Missionaries from Africa Not “agents of rescue” to the West: Vatican Official

“Evangelisation must no longer be described in the language of conquest or superiority. Africa is not coming to solve the problems of the Church in the West, but to walk with her, as a sister, in shared service,” the Nigerian-born Vatican official said in his presentation that was titled, “The Church of the Sheaves: Africa’s Mission to itself and to the World in a Synodal Church”.

He explained that for Africa, the image of the sheaf as presented in the Psalms reflects the reality of a continent that once received the Christian Gospel through the self-giving mission of others, and that is now mature.

According to Archbishop Nwachukwu, Africa is a rapidly growing Church, and is responding to the pastoral needs of countries in the West that he says are experiencing “a profound demographic crisis.”

He said that the Church in the West, the forces of secularization, the dominance of consumerist values, and “the weakening of the religious imagination” have led to a decline in Priestly and Religious vocations.

The Secretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Evangelization said that in the West, Churches are being merged, parishes are being served by a single Priest across multiple communities, Seminaries are closing, and monastic houses are being sold.

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In contrast, he said, growth of the Church in Africa has been on an upward trajectory. “By the end of 2021, the global Catholic population had reached 1,375,852,000, an increase of 16,240,000 from the previous year. This growth was not evenly spread. Europe declined by 244,000, while Africa rose by 8,312,000. America followed with 6,629,000, Asia with 1,488,000, and Oceania with 55,000.”

He said that statistics make it clear that Africa is not merely a recipient of a mission but a source. “Her Seminaries are full, her vocations increasing, her communities vibrant,” he said about the Church in Africa.

In the West, he continued, African names are appearing in parish registers, Seminaries, and religious institutions.

Unfortunately, “resistance remains”, he lamented, adding that some Churches in the West are not ready for a coordinated response to their pastoral challenges.

“Some people cite cultural misalignment, others deny the very need for outside help,” he said, adding that in some places in the West, pastoral shortages are reframed as strategic innovations, suggesting that merged parishes and lay empowerment are signs of renewal, not decline. 

“Statistics do not lie,” the Vatican official said, and added, “To deny the pastoral need in the West is to ignore the facts. It is not humility, but avoidance. What is needed is not improvisation, but a coordinated response involving Episcopal Conferences, clear pastoral agreements, and structures of welcome and formation.” 

Archbishop Nwachukwu noted that to receive help from “the Church of the Sheaves” is not to lose dignity, but to deepen solidarity, adding, “The Church in the West must have the humility to recognize that welcoming missionary support from Africa or the younger Churches is not a sign of weakness but a recognition of mutual responsibility within the Body of Christ.”

“Collaboration is not substitution,” he clarified in his presentation on August 7, adding that the African Church evangelizing in the West does not seek “to replace, but to serve, not to dominate, but to share in the life of the vineyard.”

The Nigerian Catholic Church leader observed that what is required is a renewed ecclesial imagination, “one that sees mission not as movement from the powerful  to the poor, but as a reciprocal exchange of gifts, each Church giving according to her strength and receiving according to her need.”

The former Vatican diplomat, who had been serving as Apostolic Nuncio from November 2012 till he was appointed Secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization in March 2023 said that Africa’s pastoral vitality must now be shared “not as triumphalism, but as stewardship.”

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Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor's Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya's Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.