Catholic Church - The African Mirror

Jan

2024

Pope says Africans are ‘special case’ when it comes to LGBT blessings

POPE Francis said in an interview published that Africans were a "special case" in the opposition of bishops and many other people in the continent to homosexuality. But he said he was confident that, except for Africans, critics of his decision to allow blessings for same-sex couples would eventually understand it. Blessings were allowed last month in a document called Fiducia Supplicans (Supplicating Trust), which has caused widespread debate in the Catholic Church, with particularly strong resistance coming from African bishops. "Those who protest vehemently belong to small ideological groups," Francis told Italian newspaper La Stampa. "A special case is Africans: for…

Jan

2024

By PHILIP PULLELLA

Pope defends same-sex blessings declaration, says it is misunderstood

WORLD

POPE Francis on Sunday defended a landmark decision approving blessings for same-sex couples, suggesting that those in the Catholic Church who have resisted it have jumped to "ugly conclusions" because they do not understand it. In a television interview, Francis made his first public comments since the December 18 declaration sparked widespread debate in the Church, with bishops in some countries, particularly in Africa, refusing to let their priests implement it. "Sometimes decisions are not accepted, but in most cases when decisions are not accepted, it is because they are not understood," Francis said in response to a specific question about the…

Jan

2024

By ANGE ADIHE KASONGO

Congo’s Catholic and Protestant churches demand inquiry into election issues

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's powerful Catholic bishops conference and Protestant churches demanded an independent inquiry be opened into irregularities and alleged legal violations observed during the December general elections. Congo's CENI election commission said on Sunday that President Felix Tshisekedi had secured more than 73% in the December 20 vote. But a large group of opposition candidates say the election was fraudulent and reject the provisional results. Hours-long delays, malfunctioning machines, and other issues led to an unscheduled extension of voting beyond Dec. 20 that independent observers said affected the credibility of the election In a joint statement the CENCO-ECC Catholic and Protestant churches,…

Jan

2024

By ISMAEL LOPEZ

Nicaragua arrests four more priests, intensifies crackdown on Catholic Church

WORLD

NICARAGUAN police detained four more priests, bringing the total number to 12 over the past three days, according to a high-ranking member of the Catholic Church with knowledge of the matter and local media. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, who has governed the Central American country since 2007, has started a crackdown on the Catholic Church and political opponents. Priests Mikel Monterrey, Gerardo Rodriguez and Raul Zamora, along with Monsignor Miguel Mantica, the son of one of the richest families in Nicaragua, were taken from their respective homes, the source said. "They're all from the Archdiocese of Managua," said the source,…

Nov

2023

By ORIANA BOSELLI, ANTONIO DENTI and PHILIP PULLELLA

Italy’s transgender women thank pope for making them feel ‘more human’

WORLD

THE run-down beach town of Torvaianica is about 35 kms (20 miles) south of the Vatican. But for transgender women who live there it had seemed light years away until a rapprochement with the Catholic Church that began during the COVID-19 lockdown and led to an invitation to have lunch with Pope Francis on Sunday. Claudia Victoria Salas, 55, and Carla Segovia, 46, both Argentinian, were in a group of transgender people, among about 1,200 poor and homeless people, who attended the lunch on the Church's World Day of the poor. To her surprise, Salas, a former sex worker, found…

Oct

2023

By The African Mirror

Catholic synod: the voices of church leaders in Africa are not being heard – 3 reasons why

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE Catholic church today is deeply polarised. This has created doctrinal fissures that are seemingly unbridgeable. There are many rumbling contestations on questions of identity, mission, faith and morality. Other questions touch on pastoral life, the nature of marriage and family life, denial of holy communion to divorced and remarried Catholics, clerical celibacy, authority in the church and reproductive rights. STAN CHU ILO, Research Professor, World Christianity and African Studies, DePaul University There is also a serious erosion of religious authority. Many church leaders have lost their credibility because of what Pope Francis calls the “leprosy of clerical sexual abuse”…

Jun

2023

By The African Mirror

Congo’s Catholic church questions government’s election preparations

NEWS

DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo's government is not on track with preparations for elections, the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (CENCO) said ahead of presidential and parliamentary polls later this year. The country's Catholic church has a long history of promoting democracy in the vast African country where organising elections has been complicated by financial and logistical problems, and where disputes over vote tampering have frequently caused widespread unrest. The election commission, CENI, has made insufficient progress creating a tripartite consultation framework between the majority, the opposition and civil society, and not invited international observers to ensure fair elections, CENCO said.…

May

2023

By PHILBERT GIRINEMA and AYENAT MERSIE

RWANDA: Church massacre survivors laud arrest

NEWS

ONCE the mass murder of their people began, Safari Jean Bosco and his mother, sister and brothers sought refuge in a Catholic church along with over 2,000 others packed into the building. Some prayed as hungry mothers strained to breastfeed. By April 12, 1994, six days after the genocide against Tutsis by an extremist Hutu regime began, militia surrounded the church. Soon afterward Bosco saw local police inspector Fulgence Kayishema in a meeting with the parish priest and others. "We thought the meeting... was addressing how to maintain our security," Bosco told Reuters. "It later came to our knowledge that…

Apr

2023

By The African Mirror

Poles march to defend Pope John Paul II against abuse cover-up accusations

RELIGION

AGNIESZKA PIKULICKA-WILCZEWSKA and KUBA STEZYCKI THOUSANDS of Poles marched through Warsaw and other cities to show their support for the late Pope John Paul II in the face of what they said were false allegations that he concealed child abuse in the Catholic Church. The ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party faces a tough election later this year, and other religious conservatives have said any calls to re-examine his legacy amount to a plot to discredit the nation's biggest moral authority. That argument resonates strongly with many older Poles who John Paul inspired to stand up to Communism in the 1970s and '80s, although…

Feb

2023

By The African Mirror

In DR Congo, Pope Francis will see a dynamic local Catholic Church

RELIGION

ROSE NGOY, BIRD STORY AGENCY AS Pope Francis began his first official visit to Africa this week, the 86-year-old head of the Catholic Church found himself in a country where a huge Catholic following plays a substantial role in the country's public services, including health and education. According to Vatican statistics, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has more than 52 million Catholic believers, out of a total population of 90 million. It is a flock that plays a significant role in Congolese society, not only spiritually but also in the provision of key services in a country that sprawls…