“It’s been a wonderful experience” – Bishop Fianu shares first Ad Limina encounter

Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Ho, Most Rev. Emmanuel Kofi Fianu has described as a “wonderful experience” his encounter at the 2023 Ad Limina visit to Rome as a member of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference.

The Bishop who happens to be a first-timer to the Ad Limina in a Facebook post noted that all although the much-anticipated meeting with Pope Francis did not happen, all other scheduled activities took place.

He averred that the Ad Limina visit was an opportunity for him and his brother Bishops to engage and interact with various dicasteries of the Church, including the Holy Father, regarding the activities of their respective arch/dioceses.

Read Bishop Fianu’s full address below

This week, my colleagues and I from the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference have been at the Holy See in Rome in fulfilment of the mandatory Ad Limina visit.

This visit is crucial in the life of the Church as it provides an opportunity for us, as local Ordinaries, to engage and interact with various dicasteries of the Church, including the Holy Father, regarding the activities of our respective arch/dioceses.

Although our much-anticipated meeting with Pope Francis on Friday couldn’t take place as scheduled, all other activities on our itinerary have been very fruitful.

The Eucharistic celebrations and other prayer sessions at the various sacred places, including the Lateran Basilica, the tomb of St. Peter and St. Paul, as well as that of Pope St. John Paul II, have given us renewed spirit to continue shepherding God’s faithful in spirit and in truth.

Furthermore, our meetings with the various dicasteries at the Vatican give me hope that they will greatly contribute to addressing some of the unique challenges confronting the growth of the Catholic faith in our arch/dioceses and the country of Ghana as a whole.

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Finally, we also took time off to visit the residence of Ghana’s Ambassador to the Holy See, where we interacted with Amb. Mrs. Baiden-Amissah and her staff. Indeed, it has been a wonderful experience for me as a first-timer, and I believe it has been the same for my brother bishops on this visit.

God bless the Holy Roman Catholic Church and all her faithful. Shalom!