On 12th August 2006, through the auspices of H.E. Archbishop Ramiro Molines Ingles, Apostolic Nuncio to Ethiopia and fifty invited members of the Catholic Community from various parishes in Addis Ababa, the first Ethiopian Catholic University of St Thomas Aquinas (ECUSTA) consultation meeting held at the Apostolic Anunciature took place.
H.E. Archbishop Ramiro briefed the gathering on the ECUSTA historical background which he noted, emerged from the visit in 1997, of H.E. Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to the late His Holiness Pope John Paul II. During the said visit, H.E. the Prime Minister expressed his desire to have a Catholic University in Ethiopia. Following the visit, a feasibility study was conducted by the Jesuits. Several religious congregations were tapped to run the Catholic University project and finally in 2002, a group of Dominican Friars were sent by the Master of the Order of Preachers to take the responsibility for running the University activities. Thus, began the work on the University project which will benefit not only the Youth of Ethiopia, but also the Country at large.
Before concluding his talk, H.E. the Apostolic Nuncio, read an excerpt from the Ex Code Ecclesiae – On Catholic Universities – John Paul II – Apostolic Constitution and made encouraging remarks in relation to the establishment of the first Catholic University project in Ethiopia. If you don’t mind, find the excerpt below:
‘Finally, I turn to the whole Church, convinced that
Catholic Universities are essential to her growth and to the development of Christian culture and human progress. For this
reason, the entire ecclesial community is invited to give its support to Catholic Institutions of higher education and to
assist them in their process of development and renewal. It is invited in a special way to guard the rights and freedom of
these Institutions in civil society, and to offer them economic aid, especially in those countries where they have more
urgent need of it, and to furnish assistance in founding new Catholic Universities wherever this might be necessary. My
hope is that these prescriptions, based on the teaching of Vatican Council II and the directives of the Code of Canon Law,
will enable Catholic Universities and other Institutes of higher studies to fulfill their indispensable mission in the new
advent of grace that is opening up to the new Millennium.’
As expected, the first Consultation, and the second on 9th of September 2006, mainly for the religious Congregations in Ethiopia, both of the consultations proved to be a very productive and an exhilarating exercise.
