The 150th anniversary of the foundation of the Society of African Missions (SAM) is being celebrated in 2006. The SAM was founded in Lyon (France), in the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Fourvière, on 8 December 1856, thanks to Bishop de Marion Brésillac who joined with a group of others in “consecrating themselves to the service of the missions”. The SAM, as explained by the international press agency Fides, is dedicated to the preaching of the Gospel and human and social promotion in Africa and in particular in the more abandoned countries of West Africa. It has contributed significantly to the birth and development of the existing Churches in Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and Niger. Apart from these countries, SAM missionaries are also working in Egypt the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya and Angola. The Society currently consists of over 900 members and some 150 students from Europe, America, Africa and Asia. To mark this jubilee year, officially opened on 8 December 2005, various celebrations and events are planned in the houses and communities of the SAM, in particular at Lyon, on 25 June, and at the motherhouse of the Society in Rome on 8 December.
