"Archbishop Michael Aidan Courtney Memorial Conference on Catholic Peacebuilding in Africa’s Great Lakes Region"
Bujumbura, Burundi
July 24-28, 2006
In an effort to improve international understanding of and support for the Church's peacebuilding efforts in the Great Lakes region, CPN held its Third Annual Conference in Burundi from July 24-28, 2006. The conference covered a range of issues, from the Church’s efforts to promote community-based reconciliation in Rwanda and trauma healing in Burundi to its efforts to achieve political stability in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the role of the Church in other countries in supporting these efforts. A diverse group of Church leaders (including 14 bishops), development experts, and academics and practitioners who specialize in peacebuilding attended the conference. They came from 20 countries, including Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Colombia, the Philippines, Croatia, South Africa, Mozambique, Nigeria, Germany and the United States. The conference was sponsored by CPN, in collaboration with the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Burundi, the Apostolic Nunciature in Burundi, and Catholic Relief Services, and with support from the Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies at the University of Notre Dame and the German Catholic aid agency, Misereor. It was dedicated to the memory of Archbishop Michael Aidan Courtney, the Apostolic Nuncio in Burundi whose work for peace led to his murder on December 29, 2003.
Most Reverend Jean Ntagwarara, Bishop of Bubanza; President, Conference of Catholic Bishops of Burundi
Opening Remarks (in French)
R. Scott Appleby, University of Notre Dame
Conference Introduction
Theological Reflection on Reconciliation and Peacebuilding
Dorothy Madison-Seck, Regional Director, CRS Central Africa
Opening Remarks
Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Vatican Secretary of State
Letter to the Conference
Most Reverend Paul Gallagher, Apostolic Nuncio in Burundi
The Search for Peace in Burundi
Most Reverend Joachim Ntahondereye, Bishop of Muyinga, Burundi
Contextualisation: L’action de l’Eglise pour la paix au Burundi (in French)
Most Reverend François-Xavier Maroy, Archbishop of Bukavu, DRC
Eglise Catholique de Bukavu et la Paix en R.D. Congo et Dans la Region Grands Lacs (in French)
Role de L'Eglise Pour le Changement Politique R.D. Congo et Dans la Sous-Region des Grands Lacs (in French)
Fr. Antoine Kambanda, Rector, Major Seminary, Kabgayi, Rwanda
Contextualization: The Struggle for Peace in Rwanda
Fr. Fabien Rwakareke, Pastorale d’ensemble, Diocese of Nyundo
La Communaute Ecclesiale de Base (CEB) Comme Espace de Paix et de Reconciliation (in French)
Jean Claude Ngendandumwe, Project Officer, Episcopal Justice and Peace Commission of Rwanda
Expériences de réconciliation dans les Communautés Ecclésiales de Base (in French)
Simon Gasiberege, Rwanda National University
Conversion, aveu et échange de pardon au Rwanda : le processus de réconciliation chez les individus et dans les communautés ecclésiales de base (ceb) (in French)
Lisa Sowle Cahill, Boston College
Toward a Theology of Reconciliation
Fr. Emmanuel Ntakarutimana, O.P., Director of Ubuntu, Burundi
Recouvrement de la Valeur D'Ubuntu Comme Therapie Psychosociale au Traumatisme: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 (in French)
David Niyonzima, Trauma Healing and Reconciliation Services, Burundi
Trauma and Healing
Most Reverend Gervais Banshimiyubusa, Bishop of Ngozi, Burundi
Contribution de l’Eglise dans l’édification de la Paix au Burundi, à la lumière de quelques données de l’enseignement théologique social de l’Eglise (in French)
Paul Rutayisire, Justice and Peace Program, CRS Rwanda
Mémoire et/ ou oubli comme rançon à la paix civile? (in French)
Most Reverend Frédéric Rubwejanga, Bishop of Kibungo; President, Rwandan Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace
Le defi de la solidarite (in French)
Cesar Villanueva, Former Vice-President, Pax Christi International
The Challenges of Solidarity in the Great Lakes Region
Fr. Don Francesco Tedeschi, Communita’ di Sant’ Egidio, Rome
A propos de la Contribution de l’Eglise hors de le Région, pour la Construction de la paix dans les pays des Grands Lacs (in French)
Most Reverend John Ricard, International Policy Committee, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
How can the Church Outside the Great Lakes Region Strengthen the Capacity of the Church Here to Engage in Peacebuilding?
Most Reverend John Onaiyekan, Archbishop of Abuja; President, Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar
The Challenge of Solidarity