An Interview with Fr. Roberto Toni, prior provincial of the Italian province

Carmelite Fr. Roberto Toni serves as the prior provincial of the Italian province. He reflected on the establishment of Carmel in the Congo by the province he now leads and what he sees as the future. Here is a summary of what he wrote in response to questions from CITOC.

Fifty years ago, the province established Carmel in what was then called Zaire. Before that it was known as the Belgian Congo. Today it is the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Italian province was then known as the Roman province.

With the Second Vatican Council, a new missionary spirit developed in the Order. In 1973 when the Carmelites went to then Zaire, only eight years had passed since the conclusion of the Council. The spirit of a new Spring for the Church was in the air. The entire Roman Province, corresponding to Central Italy, mobilized with great enthusiasm for that first presence. Three missionaries went: Fr. Arcangelo Colandrea, Fr. Ubaldo Pani, and Fr. Domenico Fiore (two of whom are still living). These first seeds of Carmel settled on around the village of Jiba, in Ituri, in the northeastern part of the great country, near Lake Albert, in the diocese of Bunia.

Through the periodical La Madonna del Carmelo and the work of the person in charge, Fr. Riccardo Palazzi, the whole Province, friars, nuns, sisters, tertiaries and laity of the shrines and parishes, was regularly informed of the mission's growth steps. It was also helpful in the collecting of funds and the sending of materials that would be useful in the mission.

When the Italian province of the Carmelites was established in 1991, the mission in the Congo had developed considerably. It became the patrimony and commitment for the whole Carmelite Family that made up the new province. It was also an occasion for strengthening the unity through a common effort.

After Bunia, there was Butembo, then Nioka, then the foundation in the capital, Kinshasa, and finally, not so many years ago, Kisangani. Today it is a provincial commissariat with 11 houses, about 74 confreres, including novices. Some of these Carmelites are in the communities in Italy to help our presence these or to specialize in studies. The "mission" itself has become, in turn, "missionary."

Congo opened our minds to the universality of the Church and Carmel; in that same year, 1973, Carmelite Fr. Lauro Negri departed from Veneto for Latin America. Colombia, along with the Congo, became a "window" of new Carmelite life in the world.

There is still a long way to go, but we have seen the Carmelite charism entering African and Congolese culture, the blossoming of vocations, and the need for discernment. There is the challenge of evangelical coherence and a charity that goes beyond mere welfare. This window on a rich, joyful, and troubled Africa has allowed us, the brothers in Italy, Colombia, and now Romania to come into contact with and share the dramas of these last thirty years in Congo. There have been wars, massacres, exoduses of refugees within the country. All of this breaks through the door of our indifference and calls us to "bear one another's burdens," to reflect on why there is so much injustice, to ask what we can do.

The Church in Congo, with its youth and challenges, has known Carmel and, through the mouth of the bishops, asks us to "authentically be we are." Even simple people can discern by looking at us whether we are just going through the motions or are true believers who are credible. From us they for evangelical radicalness in the witness of fraternity, prayer, and humble and selfless service. It would make no sense to accommodate ourselves or to become implementers of works without quality and soul. The Congolese people have a strong sense of spirituality. But the consumer mentality, for which everything has a price, as well as secularism, are making their way into the hearts and practices of the people, especially of the youth. Hence the corruption, the conflicts, the disintegration of a humanity full of values that are in danger of being lost. As Carmelites, as contemplative brothers and prophets, we have much to witness to.

If we follow Christ Jesus, there is no alternative to his gift of life. Today, fifty years after that beginning, our Province asks: what does the Lord ask of us who are called to live following Him?