“Special”: South African Catholic Bishop on Transparency Conference in Rome

By Silas Isenjia

Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa of South Africa’s Catholic Diocese of Kokstad, a participant in the June 16-22 workshop on Transparency and Accountability in the Catholic Church in Rome, has described the convention as “special”.

In a video interview posted on YouTube on Friday, June 21, Bishop Mbuyisa says, “I am privileged yet again to be the audience of the Holy Father; its always a special occasion to experience the universality of the Church and also to be in midst of so many people.”

In the interview that the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) published, the Catholic Bishop says that the universality of the Church is revealed through interactions with the people of God from around the globe, an opportunity the Rome workshop gives.

The Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, St. Thomas University in the U.S., St. Mary’s University in Twickenham, London, and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, organized the seven-day workshop “to explore crucial aspects of transparency within the Church, especially for leaders in high positions.”

The workshop targeted Catholic Church leaders vested with responsibilities in guiding, managing, and influencing various facets of the Church’s operations, including Bishops, Vicars General, Clergy, women and men Religious, and Laity.

In the interview published June 21, Bishop Mbuyisa describes the Rome workshop as “another beautiful one” and reiterated that “to make it even more special of course with the opportunity to greet the holy Father and even to take a group photo with him.”

“It was a beautiful experience to shake hands with him, promising him not only my prayers but also those of all the faithful from the Kokstad Diocese in South Africa,” he says, adding that he also asked Pope Francis “for his blessings for every one of us.”

The member of the Congregation of Mariannhill Missionaries (CMM) further says he also had the privilege to listen to the catechesis of the Holy Father during the weekly Wednesday (June 19) Audience.

The South African Catholic Bishop, who has been at the helm of Kokstad Diocese since his Episcopal Ordination in June 2022 pledges to share the insights from the workshop with the people of God under his pastoral care.

Addressing himself to the people of God in Kokstad Diocese, Bishop Mbuyisa says, “I want to let them know that I think of them and pray for them while I’m here in Rome.”

“I miss them as well. I look forward to sharing some of the insights I’ve gained from this workshop with them soon,” the 51-year-old CMM member says in the interview published on YouTube on June 21.