Mozambique: 'We help those whose families have been kidnapped and beheaded by jihadists'

Adérito Benjamim Monteiro, catechist at Chapel of St Anthon, Capo Delgado; Image © ACN

Source: Aid to the Church in Need

A catechist in Mozambique has described ministering to people who have lost loved ones kidnapped and beheaded by jihadist groups.

Adérito Benjamin Monteiro, 29, recounted horror stories shared by communities in northern Mozambique where he and other Christian teachers work in situations of great poverty and danger, tending to people who have witnessed extreme violence.

Around 300 families, many of them Christian, live in very basic conditions in the Ntele resettlement camp, Cabo Delgado.

They have fled from the violence that plagues parts of the province, which has suffered from a jihadist insurgency for more than eight years, and are affected by the trauma of having suffered violence and losing friends and relatives.

Mr Monteiro told Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN): "These are people who have seen their sons, mothers, husbands and relatives beheaded, and others kidnapped by jihadist groups. They were forced to abandon everything, their homes, their farms, and all their possessions, and they have been resettled here."

Some parishes in northern Mozambique cover hundreds of villages, and priests and other clergy are unable to reach them all.

In Ntele camp stands St Anthony's Chapel, made from natural and recycled materials, including old USAID bags which keep out the rain and the sun.

The chapel is bigger than the makeshift homes all around and boasts a large cross consisting of two branches.

Mr Monteiro said this is where the catechists meet to plan their work. Some teach the basics of the Faith, others prepare groups for baptism or confirmation, but all share the same goal.

He added: "In the midst of the horror and the trauma, we seek to rekindle the flame of hope, that Christ lives, that Christ is with us."

He said families lack almost everything in Ntele camp. Items such as food, water and medical care are scarce. The same applies to catechetical materials.

"We don't have enough manuals for the catechists, so the same book will be used by two or three of us. One uses it in the morning, the other in the afternoon. This is just one of the difficulties we face."

The lack of priests means even more work for the catechists. Mr Monteiro said: "Our parish is composed of 17 areas, and each of these areas can have more than five communities. So each parish has many communities, but sometimes it has only two priests, and they cannot reach everywhere. That is where we come in, we go where they cannot."

Thanking all benefactors, Mr Monteiro added: "Thank you to all those who do what they can to assist us in helping our communities and our faithful in Cabo Delgado. I would ask that you continue to pray for us, to pray for the mission of the catechists. Pray for peace in Cabo Delgado, and for peace in Mozambique generally."

LINK

Aid to the Church in Need: https://acnuk.org