The 14th Plenary Assembly of the Interregional Meeting of Bishops of Southern Africa (IMBISA) is taking place in Manzini, Eswatini, from 24–28 September, coinciding with IMBISA’s Golden Jubilee. Held under the theme “A Synodal Journey, nourished by compassion and blossoming in faith as pilgrims of hope,” the Assembly has drawn the largest number of bishops in its history.
In his opening address, IMBISA President Archbishop Liborius Ndumbukuti Nashenda OMI urged the delegates to see the Jubilee not only as a commemoration of the past but as a renewed call to foster dialogue, non-violence, and peace. Bishop José Ponce de León of Manzini welcomed participants, recalling Eswatini’s historic role in IMBISA and highlighting the Church’s enduring partnership with the government in education, health, and social services.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister, represented by Education Minister Owen Nxumalo, praised the Church’s social contributions, noting its schools, nursing college, and the hope for a future Catholic university. The Apostolic Nuncio to Southern Africa, Archbishop Henryk Jagodziński, on his first official visit to Eswatini, reminded delegates that IMBISA has been living synodality for 50 years and encouraged them to continue as “pilgrims of hope.”
After the opening session, delegates were introduced to the theme of Synodality through a presentation by the Chairperson of the Commission for Synodality of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC).
In his address, Archbishop Dabula Anthony Mpako, offered a detailed explanation of the Synod on Synodality, tracing its roots to the recommendations of the Second Vatican Council and linking it to the lived experience of the early Church. He also introduced delegates to the Conversation in the Spirit methodology, which guided their subsequent reflections.
Delegates were then divided into groups to consider two central questions:
- a) What is the present experience in your part of the Church regarding the paradigm shift called for? Has any significant movement taken place? What is the general response on the part of the faithful to the call to conversion in this regard?
- b) What concrete steps need to be taken at the different levels of Church life to bring about the change from a hierarchical and institutional Church to one that is communal and participatory?
In the afternoon plenary session, group secretaries presented their reports. A recurring theme across the groups was the urgent need for formation for all the baptised, seen as essential for nurturing a more communal, participatory, and synodal Church.
