Double Jubilee of Ghana’s Cape Coast Archdiocese to Highlight Years of Faith and Service: Local Ordinary

Archbishop Palmer-Buckle revealed that the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) has endorsed the event as a celebration for the entire Church in Ghana, since all other dioceses were established from Cape Coast. 

“We are the great-grandmother of all the Catholic churches in Ghana,” he said. 

All 19 Dioceses, including the four metropolitan sees—Cape Coast, Accra, Kumasi, and Tamale—have been invited, and each Bishop is expected to attend with delegates.

Archbishop Palmer-Buckle also announced that Wilfrid Fox Cardinal Napier from South Africa has been appointed by Pope Leo XIV as the Papal Delegate to the occasion. 

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Cardinal Napier will deliver a special message from the Holy Father during the celebrations.

The Jubilee celebrations began with a candlelight procession on October 24, featuring prayers, rosaries, and hymns of thanksgiving through the principal streets of Cape Coast. 

Archbishop Palmer-Buckle urged Catholics to see the procession as a “spiritual journey,” citing Psalm 122:1: “I was glad when they said to me, let us go to the house of the Lord.” 

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The main Jubilee Mass is to take place on Saturday, October 25, starting at 9 a.m. at St. Augustine’s College. 

The Eucharistic celebration will bring together over 10,000 faithful and about 350 Priests. 

“We shall thank God for 75 years of His goodness to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cape Coast and the entire Church in Ghana,” he said.

At the end of the Mass, pilgrims will renew their baptismal promise “to let their light shine wherever they are for the next five years ahead.”

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Reflecting on the Cape Coast’s growth, the Archbishop highlighted the Archdiocese's 250 educational institutions, its six health facilities, and media apostolates, including Pax FM, CAFDIL TV, and Maryba TV. 

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“It is undeniable that the Church has paid her dues to society through these social services,” he said, paying tribute to the early missionaries and urging the faithful to “improve upon their legacies.”

He said that by 2030, the Catholic Church in Ghana will mark 150 years since its inception at Elmina, encouraging early preparations for that historic celebration.

Credit: CAFDIL TV

Archbishop Palmer-Buckle reminded young people that they are not merely the Church’s future but its present.

“They are gifts God has given us now. Let us cherish and train them in our Catholic faith so they can stand firm. We are all called to let our light shine, for we have been sent with a mission—to make our light shine in the corner we find ourselves,” the Catholic Archbishop said.

Fr. Francis Madonna Ayaric of Cape Coast Catholic Archdiocese contributed to this story.