Ghanaian Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson is depicted in an image, waiting to exchange Christmas greetings with Pope Francis in Vatican City on December 21, 2013. The photo captures this moment, showing the cardinal and the Pope engaging in this traditional exchange of well wishes. This image was taken by Franco Origlia/Vatican Pool/Getty Images.
Within the context of a pope hailing from Africa, some analysts suggest that now is an opportune time to acknowledge and support Christians who have demonstrated remarkable resilience in the face of severe persecution. While openly practicing Christianity may not come with significant challenges in places like Texas, the recent tragic events in the Democratic Republic of Congo paint a starkly different picture. In a country where a vast majority, 95%, identify as Christians, Islamist rebels mercilessly attacked and slaughtered 70 individuals in a church, highlighting the brutal persecution faced by some Christian communities.
In a disturbing revelation shared with Fox News Digital in 2023, it was disclosed that over 52,000 Christians have fallen victim to brutal attacks, being mercilessly butchered or hacked to death simply for their faith since 2009 in Nigeria. These shocking statistics were reported by Intersociety, a civil society group based in Onitsha, shedding light on the ongoing dangers faced by Christians in certain regions.
Yet Nigeria in 2023 was shown to have the largest number of practicing Catholics in the world – worshipers who attend Mass – by a long way, followed by another African country, Kenya. This is according to Georgetown University’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), which reported “weekly or more frequent Mass attendance is highest among adult self-identified Catholics in Nigeria at 94% followed by Kenya at 73%.”
Greg Tobin offered his take on the preferred candidates. First, “Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, DRC, Archbishop of Kinshasa, is a leading African candidate, though he is not considered strong or consistent in his theological teachings, (and) he is a vocal opponent of the dictatorial leadership of his country.”
Pope Francis waves to the public as he leads the Mass at Martyrs Stadium in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo on Feb. 2, 2023. (Chris Milosi/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
And “Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appia Turkson, from Ghana, [from] 2020 onward served Pope Francis as head of a multi-group task force to monitor widespread effects of (the) coronavirus pandemic on churches and Catholic institutions. Turkson is a viable choice, widely respected, liked by Pope Francis, and theologically and ‘politically’ palatable to Western prelates, but his visibility has dimmed in recent years. His election would be a major surprise along the same line that Bergolio’s (Pope Francis) was in 2013.”
Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, center, attends a prayer at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Victories in Dakar on Dec. 4, 2023. (Guy Peterson/AFP via Getty Images)
Tobin pointed out that Guinea’s Cardinal Robert Sarah, being 80, is “ineligible to vote in the conclave due to age. A distinct long-shot, due to age and sense his time has passed.”
One final note: Should the next pope come from Africa, he won’t be the first. Victor I, from North Africa, served as the pontiff between 189-199, and was closely followed by Miltiades and Gelasius I.
