Organic pastoral solidarity

131. At the beginning of this Exhortation I pointed out that in announcing the convocation of the Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops I had in mind the promotion of "an or- ganic pastoral solidarity within the entire African territory and nearby Islands".250 I am pleased to say that the Assembly kept this objective firmly in view. Discussions at the Synod revealed the Bishops' readiness and generosity for this pastoral solidarity and for sharing their resources with others, even when they themselves needed missionaries.