“How is the leadership of the Catholic Church in Africa serving as a mirror for the corrupt politicians in the wider society so that they can look at what is happening in the Catholic Church and see an example of how they can lead,” the Nigerian Theologian said.
He underlined the need to pay attention to the quality of men and women chosen to lead Catholic institutions including hospitals, universities, and Catholic social agencies.
“We need to have transformative servant leaders who can lift our gaze beyond imprisoning walls of the present and serve as beacons of light that our people can look toward and find the path that God is calling them and do it with courage and determination,” Fr. Stan said.
The Research Professor in the Department of Catholic Studies at DePaul University described the election of Pope Leo XIV as the highlight of the journey the Church embarked on with Pope Francis through the late Holy Father’s illness in the period of Lent.
“It has been a period of uncertainty, sorrow, pain and anguish following the death of our beloved Pope Francis. But hope rises, reminding us Jesus Christ is the Lord,” Fr. Stan said, and added, “The period of sickness of the Holy Father, his death, the period of mourning, the reflection of the Church, then the election that was swift, and the emergence of the new Pope, all tie together to the Holy Year where we are pilgrims of Hope following the risen Lord.”
The PACTPAN official described Pope Francis’ passing on and the Conclave that followed as having been “a Church going through Golgotha.” He said, “This is what I see in the rhythm that we have gone through. The cycle of suffering, pain, sorrow and resurrection and now we thank God the Church has come to this point coming into the future with Pope Leo.”
On what the new Pope should know about the Church in Africa, the Nigerian Catholic Priest who also serves as the producer and host of African Catholic Voices, a podcast service of PACTPAN said, “For the first time, we have a Pope who is a global citizen. He is well-travelled having visited more than 50 countries already. He understands the way the world and Africa functions.”
Cautioning against having impractical expectations from the newly appointed Holy Father, Fr. Stan said, “It is not so much what the Pope will do for Africa, but rather what we theologians and Church leaders in Africa want to do for Africa that Pope Leo can support as our spiritual leader and an ally.”
He added, in reference to an interview that EWTN had with Michael Felix Cardinal Czerny on the election of Pope Leo XIV, “I agree with Cardinal Czerny totally. The idea of a global Church is a myth. Everything is what happens locally.”
“The new Pope is not going to just wave a magic wand for everything to function well in the Church all over the world. He is one man. He needs our help and our input,” the PACTPAN official said, and added that Theologians in Africa always support the Holy Father in his pontificate.
