"The first caravan for
Equatorial Africa left on June 7th 1894. In central Africa as everywhere
else, the Sisters, on their arrival, began working with the women and children.
These had been looked after temporarily by the Fathers while waiting for the
Sisters. In the territories confided to the White Fathers, they were
usually the first white women to penetrate into the interior of Africa and for
a long time they were the only ones. |1| They always established
themselves at the mission post of the Fathers who had asked for them and had
prepared a house for them.
What is striking about this
region is the origin of the slaves welcomed by the Sisters. At times they are
prisoners of war who have been ransomed by the Fathers. At other times
they are children brought by army officers (some of them Protestants) or children
taken from their parents by German officers as punishment. Let’s listen
to what the diaries say:
All the children were
grouped together in the same center. Thanks to the Sisters, the children
of slaves, or the slaves themselves, and the children of the masters would from
now on live in peace and trust, receiving the same education and developing the
same values. Together they would learn that they are brothers and sisters
because they are children of the same Father. Was there any better way to
fight against slavery?"
[1] Sr. Marie -André du Sacré
Cœur, Sous le ciel d’Afrique,
Alsatia, Paris 1948, pg. 97
Information provided by Vicky Chiharhula, MSOLA
