“Do not curse the dark; light a candle”: Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s Triple Jubilee Spotlights Synodal Leadership

Gratitude and humility at the heart of the celebration

In a preliminary address during the January 9 celebration, Archbishop Palmer-Buckle expressed gratitude to God for the milestones attained, acknowledging the grace and mercy that have sustained his ministry. 

He noted that he marked the anniversaries “with a great sense of humility,” situating personal achievement firmly within God’s providence and the Church’s shared mission.

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

That posture of humility was amplified in the day’s homily, which framed the Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s life and ministry as a gift to be celebrated not for fame, but for fidelity.

Homily: Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s anniversaries through Scripture

In his homily, Fr. Patrick Godfred Appiah drew from the day’s first reading (1 John 5:5–13) to offer a scriptural lens through which to interpret the triple anniversaries of Archbishop Palmer-Buckle.

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

“The commemoration of these triple anniversaries is not just a mere marking of dates but rather celebration of the gift of life, celebration of the heart of a shepherd and then celebration of the staff of Episcopacy,” Fr. Appiah said.

The member of the Clergy of Cape Coast Archdiocese who serves as Headmaster of St. Augustine’s College of the Metropolitan See described Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s diamond jubilee as “a seed of grace that has carried a library of wisdom in his 75years.”

He added that “the Archbishop’s 49 years of priestly service is the foundation of his leadership.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Fr. Appiah identified three essential elements of witness in the Johannine text – Water, Blood, and Spirit – and aligned them with the Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s milestones: water with the birthday commemoration, blood with the Priestly anniversary, and spirit with the Episcopal anniversary. 

From this synthesis flowed his pastoral exhortation: “We must keep our gaze on the Son of God so as to (credibly) bear testimony to God.”

Synodality made tangible: Touching the ‘untouched’

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Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Turning to the Gospel, Fr. Appiah highlighted Jesus’ compassionate encounter with the leper, reading it through the lens of the deliberations around the Synod on Synodality, the multi-year XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, which the late Pope Francis officially inaugurated in 2021 and later extended to 2024. 

“Jesus out of compassion and the spirit of Synodality touched the leper to cleanse him,” the Ghanaian Catholic Priest since 2005 said, noting that the leper was both a social and religious outcast. 

Jesus’ action, he stressed, models a Church willing to draw near. “Jesus demonstrated to get closer to the people we serve in the spirit of Synodality –– Communion, Participation and Mission,” Fr. Appiah said, highlighting the theme of the Synod on Synodality.

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

He extended the metaphor inward, reminding Clergy and members of Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life (ICLSAL) of the human condition: “just as the leper was contaminated by leprosy we too are isolated because of sin.”

“We were not created to live in isolation but to live in communion with God, our neighbours and creation at large,” Fr. Appiah added in his homily during the January 9 celebration.

Learning from a synodal shepherd

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Addressing the gathered Clergy and ICLSAL members directly, Fr. Appiah urged them to draw lessons from the Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s decades of service. 

The Ghanaian Catholic Priest praised what he called a “pragmatic Synodal style” evident across Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s Priestly and Episcopal ministry.

“We cannot journey together in Synodality if we are not ready to make our hands dirty,” he warned, and added, “For to be a synodal leader is to be like Christ who touched the untouched and outcast –– the lepers.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

He continued, “Now is the time to pull down the dividing wall of prejudice. … A synodal church must listen to the cry of the people.”

Mission, he went on to say, is inseparable from encounter. “The goal of our Christian life is not just salvation but also make meaningful encounter with one another in the spirit of Synodality,” Fr. Appiah said. 

He pointed to the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19–20) as “a vivid exemplification of the life and ministry of the Archbishop,” and urged Clergy and women and men Religious to make that mandate “part of our daily mission.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Fidelity over fame, sacrifice over comfort

Fr. Appiah returned to the Gospel image with a striking reversal. “Jesus exchanged position with the leper in the senses that the leper who was once excluded from the community by the touch of Jesus was restored and gained the inclusion right in the community,” he said, linking that exchange to Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s willingness to give himself across Ghanaian Episcopal Sees, first as Local Ordinary of Koforidua Diocese following his consecration in January 1993, then Accra Archdiocese after he was transferred there in March 2005, and now Cape Coast Archdiocese, where he was installed in July 2018.

“Our Archbishop has really taught us by this significant milestone celebrations that, the Yes we said during our ordinations and final profession must be renewed every morning,” Fr. Appiah further said, quoting St. Augustine: “we are called to be faithful and not famous.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Leadership, he said, demands endurance. “A leader is one who is ready to suffer for the people. We should realize that fidelity is a marathon and not a spring,” he said. 

Prayer, Fr. Appiah insisted, is the wellspring of Synodality: “To walk the path of Synodality must necessary flow from prayer,” he reiterated.

He appealed for shared responsibility, saying, “We all need to continue to pray for our Archbishop and not just congratulate and applaud him but collaborate with him and endeavour to serve with a renewed zeal so one day we all have a share in God’s kingdom.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

A message for 2026: Light, generosity, and sacrifice

In his concluding remarks, Archbishop Palmer-Buckle offered three counsels for the New Year 2026. “Do not Curse the dark; light a candle and brighten your corner,” he said.

“Share your light with others. Be generous to share your light with those who are in the dark,” the 75-year-old Ghanaian Catholic Archbishop said.

He urged concrete commitment, saying, “Make a little self-sacrifice for Mother Ghana. Make self-sacrifice for the Church you are serving. Make a self-sacrifice at the mission house, at the convent and at the community you live so to make the place a better one.”

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

Celebration continues in fraternity

The celebration concluded at the Seminary’s refectory with the cutting of an anniversary cake, time with Archbishop Palmer-Buckle, and a shared dinner – an embodied sign of communion among those who serve together.

Credit: Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Coast/Ghana/Fr. Francis Madonna-Ayaric

For Catholics in Ghana, across Africa, and around the world, Archbishop Palmer-Buckle’s triple jubilee offers more than a milestone moment. It presents a living catechesis on Synodality – leadership rooted in prayer, closeness to the marginalized, fidelity over fame, and a missionary generosity that lights candles rather than cursing the dark.

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