Pope Francis ministered to the poor in Kenya and kissed the feet of South Sudan\u2019s feuding rulers in a plea for peace. He urged Christians and Muslims to reconcile in the Central African Republic and condemned the exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And he elevated African church leaders who will help choose his successor \u2014 and shape the future of the church<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During Francis\u2019s 12-year papacy, the number of African Catholics jumped from about 176 million to 281 million,\u00a0according to Vatican statistics, even as church attendance stagnated or\u00a0declined\u00a0in other parts of the world. Today, 1 in 5 of the world\u2019s Catholics live on the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfrica is now the hope of the church \u2014 the seed of faith is sprouting here far more than in the Western world,\u201d said Stephen Anaedu, a parish priest in northwest Nigeria. \u201cWe used to have White Western missionaries coming here to teach us about religion. Now \u2026 Africans are going to evangelize the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Congo has the highest number of baptized Catholics globally at nearly 55 million, followed by Nigeria, with 35 million. Africa and Asia are the only regions where the number of priests is increasing, the Vatican says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Johnstone Kpilaakaa, a 25-year-old writer and practicing Catholic in the Nigerian city of Jos, said that young Africans are already \u201cactively shaping\u201d the future of the church, sometimes in unexpected ways. He said hundreds of Nigerians gather daily on X to pray the rosary together. Catholicism in Nigeria, he said, is characterized by its \u201cintensity\u201d \u2014 a Georgetown University\u00a0study\u00a0found 94 percent of the country\u2019s Catholics attend Mass at least once a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is the direction the church is headed,\u201d Kpilaakaa said. \u201cNot a one-way relationship where Africa receives, but a reciprocal one where Africa contributes spiritually, intellectually and prophetically.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a reflection of the church\u2019s demographic shifts, Francis nominated a\u00a0historically diverse pool of cardinals\u00a0\u2014 18 of the 135 eligible to vote in the upcoming conclave are from Africa, prompting speculation there could be an African pontiff for the first time in modern history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
No matter who is selected, this region will be pivotal in determining the direction of the faith. The church here tends to be substantially more conservative than in other parts of the world, and leaders from the continent clashed openly with Francis in recent years \u2014 particularly after he issued guidance in late 2023 that priests\u00a0could offer blessings to same-sex couples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Regional Catholic leaders released a public letter saying there would be no blessings for same-sex couples in Africa\u2019s churches because such unions are \u201ccontrary to the will of God\u201d and \u201cintrinsically disordered.\u201d The letter was spearheaded by Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, who is the archbishop of Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and among those who could possibly succeed Francis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other African cardinals thought to be in the running are Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Turkson, a close adviser to Francis,\u00a0including on climate issues, who is seen as more progressive; and Cardinal Robert Sarah, a staunch conservative from Guinea who has urged the church to stay true to its traditional teachings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anaedu, the Nigerian priest, said the Western focus on liberalism and \u201cthis idea that I want to live freely, at all costs,\u201d including when it comes to issues of same-sex marriage and abortion, has been \u201ccatastrophic for the church.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During last year\u2019s Catholic synod, there was a dialogue between Western and African bishops on LGBTQ+ issues, said Ebuka Mbanude, a Nigerian priest who serves in the Archdiocese of Washington, with one African bishop likening same-sex unions to \u201cwitchcraft.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A thornier question for church leaders in Africa, he added, is how to treat polygamous marriages. Catholic doctrine is clear that marriage should be between one man and one woman, he said, but it is still common in parts of Africa, including in Catholic communities, for men to marry more than one woman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As cardinals gather in the Sistine Chapel, Mbanude imagines they will seek a pope who \u201cis going to be open to the discussion and will guide the church through gray areas.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In meetings ahead of the conclave, many church leaders will emphasize the importance of \u201cclarity\u201d on church doctrine, including on issues such as same-sex blessings, said Paulinus I. Odozor, a priest and professor at the University of Notre Dame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The issue is important for many African leaders, Odozor said, who feel strongly that \u201cdoctrine should not be watered down.\u201d But he does not think African cardinals will necessarily vote as a bloc, noting that many factors weigh on the ultimate decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Francis, whatever his doctrinal differences with the African church, was adored across the continent, said Andreas Mac Mabior, a South Sudanese political analyst who leads the choir at the archdiocese in Juba, because he showed genuine care for the downtrodden and the forgotten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Francis visited the region five times over the course of his papacy,\u00a0leading massive, adoring crowds in prayer.\u00a0He spoke honestly about the damaging legacy of colonialism, lambasted elites who hoard wealth, advocated for migrants and waded into some of Africa\u2019s most intractable conflicts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even in his final weeks, Mabior noted, Francis was writing to the leaders of South Sudan, urging them to de-escalate tensions that have revived fears of a return to all-out war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe knew that South Sudan was in his heart,\u201d said Mabior, who met Francis when he visited the country in 2023. \u201cHe made us feel like we were part of the family of God.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Sudan\u2019s isolated Nuba Mountains, Tom Catena, an American Catholic missionary who runs one of only two functioning hospitals, was making the rounds in the malnutrition ward Monday when his wife stepped quietly into the room to break the news. \u201cYou need to get to Mass,\u201d he remembers her saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Catena recalled pausing for a moment to gather himself, then setting off to the hospital\u2019s small hillside chapel, where the soft rumble of drums mixed with the lilt of hymns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPope Francis died this morning,\u201d priest James William told worshipers, his voice steady but heavy. \u201cHe was a pope of peace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He recalled the extraordinary moment in 2019 when Francis knelt to kiss the feet of South Sudan\u2019s president and vice president, beseeching them to uphold their fragile truce. But it wasn\u2019t enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey didn\u2019t listen,\u201d William said.When Francis visited Kenya in 2015, he wanted to reach the heart of one of Nairobi\u2019s most impoverished slums, recalled Sister Mary Killeen, and was disappointed when logistics meant that he had to go to a less central area. When he saw that members of Parliament had taken seats reserved for locals, he reacted angrily.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe told them off and said, \u2018I came to meet the poor, and tomorrow you members of Parliament have your day,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cHe made us feel important and seen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Among those in the audience when Francis read the Mass in Kenya was a 32-year-old gay Anglican man. Just two years before, Francis famously said: \u201cIf a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those words, said the man, who was studying in theological college at the time, \u201cgave me an iota of hope.\u201d He spoke on the condition of anonymity because he fears for his safety in Kenya, which, like many African countries, criminalizes homosexual acts and has in recent years considered making the laws even harsher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But listening to Francis \u201cgave me hope in the future, which I wasn\u2019t always sure of,\u201d the young man said. \u201cHe showed me I could be authentic to myself \u2026 and also hold on to my faith.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Pope Francis ministered to the poor in Kenya and kissed the feet of South Sudan\u2019s feuding rulers in a plea for peace. He urged Christians and Muslims to reconcile in the Central African Republic and condemned the exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And he elevated African church leaders who will […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40408,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28,261],"tags":[7,30,262],"class_list":{"0":"post-40407","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-culture","8":"category-religion-2","9":"tag-apie-project","10":"tag-culture","11":"tag-religion-3"},"yoast_head":"\n