Toward the 2027-2028 Synodal Assemblies: Africa on the Move

Editorial of SECAM News Year 2026 No. 6 – June
Toward the 2027-2028 Synodal Assemblies: Africa on the Move

By Rev. Fr. Rafael Simbine Junior

Catholic Church leaders from around the world met in Rome from June 23 to 25, 2026 to review the progress of the Synod on Synodality. The gathering focused on discerning the next steps toward the Ecclesial Assemblies scheduled for 2027-2028. On this synodal path, Africa is on the move, listening to the Spirit and walking together.

Delegates from the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) took actively part in this important meeting organized by the General Secretariat of the Synod, together with other continents synodal coordinators.

In the same perspective, the Church in Africa is taking a significant step forward in its synodal journey with the First Preparatory Seminar Towards the Synodal Assemblies of 2027-2028, scheduled for the coming weeks.

This Continental Itinerary towards the Ecclesial Assembly of 2028 will bring together pastoral agents and representatives from the various regions of Africa who have actively participated in the Synodal Process since its beginning. The gathering will serve as a privileged opportunity for prayer, discernment, dialogue, and reflection on the implementation of synodality across the continent and Africa’s contribution to the universal Church.

Indeed, the seminar seeks to review and evaluate the experience of the Synodal Process (2021-2024) throughout Africa while reflecting on the gifts and contributions the African Church offers to the global journey toward becoming a constitutively synodal Church. Participants will also discern concrete expressions of a missionary synodal Church emerging in Africa and identify new pathways for the future.

A key feature of the meeting will be the sharing of regional experiences, initiatives, and best practices that promote communion, participation, mission, and co-responsibility. Through presentations and exchanges, delegates will highlight significant synodal initiatives from their local Churches and regions, enriching the continent’s collective discernment.

The outcomes of the seminar will contribute to the preparation of a continental working document that will guide the next stages of Africa’s synodal journey toward the Ecclesial Assembly of 2028.

This landmark gathering underscores Africa’s growing role in shaping a more participatory, missionary, and inclusive Church, rooted in listening, dialogue, and shared responsibility in the mission of evangelization.

Rev. Fr. Rafael Simbine Junior

Secretary General of SECAM

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English: SECAM_NEWS_YEAR_2026_No_06_JUNE_EN

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