Where will the next pope come from? Analysts say it could be Africa’s time

JOHANNESBURG: The adjacent pope could, and immoderate analysts accidental should, come from Africa. Christianity is booming here. More radical are becoming Catholics connected the continent than anyplace other successful the world, and millions of Africans proudly enactment existent to their religion contempt persecution and death.

"As successful erstwhile years, increases (in the fig of Catholics) were registered supra each successful Africa," the Vatican said successful October 2024, stating that 7,271,000 Africans joined the religion past year.

In 2023, the National Catholic Register reported "Home to less than 1 cardinal Catholics successful 1910, the Catholic colonisation of Africa is present 265 million."

Fox News Digital understands determination are 3 starring African papabile – "pope-able" candidates – Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, 65, from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, 76, from Ghana, and Guinea’s Cardinal Robert Sarah, who is viewed arsenic little apt owed his being 80 years old.

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Congolese Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

"Is it time? Certainly, it is an due clip for the person of the Catholic Church to travel from Africa for reasons that would seizure the world’s imagination," Greg Tobin, writer of the novels "Conclave" and "Council," and the biography of "Pope John XXIII, the Good Pope," told Fox News Digital. 

He added, "The Church has been increasing astatine an amazingly accelerated complaint implicit the past fewer decades successful the look of authorities absorption successful galore African nations, overt persecution of Christians and Catholics successful galore of the aforesaid nations, and convulsive opposition. Further, the leaders who person been appointed bishops and raised up arsenic cardinals are mostly highly educated, often successful the West."

Theologian and enforcement manager Jonathan Morris was besides affirmative astir the thought of a caller pope coming from Africa, telling Fox News Digital, "An African campaigner for pope is not lone absorbing from the position of practice of the fastest-growing portion of the Church, but besides due to the fact that an African campaigner could bring unneurotic divergent ideological groups of cardinals."

Catholic bishops be a wide for bid successful Goma, eastbound Democratic Republic of Congo, connected Jan. 28, 2024. (Alexis Huguet/AFP via Getty Images)

Morris, a Fox News contributor, added, "The African Church is, arsenic a whole, much blimpish than the European and American Church. But wouldn’t these Europeans and Americans emotion to beryllium portion of making history!" 

While this mostly blimpish attack from Africa’s papal candidates is simply a affirmative origin among accepted Catholics, galore inactive don’t privation a hardline pope, Gregory Tobin said. Tobin is close connected topic, arsenic helium is presently penning a caller book, "The Mysteries of the Conclave." The Conclave is the gathering successful the Vatican wherever the caller pope is chosen. Tobin said, "The (African) Church and its leaders tin travel crossed arsenic either ambivalent oregon precise hard conservatives – a mixed container that is simply a ‘turnoff’ for cardinal-electors who question much highly defined, wide theology and pastoral ‘style’ from the 1 whom they volition elect."

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Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson waits to speech Christmas greetings with Pope Francis astatine the Clementina Hall connected Dec. 21, 2013, successful Vatican City. (Franco Origlia/Vatican Pool/Getty Images)

Some analysts urge it’s the close moment, with a pope from Africa, to reward Christians for their spot contempt often horrific persecution. It’s casual to openly beryllium a Christian successful Texas. But precocious successful the DRC, wherever 95% of the colonisation are Christian, nary 1 stopped Islamist rebels from forcing 70 Christians into a religion wherever they were butchered, beheaded with machetes.

In 2023, Fox News Digital was told that much than 52,000 Christians "have been butchered oregon hacked to decease for being Christians" since 2009 successful Nigeria, according to Intersociety, a civilian nine radical based successful Onitsha.

Yet Nigeria successful 2023 was shown to have the largest fig of practicing Catholics successful the satellite – worshipers who be Mass – by a agelong way, followed by different African country, Kenya. This is according to Georgetown University’s Center for Applied Research successful the Apostolate (CARA), which reported "weekly oregon much predominant Mass attendance is highest among big self-identified Catholics successful Nigeria astatine 94% followed by Kenya astatine 73%."

Greg Tobin offered his instrumentality connected the preferred candidates. First, "Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, DRC, Archbishop of Kinshasa, is simply a starring African candidate, though helium is not considered beardown oregon accordant successful his theological teachings, (and) helium is simply a vocal hostile of the dictatorial enactment of his country."

Pope Francis waves to the nationalist arsenic helium leads the Mass astatine Martyrs Stadium successful Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo connected Feb. 2, 2023. (Chris Milosi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

And "Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appia Turkson, from Ghana, [from] 2020 onward served Pope Francis arsenic caput of a multi-group task unit to show wide effects of (the) coronavirus pandemic connected churches and Catholic institutions. Turkson is simply a viable choice, wide respected, liked by Pope Francis, and theologically and ‘politically’ palatable to Western prelates, but his visibility has dimmed successful caller years. His predetermination would beryllium a large astonishment on the aforesaid enactment that Bergolio’s (Pope Francis) was successful 2013."

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Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, center, attends a supplication astatine the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victories successful Dakar connected Dec. 4, 2023. (Guy Peterson/AFP via Getty Images)

Tobin pointed retired that Guinea’s Cardinal Robert Sarah, being 80, is "ineligible to ballot successful the conclave owed to age. A chiseled long-shot, owed to property and consciousness his clip has passed." 

One last note: Should the adjacent pope travel from Africa, helium won’t beryllium the first. Victor I, from North Africa, served arsenic the pontiff betwixt 189-199, and was intimately followed by Miltiades and Gelasius I.