Since 21 October 1993 the date of the assassination of the first democratically elected president of Burundi the whole territory of the diocese of Bubanza has been the most dangerous area of the country. The rebels took up residence there because of the proximity to the natural forest of ” and to the DRC which constitute places of withdrawal during the clashes with the regular army. Until 2011, the priests lived a terrible fratricidal war. During this entire period, the priests of the diocese have seen or experienced tragedies so abominable that they now bear wounded memories. Some have lost family members, seen the family home destroyed, others have lived in IDP camps or have fled to Congo, Rwanda or Tanzania. All of them bear the aftermath of the civil war. This is the reason why the association of priests U.C.I (Union Clergé Incardiné Bubanza) decided to organize a 6-day training for the healing of injured memories, aimed at 46 priests from all 13 parishes of the diocese.
This training is currently taking place in Giheta’s charity home and will last 6 days. Fr Siméon NIBARUTA, the bursar of the diocese of Bubanza has sent us a gratitude message telling that the priests particularly appreciated the teachings on the evangelization of the depths. The Rev. Jean NTAGWARARA, bishop of Bubanza highly recommended this project, adding that it would give a spiritual impulse to the priests and help them to develop the spirit of communion and fraternal mutual aid.
The Facing the Covid-19
On May 15th, we received a message from Fr Siméon NIBARUTA, the bursar of the diocese of Bubanza. He explains what is the situation in Burundi and in his diocese. «Officially, we have 15 cases of suspects, 7 people already healed and 1 death. Even if it is difficult to prove the numbers and that during this election period there have been some rumours of data manipulation, the general situation in Burundi is not alarming. Life is normal. We have no confinement. No priests have been reached so far. As priests and pastors, we preach vigilance. « In any case, we hope and pray that the pandemic will diminish during this coming summer period. Pray for us too»
