In June of 2015, five cardinals and forty-five bishops representing fifty African countries met in Accra, Ghana, to prepare for the October 2015 Synod on the Family. In his opening remarks—included in this volume—Robert Cardinal Sarah encouraged the bishops of Africa to "speak with one voice" during the synod: "I encourage you to speak with clarity and with one credible voice and with filial love of the Church. Be conscious of the mission of the Church; protect the sacredness of marriage which is now being attacked by all forms of ideologies that intend to destroy the family in Africa. Do not be afraid to stress the teaching of the Church on marriage." In a major six-page interview released during the same period in the French magazine Famille Chrétienne , Cardinal Sarah said: "At the synod next October we will address, I hope, the question of marriage in an entirely positive manner, seeking to promote the family and the values that it bears. The African bishops will act to support that which God asks of man concerning the family, and to receive that which the Church has always taught. . . . Why should we think that only the Western vision of man, of the world, of society is good, just, universal? The Church must fight to say no to this new colonization." These African pastors provide much food for thought and reflection about modern Western culture and our personal lives, as well as an introduction to the Synod. The title of the book comes from a phrase used by Blessed Pope Paul VI, which in our time beautifully expresses the universality of the Church and the increasing role played by African Church leaders. Among the contributing cardinals and bishops are Robert Cardinal Sarah, Francis Cardinal Arinze, Christian Cardinal Tumi, Théodore Cardinal Sarr, Archbishop Samuel Kleda, and more.

In June of 2015, five cardinals and forty-five bishops representing fifty African countries met in Accra, Ghana, to prepare for the October 2015 Synod on the Family. In his opening remarks included in this volume Robert Cardinal Sarah encouraged the bishops of Africa to speak with one voice during the synod: ""I encourage you to speak with clarity and with one credible voice and with filial love of the Church. Be conscious of the mission of the Church; protect the sacredness of marriage which is now being attacked by all forms of ideologies that intend to destroy the family in Africa. Do not be afraid to stress the teaching of the Church on marriage."" In a major six-page interview released during the same period in the French magazine Famille Chr賩enne , Cardinal Sarah said: ""At the synod next October we will address, I hope, the question of marriage in an entirely positive manner, seeking to promote the family and the values that it bears. The African bishops will act to support that which God asks of man concerning the family, and to receive that which the Church has always taught. . . . Why should we think that only the Western vision of man, of the world, of society is good, just, universal? The Church must fight to say no to this new colonization."" These African pastors provide much food for thought and reflection about modern Western culture and our personal lives, as well as an introduction to the Synod. The title of the book comes from a phrase used by Blessed Pope Paul VI, which in our time beautifully expresses the universality of the Church and the increasing role played by African Church leaders. Among the contributing cardinals and bishops are Robert Cardinal Sarah, Francis Cardinal Arinze, Christian Cardinal Tumi, Th认ore Cardinal Sarr, Archbishop Samuel Kleda, and more.

A Catholic Theology in a current African context remains a challenge for theologians. How can authentic African elements contribute to a catholic theological discourse that can contribute to a re-awakening of contextual theological reconstructions faithful to cultural contexts? This work responds by bringing into the dialogue one of the renowned German theologians, Karl Adam, and showing his success in his contextual theological project, but also evidencing his failures, and thereby setting boundaries for contextual theological constructions. Denis Mpanga is Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Kampala, Uganda, working as Fidei Donum priest in Rottenburg-Stuttgart, Germany. Dissertation. (Series: Communicative Theology - Interdisciplinary Communicative Theology - Interdisciplinary Studies / Kommunikative Theologie - interdisziplin�¤r Communicative Theology - Interdisciplinary Studies, Vol. 19) [Subject: African Studies, Catholic Studies, Religious Studies]

The publication of Pope Francis’ post-synodal apostolic exhortation, Amoris Laetitia started the most important theological debate in the Catholic Church since the end of the Second Vatican Council. The cardinals, bishops, theologians, priests, lay Catholics found themselves on the opposite sides of this crucial and complicated discussion. This book attempts to shed some light on this debate by tracing its genealogy. Since Amoris Laetitia is a post-synodal document, the large part of the book is devoted to the theological analysis of the two Synods of Bishops convoked by Pope Francis in the first years of his pontificate: the extraordinary in October 2014 and the ordinary that took place a year later. The main topics for the two synods were determined, however, in the speech given by Cardinal Walter Kasper during the cardinals consistory in February 2014 whose main aim was to prepare the possibility of admitting divorced persons who live in second unions to Holy Communion. The arguments of Cardinal Kasper are presented in the first chapter of the book and confronted with the most significant statements of the Magisterium of the Church on the issue of admittance to the Holy Communion. This book is a study at the intersection of Church history, the history of theology, and systematic theology: dogmatic and moral. Kupczak is interested in the chronology of the events connected to the two synods on the family but in the context of theological problems discussed therein: the theological significance of contemporary cultural changes; the relation of the Church to the world; the understanding of the indissolubility of the sacramental marriage and the Eucharist; the methods of ethically assessing human acts, particularly the concept of so-called intrinsically evil acts (intrinsece malum); and the relation of conscience to the general moral norm. The non-partisan ambition of this book is to serve as a “road map”— a help in navigation for the reader in the complicated discussions leading to publication of Amoris Laetitia. The uniqueness of this book consists in combining the historical analysis of the events leading to the publication of Amoris Laetitia with research of the theological discussion that ensued. Since Amoris Laetitia is a post-synodal exhortation, this book rests on the assumption that crucial for its understanding is a thorough analysis of its genealogy. Only in the light of this historical and theological perspective the debates surrounding Amoris Laetitia may be understood.

There is no papal document that has generated as much interest, controversy, and debate in recent times as Pope Francis's Amoris Laetitia. This document, which came out of two very divisive synods of Catholic bishops and leaders in Rome in 2014 and 2015, will probably be the most discussed document ever produced by a pope in modern Catholicism on marriage and family life. This volume has gathered seminal commentaries on Amoris Laetitia by African Catholic theologians, social scientists, and pastoral workers. They offer African theological and pastoral responses to the principles and practices proposed by Pope Francis and the Synod on the family on such contested issues as same-sex relations, divorce and remarriage, and reception and denial of Holy Communion in the church, among other divisive issues. These important essays and commentaries show the strengths and weaknesses of this papal commentary and point out the missing link in the global conversation on marriage, family, and same-sex relations. Their argument for the inclusion of African perspectives and moral traditions in the search for a third way in finding an inclusive and integrated pastoral art of accompaniment is very compelling. The authors here also call for the inclusion of Africa's own unique challenges--like polygamy, childless marriages, and the impact of migration, civil conflict, diseases, ecological and population crises, and the rights of African women--in the global discussion on marriage and family life. They also challenge uncritical cliches in world Christianity that Africa's opposition to same-sex marriages (or Western propaganda about population or birth control and contraception) are conservative, while showing diverse African conversations on these topics in the search for abundant life on this beautiful continent.

"A disciplinary map for understanding African Catholicism today by engaging some of the most pressing and pertinent issues, topics, and conversations in diverse fields of studies in African Catholicism"--