Special Collection For Africa Implores U.S. Catholics: “The Church In Africa Needs You”

WASHINGTON—TheSolidarity Fund for the Church in Africa, a voluntary collection heldthroughout the year by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB),supports the rapidly-growing Church in Africa by funding projects that rangefrom education to evangelization. Its 2012 theme is, “The Church in Africaneeds you.”

“TheChurch in Africa continues to grow and prosper while deeply rooted in and inspiredby faith,” explains Bishop John Ricard, chairman of the USCCB Subcommittee onthe Church in Africa. “However, in many places people also face hard-to-overcomechallenges of high rates of poverty and unemployment, illiteracy and pooreducation. With the help of U.S. Catholics, the Church in Africa can turn itspotential into action and work to confront challenges by educating and caringfor its people.”

ÉcolesCatholiques du Diocèse de Djibouti is aproject supporting Catholic schools that has been supported by the SolidarityFund in Djibouti. This project gives students vocational training with Catholicprincipals in a faith-filled environment. Besides supporting the Christianminorities and deepening their faith it also provides education and employmentfor the many Muslim and Christian residents of the area.

The Solidarity Fund also assists in seminary andreligious formation. For example, thanks to the support of Catholic parishionersin the United States, St. Paul’s Seminary in Liberia now operates a modernlibrary that offers future priests a contemporary learning environment and ahigher quality of learning.

For moreinformation about the Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa, visit: www.usccb.org and search “Church in Africa Collection.”

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Keywords: National Collections,USCCB, Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa, schools, education, poverty,unemployment, illiteracy, generosity, library, seminary

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