The Pastoral Organisation of the Archdiocese of Bamenda is based on the Provincial Pastoral Plan of the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda that was conceived after the 7th Catholic Convention in 1999 and revised in 2009. It is the result of the reflection on the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation – Ecclesia in Africa – of Pope John Paul II after the First Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops which took place in Rome in 1994. We have adopted it as the official programme of the work of evangelization, and we try to situate every dimension of the work of evangelization within it. It seeks to develop for the Dioceses of the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda an organic, systematic, coordinated and united vision of pastoral action geared towards fostering the growth of the Church in the spirit of the New Evangelization. It organizes the various aspects of the work of evangelization into 18 Pastoral Commissions with the Small Christian Community pastoral approach at the basis of all pastoral action and promotes the participation and collaboration of all the members of the community with a new ardour, method and expression.
We have carved out all the parishes into Small Christian Communities (SCC) which are described as the “Church in the Neighbourhood”. It is obligatory for every Christian to be a member of the Small Christian Community. The life of the SCCs is centred on the celebration of the Eucharist and the Word of God which should be the source and inspiration of their action. Thus, the celebration of the Eucharist and “Gospel Sharing” are the two indispensable activities of the SCC. For convenience, an SCC may have more than one Gospel Sharing Group. The Pastoral Organigramme consists of the following: a number of Small Christian Communities make up a Mission Station; a number of Mission Stations make up a Parish; a number of Parishes make up a Deanery and the Diocese is made up of a number of Deaneries.
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