When faith raises up a cathedral

Construction work on the new Goma cathedral was continuing undelayed. On Thursday, November 23, 2017, the first lady of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Marie-Olive Lembe Kabila, visited the site of the building in the province of North Kivu.

A future place of worship under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the work was made possible by Olive Lembe Kabila who had mobilized some anonymous benefactors. The wife of the Head of State suggested that this cathedral be called "Cathedral Mama wa Amani," meaning in Swahili, the local language, referring to the Blessed Virgin Mary, "the Mother of peace and disarmament."

"At first, I did not have the money to start this project, but I launched it anyway. It is really in faith that I engaged in this project. Today, when I pass by here, I get goose bumps as I see the progression of the work, " she said during a visit to the site.

The ancient Goma cathedral had suffered enormous damage during the 2001 volcanic eruption. Since then, the city had never had a cathedral worthy of the name. It was therefore to give back to Goma a cathedral in her image that Olive Lembe Kabila privately invested in this "impressive" work.

Media Congo