Pope Leo XIV Appoints South Africa’s Cardinal Brislin to Vatican Dicastery for the Clergy

in South Africa following his transfer from the Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town in October 2024 

Cardinal Brislin’s Coat-of-Arms expresses his motto Veritas in Caritate – truth in love, taken from Ephesians 4:15. The center is the empty cross of the resurrected Christ, from which all life comes. The rising sun is the promise of eternal life.

The brown represents the dryness of certain parts of the Free State, where the Archbishop has his roots, and also represents life without Christ since fruitfulness and life come through the cross. This life is depicted by the people, the Acacia tree, the maize, the wheat, and the grapes – also representing the Western Cape and reminding us of the Body and Blood of Christ.

The Basotho hat reflects the majority of the people to whom the Cardinal ministered and also the “crown” of Kroonstad. The thistle represents the maternal roots of the South African Cardinal, namely Scotland. The shamrock represents the paternal roots of the Cardinal, namely, Ireland.

Other key Papal appointees to the Vatican Dicastery headed by Lazzaro Cardinal You Heung-sik are Luis Antonio Gokim Cardinal Tagle, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, Section for First Evangelization and New Particular Churches; Jean-Marc Noël Cardinal Aveline, Archbishop of Marseille in France, and Virgilio Cardinal do Carmo da Silva, Archbishop of Díli (Timor-Leste).

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Others are Frank Cardinal Leo, Archbishop of Toronto (Canada); José Tolentino Cardinal Calaça de Mendonça, Prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education; Mario Cardinal Grech, Secretary General of the General Secretariat of the Synod; Arthur Cardinal Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments amongst others.

Jude Atemanke is a Cameroonian journalist with a passion for Catholic Church communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Buea in Cameroon. Currently, Jude serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.