The Archbishop of Abuja also told Crux that Africans see Catholicism in the West as a “Church in decline”.
Newsroom (02/11/2023 10:34, Gaudium Press) Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama of Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, and a participant in the Synod meetings that have just ended, told the Catholic news website Crux that “Africans see Catholicism in the West as a ‘Church in decline'”. In addition, he went so far as to say that world Catholicism is “moving towards Africa”.
Regarding the growth of the Church in Africa, the archbishop explained that traditional religious convictions such as “the belief in miracles and healings, the love for biblical stories and proverbs, a holistic view of being, [and] the mission of the Church” are maintained on this continent, and that the Bible continues to have authority as a sacred text of divine origin and traditional practices, such as exorcism, remain strong.
He also said that “the enduring importance of traditional concepts of family and morality” are important in Africa, and that “this largely protects Africans from the cultural upheavals that the West is going through. He also said that in Africa there is still a “strong community dimension”, so that “life means that individuals are responsible for each other, because, as St. Paul writes, ‘if one member suffers, all suffer together, and if one member is honored, all rejoice with him'”.
The Nigerian archbishop does not hesitate to affirm that “Christians in the North have gifts of the Spirit to share with the South, but they must learn to assume a posture of reception” and stated with healthy pride: “We can move forward if we follow the light that shines from the dark continent”.
With information from Crux.
