In the name of peace for the Great Lakes region

The picture of the Virgin Mary in Gitega on June 22, 2008 - What is the laity's role in the Church?

Rumbo a la catedral Towards the cathedral Auf dem Weg zur Kathedrale
Entrada de la Reina de la paz Entrance of the Queen of peace Einzug der Friedenskönigin
Prédica: P. Deogratias Maruhukiro Sermon: Fr. Deogratias Maruhukiro Predigt: P. Deogratias Maruhukiro
Conferencia Conference Vortrag und Zeugnis
Participantes Participants Beim Gottesdienst P. Deogratias Maruhukiro © 2008

BURUNDI, Dieudonné Simbananiye: The Mount Sion Gikungu Shrine has been organizing a series of pilgrimages to pray for peace in the Great Lakes region. This time, it was the turn of Mushasha parish in the Gitega archdiocese, at the heart of Burundi, to welcome the Pilgrim Mother on Saturday 21 June 2008. Having witnessed the fervour that this image generates everywhere it goes, one has to question its power to move the crowds.

At about 18:30 on Saturday 21 June, 2008 as the Pilgrim Mother image entered the Mushasha shrine, the community rushed forward joyfully join her on the inside. The small doors of the shrine, had they been able to widen sevenfold, would not have been big enough for everyone to enter at the same time. People who sacrificed everything to be there that night joined in with praying, singing, dancing and above all, honouring this image. Was all of this simply because they wanted to honour an image? Of course not. For them, the image was a reminder of what it represented: the Virgin Mary, the one in whom they could trust. She has power because she attracts those she wants to draw to herself. It was to these that Fr. Déo Maruhukiro, the rector of the Mount Sion Gikungu Shrine, addressed his Sunday homily. He examined the power of images by drawing from real-life examples. He recalled the gesture of burning a national flag or the meaning of recent events when the Olympic flame toured the globe. Thus, symbols play an important role in our lives.

Lay commitment

The speakers present at pilgrimage invited the laity to become conscious of their role in the Church and to participate actively in building it. During the vigil on Saturday night, Mélanie Gitwera, a member of the Mount Sion Gikungu community, spoke on the importance of tithing in the Christian community by reflecting on its origins and biblical role. In his speech, Alfred Vyabandi, the president of the organising committee of the pilgrimages to Mount Sion Gikungu, provided examples of activities carried out by the laity at Mount Sion Gikungu in support of its rector. He said that these activities demonstrated the degree of commitment by the laity, necessary for the positive progress in pastoral work. The parish priest clarified that the speaker was a university professor and added that if such people were committed to the Church, it will be increasingly strengthened in its mission. The example was given by a priest in Mushasha, who is currently doing missionary work in Benin, in which he said that although the Christian community in that country was small, it was vibrant. Nevertheless, so that Christians in Burundi can become increasingly committed, it would be useful to have clear indications on the laity’s role in the Church. In essence, as one woman said, prayer should not be the Christian’s sole role in the Church.

Translation: Sarah-Leah Pimentel, Johannesburg, South Africa