What are some issues on which an African seminarian would need special attention?
He would need help on relating to women in an egalitarian manner in a parish setting and on working as part of a team. In Africa the priest hands down sacraments and decrees. Obviously that’s not the case here. The other thing is that the community should be prepared to receive the priest as well, and this may mean a significant change of attitudes. What would a parish receive from an African priest? Some people say that the U.S. needs nothing, and thus there is no basis for mission. But mission is based on an exchange of gifts. I think you could ask what each side can bring to the other. Africans generally have an active sense of the sacred and a real sense of joy in the faith. Also Africans tend to be very communal: The church is truly a family, interdependent, supporting each other. Most of all, an African priest can further the connections between the U.S. and African churches. An African priest could lead parishioners to an awareness of the effect of U.S. policies on Africa, polic
