The Redemptorist mission in Angola began in January 1954 at the Mission of Our Lady of Sorrows in Sendji, in the municipality of Cuchi, Cubango province, in the southeastern part of the country. The first group of Redemptorists, Spanish and Portuguese, settled in that mission, replacing the Missionaries of the Holy Spirit, who had worked there since its foundation. From there, the Redemptorists spread to other dioceses and, during the transition to the country’s independence (1975), marked by the outbreak of the civil war that lasted until 2002, they were reduced to a small group (four Angolans and two Portuguese). From 1978 onwards, they underwent a period of “refoundation” with the contribution of confreres from the province of São Paulo, Brazil. Today they are present in 5 dioceses, in 7 communities, with a total of 40 members (including 1 bishop, 1 deacon, 2 brothers and 6 cleric students).
In preparation for the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the first Redemptorists (which will be held in 2029), the Vice-Province dedicated its 2025 Assembly to the theme: Memory and Presence of the Redemptorists, Towards 75 Years of Mission in Angola. The meeting took place at the Catholic Mission of Vouga, in the municipality of Cunhinga, in the hinterland of the central province of Bié, from August 28th to 29th. It was preceded by a two-day retreat and was attended by a large number of confreres from all communities. They had prepared by working on a questionnaire developed by the Secretariat for Evangelization and Spirituality.
The Assembly was an intense moment of listening, prayer, reflection, fraternal coexistence, and the sharing of dreams, seeking to gather the legacy of the journey undertaken so far, as well as the challenges of the present, in order to continue raising the banner of Copiosa Redemptio, in service of the vulnerable of this immense Angola, and beyond.
Numerous conclusions and recommendations were formulated in various areas of the Vice-Province, including: gratitude for the charism received; reviving the “mystique” of Redemptorist community life; a new foundation project in Angola; strengthening the formation and participation of Redemptorist Lay Associates; strengthening collaboration and communion with the Alphonsian Family (Congregations inspired by the Alphonsian charism); improving the organization of Popular Missions and increasing the involvement of confreres and lay missionaries in them; strengthening the mission ad extra as a concrete expression of this gratitude (Portugal: 4 confreres); and participation in the reconfiguration of the CSsR within COREAM (Mozambique: 2 confreres), in addition to the confrere being part of the novitiate formation team in Madagascar.
Fr. João Pedro Fernandes, CSsR.
Vice-provincial secretary
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