priests and religious should preach
and teach the faithful on the sacredness and dignity of human life. We call on
our Christian communities to reinforce their efforts in the practice of
studying and sharing appropriate texts of the Word of God in the family and the
Small Christian Communities. It is in this way that the Church can continue to
be a light particularly in this dark period, to offer hope to the people, and
to stand for truth, justice and reconciliation. It is equally in this way that,
in the words of our venerable predecessor, the late Archbishop Paul Verdzekov,
of blessed memory, who was a real apostle of the fight against torture, “the
consciences of Christians and of Christian Communities need to be awakened and
sensitized so that we may all face the reality of torture and join in the
struggle for its total elimination. Victims and torturers alike need
liberation. For this struggle, one of the principal and efficacious arms which
Christians must use is prayer, followed by acts of solidarity with the victims
of torture and their families, legal action, denunciation, and pressure on the
State Institution”.
18. Lent is the favourable time for conversion
and reconciliation with God and our neighbour. This is the message which St.
Paul addresses to us on Ash Wednesday to be ambassadors of reconciliation for
Christ (2 Cor. 5:20-21; 6:2). It is a time of prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
Prayer opens us up to God; fasting liberates and strengthens us in the fight
against sin and evil; and almsgiving opens us out to our neighbour. This Lent we
must intensify our prayers, especially the Eucharistic celebration and
Adoration. Let us pray more than ever before for the Lord’s intervention in
this crisis. Christ alone is the one liberator who can free men and women from
all forms of servitude that dishonour humanity. It is Christ who “brings good
news to the poor, freedom to captives, opens the eyes of the blind, and
liberates the oppressed…” (Lk. 4:18). Let us pray for the repose of the souls
of those who have lost their lives in this crisis. Let us fast and make penance
and reparation for the sins of the profanation and disrespect of human life and
dignity. Through fasting and penance we are in solidarity with all those who
are suffering, especially the innocent ones, who share in the Cross of Jesus Christ. Let us show compassion, generosity and love
to all those who are suffering: the poor, the sick, the internally displaced
and all those who are in need. Let us pray for forgiveness, reconciliation and
peace.
19. All of
us must work for peace. This is the first step towards avoiding war. If war has
unfortunately broken out, all parties must avoid arrogance and empty pride and
be ready to acknowledge their failures and readiness to engage in meaningful
dialogue as a way towards finding a lasting solution. Anger, vengeance,
resentment are clearly immediate steps towards killings (Mt. 6:21-26). St.
Francis’ peace prayer is a tool that can touch our hearts and move us to seek
ways of regaining peace, beginning with ourselves. Lord, Make Me an Instrument of
Your Peace.
Gratitude to
all who are promoting the Sacredness and Dignity of Human Life
20. We wish to render immense gratitude to
each and every one in the Archdiocese of Bamenda and beyond who has been
working hard since the beginning of this crisis to help the displaced person
through their generous contributions and in various other ways. We acknowledge
the heroic courage of our health institutions: doctors and nurses who continue
to risk their lives to save human life. May the Lord, the chief physician, be
their reward. We congratulate those members of the military, the forces of law
and order, the separatists and all who have had the courage to acknowledge the
fact that killing and torture are abominable crimes and have consequently
refused to participate in carrying out such crimes. We remain grateful to all
the people who have risked their lives and gone out of their way to save lives,
help the injured and bury the dead, including strangers. By doing this they are
living Jesus’ invitation that “whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers
that you did for me” (Mt. 25:40).Pope Paul VI emphasized this role when he said
“May people look to us not just for charitable handouts but for support in
their legitimate struggle against all forms of injustice and oppression (The
Development of Peoples). We remain grateful to those who have been praying
night and day for God’s intervention, and those who have acted as instruments
of peace and reconciliation. Christ said: “Blessed are the peace makers for
they shall be called sons of God!” (Mt. 5:9).
21. We call upon all the faithful and people
of good will to pray together, reason together, decide together, and act
together, so that the truth may prevail and the sacredness and the dignity of
human life be respected. May each and every one of us become what Saint Pope
John Paul II referred to as “promoters of a new way of looking at life” (E. V.,
n. 99). In the face of the present crisis let each and everyone repeat the
words of Martin Luther King, Jr. “I have decided to stick to love; hate is too
great a burden to bear."
May the
Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, Queen of Peace and Patroness
of Cameroon intercede for us all. Amen.
Given on
06th March 2019
Ash
Wednesday
†Cornelius
FONTEM ESUA
Archbishop
of Bamenda
†Michael
MIABESUE BIBI
Auxiliary Bishop of Bamenda
References
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“Human life
is the most sacred gift with which God, the author of life, has endowed the
human being. Right from creation humanity has been called to share in the
divine life because ‘God created man in the image of himself, in the image of
God he created him, male and female he created them’ (Genesis 1:27).”
A Prayer for
Life
“Father and
maker of all, you adorn all creation with splendour and beauty, and fashion
human lives in your image and likeness. Awaken in every heart reverence for the
work of your hands, and renew among your people a readiness to nurture and
sustain your precious gift of life. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God
forever and ever. Amen” (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops).