Missionary Cooperation and Integral Development in Nigeria
+ Joseph Effiong Ekuwem
Introduction
The Church is by nature missionary and all her children are called to share in her mission. This implies bringing the Good News of salvation to all peoples especially those who have not known Jesus Christ, through their preaching and the examples of their lives. Based on their shared convictions and mission, the people of God are expected to cooperate with one another in the exercise of these missionary activities for an effective and fruitful realization of the mission of Christ entrusted to his Church. The nature of this missionary cooperation is the subject of this paper. It will examine the concept of mission and missionary cooperation and its theological and missiological ramifications. It will also identify the theological principles and foundations for missionary activities and cooperation in the Church and apply them for the pursuit of integral development in Nigeria. This will be approached under the following subheadings:
- Missionary Cooperation
- Biblical/Theological Foundations for Missionary Cooperation
- Mission, Missionary Cooperation, Synodality, and Collegiality
- Missionary Cooperation, Ecclesial Unity, and Christian Unity
- Integral Development and Christian Humanism
- Faith at the Service of Integral Humanism
- Sustaining unity in the Diversity of the Nation-State called Nigeria.
- Conclusion
Missionary Cooperation
Mission generally refers to the special undertakings in which those mandated by the Church go into the whole world to preach the Gospel and implant the Church among people who do not yet believe in Christ.[1] The aim is to develop these territories into indigenous particular churches, groom them to the status of having their own hierarchy and faithful and endow them with the means of living maturely their full Christian life. These churches can then contribute to the good of the missionary activities of the universal Church, which includes bearing witness to the love and kindness of Christ and making his presence felt among the people. All particular churches, therefore, remain relevant to this mission of the universal Church. Since the particular churches share in the common goal of the universal Church, all are obliged to contribute towards the realization of this goal by collaborating with the universal Church and with other particular churches for the attainment of the missionary mandate of the Church, without neglecting their unique contexts. This collaboration is generally referred to as ‘missionary cooperation.’ It is the expression of the nature and mission of the Church in a changed social, political, and even ecclesial conditions.[2] This cooperation opens one to the richness of the other’s uniqueness. It builds bridges and enhances unity at the level of both the local and the universal Church. Thus, Pope Francis declares: “the world in which we live, and which we are called to love and serve, even with its contradictions, demands that the Church strengthen cooperation in all areas of her mission.”[3]
Biblical/Theological Foundation for Missionary Cooperation
The Bible emphasizes the importance of collaboration between God and humanity in accomplishing various tasks, including creation, salvation, and evangelization. In Genesis 1:26, God invites humans to collaborate with Him as co-creators in caring for His creation. The creation of woman highlights the significance of companionship and collaboration. Biblical personalities like Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, and the prophets are portrayed as collaborators who enhanced the task of salvaging humanity. Mary, the mother of Jesus, humbly submits to God’s invitation to be the vessel of honour, which brings forth the God made man. Jesus appoints twelve men as his closest associates and sends them out as co-workers to preach the good news and bring healing to the people. He also sends out seventy-two on a mission to sow peace and bring well-being. The pairing of the seventy-two highlights Christ’s intention for collaboration. Before returning to his Father, Jesus formally gives his apostles the missionary mandate to evangelize all nations, and he instructs them to teach new disciples from all nations to observe his commandments as a mark of their unique identity. In John 20:22-23, Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on his apostles and gives them the power to forgive sin, an important instrument in accomplishing their mission of bringing well-being to the people. Overall, the Bible emphasizes the importance of collaboration between God and humanity to achieve various tasks and fulfil God’s purpose.
On Pentecost day, the Holy Spirit formally inaugurated the Church (Acts 2) as the bride of Christ, making her the missionary of Christ, and the universal sacrament of salvation in its society.[4] On Pentecost, therefore, is found the culmination of God’s desire and appreciation of the cooperation of humankind for the spread of his kingdom, the cementing of Christ’s mandate to his disciples to work together for the spread of his teachings, commandments and salvation, and for the accomplishment of the salvation of every human person. This formal inauguration of the Church marks a new phase in the encouragement of missionary initiatives, activities, and cooperation among members of the Church. “As members of the living Christ, incorporated unto him and made like unto him by baptism, confirmation and the Eucharist, all the faithful have an obligation to collaborate in the expansion and spread of his Body, to bring it to fullness as soon as possible (Eph 4:13)”.[5] So that “men, having been reborn by the word of God (cf. 1 Pet 1:23), might through baptism, be joined to the Church which, as the Body of the Word Incarnate, lives and is nourished by the word of God and the Eucharist (cf. Acts 4:42)”[6].This Church, instituted as the new covenant by Christ in fulfilment of the words of Jer 30:31-34 is the people of God (2 Cor 6:16; Heb 8:10) who enjoy the dignity and freedom of the sons and daughters of God.
Mission, Missionary Cooperation, Synodality, and Collegiality
As the people of God, the Church has as its law, the new commandment to love as Christ loved us (John 13:34), and its destiny is the kingdom of God.[7] By this commandment of love, members of the Church are thus called to walk and work together for the attainment of this common destiny. In the words of Saint Augustine, we need “to be of one heart and one mind on our journey towards God.”[8] This working together is very consequential to the nature of this Church as the people of God on a journey towards its homeland in the midst of the world. In this working and walking together consists of the current synod on Synodality that was declared by the Holy Father Pope Francis: “For a Synodal Church, Communion, Participation, and Mission.”
The term synodality is derived from the noun ‘synod.’ A synod is a gathering, traditionally of bishops and by extension the entire members of the people of God for the purpose of deliberating on issues meant to promote the mission of the Church. The word synod is from the Greek syn-hodos, and means ‘the same way,’ ‘the same path,’ or ‘together on the same path.’ Synodality is, therefore, about being synodal, the process of living out or being a synod; a lived experience of a synod. It is about journeying together through listening to one another and sharing our unique experiences in order to hear what God is saying to all of us. It is realizing that the Holy Spirit can speak and act through any person to help us walk forward together on our journey as the People of God.[9] St. John Chrysostom teaches that the words ‘synod’ and ‘church’ are synonymous since the Church is all about walking together.’[10] Thus, synodality is a reminder to the Church of her constitution and essence as a ‘journeying together’, renewing the Church from her deepest roots, in order to be more united with one another and better carry out her mission in the world.[11] It is being collaborative, inclusive and attentive, it is a realization that listening “is more than simply hearing”[12] rather, “it is a mutual listening in which everyone has something to learn. The faithful people, the college of bishops, the Bishop of Rome: all listening to each other, and all listening to the Holy Spirit, the ‘Spirit of truth’ (Jn 14:17), in order to know what he ‘says to the churches’ (Rev 2:7)”[13]. It is a reawakening to the infiniteness or inestimability of what the Holy Spirit can achieve when our various charisms are freely and generously offered, gratefully and respectfully harnessed, and prayerfully directed for the service of the mother Church who exists only to do the bidding of her spouse our Lord the lover of community. It is living out in practice the ecclesiology of the people of God; the conviction that everyone has something to contribute towards the realization of the mission and destiny of the Church. Synodality is therefore, “the specific modus vivendi et operandi of the Church, the People of God, which reveals and gives substance to her being as communion when all her members journey together, gather in assembly and take an active part in her evangelising mission.”[14]
One specific way therefore to be truly a Church, a synodal church or a synod, is through missionary cooperation. The Eucharist understood in the context of ite missa est is an invitation to go on a mission as a community and on behalf of the community; to take the blessings and experience of Christ and his salvation beyond the self and the confines of the local Church community; go outside the camp (Heb 13:13) and share it with everyone. Missionary Cooperation is a mandate to ‘move outwards’ towards everyone in order to go together towards God[15] and “to better witness to the Gospel, especially with those who live on the spiritual, social, economic, political, geographical, and existential peripheries of our world.”[16]
When Dioceses, Conferences, Missionary Congregations and Societies work together on common projects to bring the good news of Christ to different places and people, the synodal nature of the Church as the pilgrim people of God is manifested. This cooperation among the various arms of the Church in its particularity, diversity and universality for the realization of the Church’s missionary activities expresses the integral nature of the Church as communion, synodality, and collegiality. It is a participation of her daughters and sons in the mission of the Church for the ultimate aim of realizing their common destiny, which is the kingdom of God. Thus in this working together, the Church asserts her synodality and collegiality, and renews herself as communion. The Eucharist “creates communion and fosters communion”[17] with God and with our sisters and brothers as we listen to the word of God through the Living Tradition of the Church and are anchored on the sensus fidei that we share. Incorporated into Christ by baptism, and given the equal dignity to receive and live our different vocations based on the grace of the sacraments received and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we live and share this communion in the emergence and functioning of the one single Body that is Christ’s as a rich and free convergence of plurality in unity. Living this plurality in unity, and in the equality of dignity is the essence and meaning of the synod on synodality. It is a coming together, a participation or an involvement of all the people of God that is founded on their equality of dignity, and implies a deep and respectful listening to each other to discern what the Holy Spirit has to say and effect through everyone. It can rightly be said then that missionary cooperation is, in essence, synodality, the working and walking together of the entire people of God for the realization of the Church’s divine mission of evangelization in the world. It is a “path by which the Church can more fruitfully fulfil her mission of evangelization in the world, as a leaven at the service of the coming of God’s kingdom.”[18]
While synodality centres on the participation of the whole people of God in the life and mission of the Church, collegiality defines the theological significance and the form of a) the exercise of the ministry of Bishops in the service of the local Church entrusted to the care of each of them, and b) of the communion between local Churches at the heart of the one universal Church of Christ, brought about by means of the hierarchical communion of the College of Bishops with the Bishop of Rome. Collegiality is thus the specific form in which ecclesial synodality is manifested and made real through the ministry of Bishops on the level of communion of the local Churches in a region, and on the level of communion of all the Churches in the universal Church.[19]
While authentic manifestation of synodality naturally consists in the exercise of the collegial ministry of the bishops, missionary cooperation becomes the specific form in which this collegiality is expressed, manifested, renewed and sustained. By virtue of their positions as successors of the college of apostles to whom the mandate to preach the gospel to all creatures (Mark 16:15) was given, Bishops as members of the body of Christ are primary and immediate missionaries with Peter and subject to Peter. They are consecrated not only for their particular churches alone, but also for the salvation of the whole world. It is from them in their relatedness to the college of bishop and the Pope that the communion and cooperation so necessary today for the work of evangelization arise. In the context of this communion, “each church cares for all the others, they make known their needs to each other, and they share their possessions, because the spread of the body of Christ is the responsibility of the whole college of bishops.”[20] It is therefore the responsibility of the Bishop to promote the work of evangelization within his diocese and to reach out to other dioceses in cooperation for the promotion of the work of evangelization beyond their local churches.
Missionary Cooperation, Ecclesial Unity, and Christian Unity
The nature of the Church as missionary entails responsible participation, interior renewal, and testimony of a good life on the part of her members. The Participation of Christians in the mission of the Church is propelled by the sacramental life they receive from the Church. This calls Christians, to live lives that are witnesses to the power of the Gospel in their own lives. The important obligation of Christians in the spreading of the faith is ‘to lead a profoundly Christian life’ by serving God and the Gospel and loving one another. This attitude will cause a new spiritual breeze to blow throughout the whole Church and in the local communities wherein the Church exists and functions. By living a profound life, the Church becomes a sign raised up among the nations (see Is 11:12), ‘the light of the world’ (Matt 5:14), and ‘the salt of the earth’ (Matt 5:13).[21]Noteworthy are the terms ‘nations’, ‘world’, and ‘earth’, these terms reflect the universality of the evangelizing mission of the Church. Living a profoundly Christian life implies not just personal commitment, but also the ecclesial missionary obligation because it allows the whole Church to renew itself. This renewal permeates the entire edifice of the Church involving especially the relationship that exists among her sons and daughters, challenging them to live the ecclesial unity and catholicity or ‘expand and perfect its catholic unity’[22] by embracing each other with an open mind, the spirit of love, tolerance and inclusiveness.
A diocese as a particular Church is the result of missionary activity and exists by and for missionary activity. It is in this structure as a particular Church that its status as the people of God becomes manifest. Its continuous survival is based on its consistency in carrying out missionary activities, “it belongs to such communities to bear witness to Christ before the nations”[23]. It rides towards extinction if its ceases to be missionary. There is success in working within particular churches, but dioceses can come together to work on certain missionary activities by way of cooperation. This may lead to greater success, and enrichment in the realization of their missionary endeavours. This cooperation will open the door to their knowing, understanding and appreciating the people and culture of other dioceses, and thus discover new ways of approaching issues in an exchange of ideas that is civil. With this knowledge, understanding and appreciation of the other, an enabling space is created for effective cooperation, and unity is established and the nature of the Church as communion is realized. “The grace of renewal cannot grow in communities (dioceses and parishes) unless each of them expands the range of its charity to the ends of the earth and has the same concern for those who are far away as it has for its own members.”[24]
Christians primarily manifest missionary activity through sincere witness of profound Christian life. This witness of life in the area of missionary cooperation in the world today is specified by the Ecumenical Council Fathers as being longed for in social works or matters:
It should contribute to a just appreciation of the dignity of the human person, to the promotion of the blessings of peace, the application of Gospel principles to social life, and the advancement of the arts and sciences in a truly Christian spirit. It should use every possible means to relief the afflicted of our times, such as famine and natural disasters, illiteracy and poverty, lack of housing and the unequal distribution of wealth. Through such cooperation, all believers in Christ are able to learn easily how they can understand each other better and esteem each other more, and how the road to the unity of Christians may be made smooth.[25]
This kind of cooperation among Christians is a necessity, since they are together believers in God and are together named after Christ their saviour. This goes beyond just secular humanitarian actions that propels immediate solutions to problems to working together to make the impact of Christianity felt in the provision of social diakonia, which consists in employing “every possible means to relieve the afflictions of our times, such as famine and natural disasters, illiteracy and poverty, lack of housing, and the unequal distribution of wealth.”[26]
Integral Development and Christian Humanism
Integral development refers to the development that involves the whole person in his or her complexities. It embraces all that defines the person, our artistic inventiveness, our work, cultural identities, political and spiritual/religious inclinations, and our relationship with one another. It is a development that is regarded as authentic, and which incorporates every aspect of our humanity. Though the concept of integral development is a universal perception that underscores humanity’s way of interacting with and understanding one another, the term itself is derived from Catholic social teachings. It is founded on a Christian anthropology that understands the human person as imbued with rights and dignity founded on its origin from God who is love and from whom love flows to his own; a Christian humanism that recognizes mankind as destined for the ultimate freedom and sublime gift of eternity. It appreciates the human person as a spiritual and material being navigating the ebbs and flows of life, politics, and power, and questing for growth in both the spiritual and the material.
Therefore, for us Christians and Catholics, development “needs above all to be true and integral” because “progress of a merely economic, and technological kind is insufficient.”[27] Any development worth the name must seek to liberate the human person from both material oppression and more profoundly from the evils and ignorance that afflict the spirit.[28] It must be a development that is closely bound up with our understanding of the human soul as God centred, and understood in a way that is fully and truly human;[29] a development that is comprehended from the point of view of God’s purpose for creation and of the mission of Christ as purposed by God.
Faith at the Service of Integral Humanism
In his farewell speech, George Washington emphasized the importance of religion and morality for political prosperity. Catholic social teachings highlight the danger of denying the human person spiritual growth and expression. Christians, when given the opportunity to express themselves in the context of God, feel challenged to populate the world with love. Development needs Christians with their arms raised towards God in prayer. To confront difficult times, development requires attention to the spiritual life, experiences of trust in God, spiritual fellowship in Christ, reliance upon God’s providence and mercy, love and forgiveness, self-denial, acceptance of others, justice and peace. A Christian humanism that enkindles charity and takes its lead from truth is an important service to development. Openness to God makes us open towards our brothers and sisters and towards an understanding of life as a joyful task to be accomplished in a spirit of solidarity. Experiencing and sharing God’s love motivates people to work for justice and the development of peoples.
Sustaining Unity and Development in the Diversity of the Nation-State called Nigeria
The concept of a nation-state is based on the idea of shared belief and connectedness among the people living within a physical boundary governed by a state. Nigeria is a multi-ethnic and culturally diverse federation with a population of about 213.4 million people. The founding fathers of Nigeria sought to use its diversity and numbers as instruments for national growth, strength, and development. However, Nigeria is currently facing a crisis of insecurity, heightened by terrorist organizations like Boko Haram, increased banditries, and unprofessional behaviour of some security personnel. The country is also facing economic challenges with 40% of Nigerians living below the poverty line and a fall in the value of the naira at the global market. Additionally, Nigeria ranks 150th out of 157 countries on human capital development in the 2020 Human Capital Index. There is also an inherent lack of concern for the common hope and good of the country among Nigerians. The political class promotes tribal sentiments, leading to an uncivilized emphasis on allegiance to tribes over national unity. To sustain Nigeria, every citizen is duty-bound to build and sustain it, recognizing the indispensability of every citizen’s role and importance. Missionary cooperation among Christians of different traditions has shown that this kind of cooperation based on a common belief and aspiration provides opportunities for learning to understand and esteem each other more, serving as an incentive for unity. When Nigerians dispose their minds to work together for the country’s development, the path to unity will be smoothened. In conclusion, Nigeria’s diversity can be used as an instrument for national growth, strength, and development. To sustain Nigeria, every citizen must recognize their duty to build and sustain it, and missionary cooperation based on a common belief and aspiration can incentivize unity.
Conclusion
This paper discusses the missionary nature of the Church, which was founded by Christ to continue his salvific presence in the world. All members of the Church, through baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist, are called to be missionaries for Christ and the Church. This missionary activity is carried out in coordination with the organs of the Church, in an atmosphere of dialogue, respect, and self-worth. The Church is a journeying and working together of God’s flock towards an encounter with Christ, and no one can be raised up higher than others. This working together is the essence of synodality. The Church is also called to collaborate with political authorities and those in the fields of economics, science, and technology to shape policies and direct them towards a holistic development that respects the human person in its totality as body and soul. The Church must also insist on objective moral standards, especially in the areas of corruption, governance, human rights, poverty alleviation, education, protection of lives and properties, and health services. The Church is called to contribute to the provision of basic amenities in collaboration with international charitable organizations. Development needs Christians who are moved by the knowledge that authentic development comes from truth-filled love, which is given to us by God. Therefore, even in the most difficult and complex times, we must turn to God’s love. Development requires attention to the spiritual life, trust in God, reliance on God’s providence and mercy, love and forgiveness, self-denial, acceptance of others, justice, and peace. All of this is essential if hearts of stone are to be transformed into hearts of flesh, rendering life on earth more worthy of humanity. The Church is the eminent protagonist of this transformation through Missionary Cooperation and integral development.
[1]Second Vatican Council, Decree on the Church’s Missionary Activity, Ad Gentes Divinitus in Vatican II—Constitutions, Decrees, Declarations, ed. Austin Flannery, OP (Northport, NY: Costello Publishing Company, 2007), no. 6. Subsequent references of Vatican II documents will be taken from this edition.
[2]Sandra Mazzolini, “Missionary Cooperation as a Common Witness of Christian Hope and Fraternity,” International Review of Mission 3.1 (May 2022), 29-42 (30, note 5).
[3]Pope Francis, “Address of His Holiness at the Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Institution of the Synod of Bishops,” no.2 https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2015/october/documents/papa-francesco_ 20151017_50-anniversario-sinodo.html (accessed 8.5.2023).
[4]Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium, no. 48.
[5]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 36.
[6]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 6.
[7]Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium, no. 9.
[8]Augustine of Hippo, Regula I,3: PL 32, 1378.
[9] Julian Paparella, “What is the Synod on Synodality?” (October 4, 2021), https://slmedia.org/blog/what-is-the-synod-on-synodality (accessed March 10, 2022).
[10]John Chrysostom, Explicatio in Ps. 149: PG 55, 493.
[11] Julian Paparella, “What is the Synod on Synodality?”
[12] Pope Francis, Evangelium Gaudium (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2013), no. 171.
[13]Pope Francis, “Address of His Holiness at the Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Institution of the Synod of Bishops,” no. 3.
[14]International Theological Commission, “Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church,” https://www.vatican. va/ roman_ curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_cti_20180302_sinodalita_en.html (accessed May 8, 2023), no. 6.
[15]International Theological Commission, “Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church,” no.109 e.
[16]Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, “For a Synodal Church, Communion, Participation, and Mission Vademecum for the Synod on Synodality,” no. 1.4 https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/ 2021/09/07/0541/01166.html (accessed 8.5.2023.
[17] Pope John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia,(17 April 2003), 40, AAS 95 (2003): 460.
[18]Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, “For a Synodal Church, Communion, Participation, and Mission,” no. 1.4.
[19]International Theological Commission, “Synodality in the Life and Mission of the Church,” no. 7.
[20]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 36, Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium, nos. 23-24.
[21]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 36.
[22]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 6.
[23]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 35.
[24]Second Vatican Council, Ad Gentes Divinitus, no. 37.
[25]Second Vatican Council, Unitatis Redintegratio, no. 12.
[26] Second Vatican Council, Unitatis Redintegratio, no. 12.
[27]Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate-On Integral Human Development in Charity and Truth (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2009), no. 23.
[28]Pope Benedict XVI,“Apostolic Visit to Czech Republic (September 26-28, 2009), Homily at Tuřany Airport Brno,” . https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/homilies/2009/documents/hf_ben-xvi_hom_20090927_brno.html (accessed 8.5.2023).
[29]Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate, no.76; Pope John Paul II, CentesimusAnnus, no. 29.
