{"id":139941,"date":"2025-04-22T21:41:02","date_gmt":"2025-04-22T21:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history"},"modified":"2025-05-08T21:57:52","modified_gmt":"2025-05-08T21:57:52","slug":"africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history","title":{"rendered":"Africans root for first Black pope in modern history"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Kenya. <\/strong><\/span>Africans are hoping one of their own could become the first Black pope in modern history and build on Francis\u2019s legacy of championing the developing world, though the chances of that happening appear slim.<\/p>\n

A continent where religion permeates most aspects of private and public life, Africa is where the Roman Catholic Church is growing fastest, according to Vatican figures published last month.<\/p>\n

African Catholics attending services honouring Francis after his death on Monday said a Black pope was long overdue.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo have a Black pope would revive the Christian faith in Africa and change people\u2019s views of Africa, by showing that an African can hold this office,\u201d said Charles Yapi, a Catholic priest in Ivory Coast\u2019s commercial capital Abidjan.<\/p>\n

Scholars researching the early Church have cited evidence that some first millennium popes were born in North Africa or were of African descent, though details are scant. One or more may have been Black.<\/p>\n

Some African contenders\u2019 names have been circulating, but Vatican insiders are sceptical that any of them have a realistic chance of becoming pope, partly because none have been subjected to the same level of public scrutiny as most Western cardinals.<\/p>\n

That is a potential concern for an institution that has been shaken by devastating scandals in recent decades. In any case, forecasting who will become pope is notoriously tricky.<\/p>\n

Among African clerics tipped as potential popes are Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, 76, Democratic Republic of Congo\u2019s Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, 65, the archbishop of Kinshasa, and Ivory Coast\u2019s Cardinal Ignace Bessi Dogbo, 63.<\/p>\n

Africa boasted about 20% of the world\u2019s Catholics in 2023 and added 9 million worshippers the previous year.<\/p>\n

Choosing Turkson as pope would be a fitting recognition of that growth and also inspire African prelates, said Archbishop John Bonaventure Kwofie in Accra, who has known Turkson since the 1970s and was ordained by him as a bishop.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough it\u2019s something I cannot bet on, as the cardinals who will make the selection will be led by the Holy Spirit, it will be good to have him as the next pope as this will motivate all bishops on the continent,\u201d Kwofie told Reuters.<\/p>\n

However, some clerics said that a pope\u2019s values mattered more than his home country or race.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe pray that the Holy Spirit will give the Church a good pastor, one who will guide the Church towards the true God,\u201d said Congolese priest Josue-Misael Mobatila Kwilu after attending a service for Francis in Kinshasa.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving a pope from Africa or another continent is not up to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conservative views<\/b><\/p>\n

The elevation of an African cardinal to the papal throne would be widely interpreted as a continuation of Francis\u2019s track record of standing up for the poor and oppressed, migrants and civilians fleeing war.<\/p>\n

Congo\u2019s President Felix Tshisekedi recalled Francis\u2019s words during a 2023 visit to Congo: \u201cTake your hands off the Democratic Republic of Congo. Take your hands off Africa! Stop suffocating Africa: it is not a mine to be exploited nor a land to be plundered.\u201d<\/p>\n

These words were \u201cforever engraved in the collective memory of the Congolese people\u201d, Tshisekedi said on Monday.<\/p>\n

However, an African pope would not necessarily embrace Francis\u2019s more socially progressive positions, such as approving the blessing of same-sex couples on a case-by-case basis, which has irked Africa\u2019s overwhelmingly conservative faithful.<\/p>\n

An African pope would be clear that same-sex relationships are \u201cnot part of our culture\u201d and \u201cwould not allow himself to be influenced to accept it\u201d, said Yapi, the Ivorian priest.<\/p>\n

The issue could cut both ways as many of the cardinals who will elect the next pope in a conclave may be wary of picking someone whose views deviate sharply from those of Francis.<\/p>\n

Turkson, who has been discussed as a possible pope for over a decade, rose from humble beginnings as the fourth of 10 children in a mining town. He combines a long pastoral background in Ghana with hands-on experience leading several Vatican offices, including the Church body that promotes social justice, human rights and world peace. He also shares Francis\u2019s interest in issues like climate change and inequality.<\/p>\n

In a 2013 interview with CNN, Turkson linked clerical abuse to homosexuality, saying the Church in Africa was unlikely to be hit by the scandals seen elsewhere \u2013 a view that drew widespread criticism.<\/p>\n

More recently he has softened his tone, telling the BBC in 2023 that it was \u201ctime to begin education\u201d on homosexuality and suggesting it was \u201cnot completely alien to Ghanaian society\u201d.<\/p>\n

Congo\u2019s Ambongo, a prominent voice for peace in a nation ravaged by wars and insurgencies, was made a cardinal by Francis in 2019. The pope appointed him in 2020 to the Council of Cardinals, a cabinet of papal advisers Francis convened on a regular basis.<\/p>\n

However, Ambongo opposed Francis\u2019s 2023 approval of blessings for gay couples, saying doing so would expose the Church to scandals.<\/p>\n

Ivory Coast\u2019s Dogbo, the archbishop of Abidjan, was made a cardinal in December 2024 and his visibility has increased as a result.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving cardinals from every part of the world truly translates the universality of the Church,\u201d he told Reuters at the time.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Kenya<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Kenya. Africans are hoping one of their own could become the first Black pope in modern history and build on Francis\u2019s legacy of championing the developing world, though the chances of that happening appear slim. A continent where religion permeates most aspects of private and public life, Africa is where the Roman Catholic […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":139940,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,6],"tags":[544],"class_list":["post-139941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-files","tag-kenya"],"yoast_head":"\nAfricans root for first Black pope in modern history - kenya<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Africans are hoping one of their own could become the first Black pope in modern history and build on Francis\u2019s legacy o ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Africans root for first Black pope in modern history\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Africans are hoping one of their own could become the first Black pope in modern history and build on Francis\u2019s legacy o ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"kenya\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-22T21:41:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-08T21:57:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/kenya\/sites\/28\/2025\/04\/sm_1745343583.182469.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"479\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Africans root for first Black pope in modern history\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-22T21:41:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-08T21:57:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\"},\"wordCount\":884,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/kenya\/sites\/28\/2025\/04\/sm_1745343583.182469.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Kenya\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"files\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/kenya\/all-news\/africans-root-for-first-black-pope-in-modern-history\",\"name\":\"Africans root for first Black pope in modern history - 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