Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt; Apostolic Nuncio to Cameroon, has been received in Bamenda this 30th day of November 2023, by His Grace Andrew Nkea- Archbishop of Bamenda; the Bishop of the Diocese of Buea; Bishop Michael Bibi, Bishop Agapitus Nfon of Kumba Diocese , Bishop Aloysius Abangalo; Bishop of Mamfe amongst other Bishops in the country, religious and lay Faithful.
This visit comes at the eve of the celebration marking the 50th anniversary of St Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary in Bambui, an event which shall be graced by the Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt, Archbishops, Bishops, Priests, Religious and faithful from within and beyond the country.
During the warm welcome immersed with cultural displays, the Apostolic Nuncio to Cameroon expressed joy being amongst the Christians “I am very happy to be here. I will still be here even if it was further away. I am happy that my first visit outside of Yaoundé is to Bamenda. I bring the greetings of Pope Francis, his blessings and prayers to you. I come because I know you have suffered enough. And so it is right that the pope’s representative should come to where people need to see the pope’s closeness. I am a brother to you all. It is good to do this visit, to see how my brothers suffer in order to care for the faithful. It is worth it and even more because we are people of faith”.
Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt noted he will be spending some time with the people of God and the Christians of this community, to pray and share with them.
The celebration of the 50th anniversary of St Thomas Aquinas Major seminary, shall be celebrated at the Major Seminary in Bambui on the 1st of December 2023.