Schismatic Roman Catholic priests, who left the church to marry, are now asking for an “African pope” to lead them.
The priests say they regret their former church is “allergic” to
change.
They believe priestly celibacy is neither rooted in the teachings of Jesus nor in the work of his apostles, most of whom were married.
And they insist celibacy does not work in an African context.
The movement is led by former Zambian Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who at 71 married a Korean acupuncturist in a 2001 celebration sponsored by the Unification Church and the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon.
Excommunicated in 2006 for consecrating four married priests as bishops, Milingo has ties to rebel churches in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia and South Africa.
An estimated 300,000 members are affiliated with Milingo’s movement across Africa. The group, loosely known as the Reformed Catholic Churches, resembles the Catholic Church in belief and ritual and is led by young clerics, many of whom were educated in Vatican-approved seminaries.
“We respect Pope Francis and pray for him, but we are not Roman Catholics,” said Bishop Peter Njogu, a former Catholic priest, now married and working in Kenya. “We want a leader similar to the pontiff who will understand our situation. That leader has to be an African.”
Pope John Paul II summoned Milingo to the Vatican, where he promised not to see his wife anymore. After the separation, his wife, Anna Sung, went on a hunger strike in protest. They reunited in 2006.
Milingo’s marriage gave a global dimension to the calls for married priests, and led dozens of clergy to come forward and reveal their secret marriages and families.
Angry at the betrayal, Catholic bishops expelled them and strongly warned Catholics against them.
In marrying, the priests believe they are Africanizing Christianity. They are also open to shunned practices such as polygamy and women’s leadership, Njogu said.
“We must realize, for example, the lack of children is the worst evil for man in the African tradition,” said Njogu, who teaches comparative theology at Kenya Methodist University.
In 2011, Njogu established the Restored Universal Apostolic Church and was installed as the church’s bishop by Milingo in a ceremony attended by 15 other married priests.
“Every Sunday, we see new people coming to our churches,” Njogu said. “They come voluntarily and want to become our members. I think this is the future of Christianity.”
Njogu, like many in the movement, believes celibacy is too onerous a vow. He hopes Pope Francis can change the law.
“The young priests find it very difficult to stay celibate, and many are in favor of marriage,” he said. “When a priest is married, he is able to serve the church better. This also makes their lives easier.”
Bishop Mark Kambalazaza, a former Malawian Roman Catholic priest, said many priests who take the vow of celibacy actually live with mistresses.
In March, the Rev. Anthony Musaala, a Ugandan Catholic priest, shocked the church when he wrote a letter published in the Ugandan press saying that many bishops and priests in the country had failed the celibacy test. He was immediately suspended for urging open dialogue about priests marrying.
“My forecast is that we will have a few more years of Catholic self-deception, perhaps 10, telling ourselves and the world that everything is OK, nothing serious,” Musaala wrote in the letter. “Then the scandals will surface.”
They believe priestly celibacy is neither rooted in the teachings of Jesus nor in the work of his apostles, most of whom were married.
And they insist celibacy does not work in an African context.
The movement is led by former Zambian Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who at 71 married a Korean acupuncturist in a 2001 celebration sponsored by the Unification Church and the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon.
Excommunicated in 2006 for consecrating four married priests as bishops, Milingo has ties to rebel churches in Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia and South Africa.
An estimated 300,000 members are affiliated with Milingo’s movement across Africa. The group, loosely known as the Reformed Catholic Churches, resembles the Catholic Church in belief and ritual and is led by young clerics, many of whom were educated in Vatican-approved seminaries.
“We respect Pope Francis and pray for him, but we are not Roman Catholics,” said Bishop Peter Njogu, a former Catholic priest, now married and working in Kenya. “We want a leader similar to the pontiff who will understand our situation. That leader has to be an African.”
Pope John Paul II summoned Milingo to the Vatican, where he promised not to see his wife anymore. After the separation, his wife, Anna Sung, went on a hunger strike in protest. They reunited in 2006.
Milingo’s marriage gave a global dimension to the calls for married priests, and led dozens of clergy to come forward and reveal their secret marriages and families.
Angry at the betrayal, Catholic bishops expelled them and strongly warned Catholics against them.
In marrying, the priests believe they are Africanizing Christianity. They are also open to shunned practices such as polygamy and women’s leadership, Njogu said.
“We must realize, for example, the lack of children is the worst evil for man in the African tradition,” said Njogu, who teaches comparative theology at Kenya Methodist University.
In 2011, Njogu established the Restored Universal Apostolic Church and was installed as the church’s bishop by Milingo in a ceremony attended by 15 other married priests.
“Every Sunday, we see new people coming to our churches,” Njogu said. “They come voluntarily and want to become our members. I think this is the future of Christianity.”
Njogu, like many in the movement, believes celibacy is too onerous a vow. He hopes Pope Francis can change the law.
“The young priests find it very difficult to stay celibate, and many are in favor of marriage,” he said. “When a priest is married, he is able to serve the church better. This also makes their lives easier.”
Bishop Mark Kambalazaza, a former Malawian Roman Catholic priest, said many priests who take the vow of celibacy actually live with mistresses.
In March, the Rev. Anthony Musaala, a Ugandan Catholic priest, shocked the church when he wrote a letter published in the Ugandan press saying that many bishops and priests in the country had failed the celibacy test. He was immediately suspended for urging open dialogue about priests marrying.
“My forecast is that we will have a few more years of Catholic self-deception, perhaps 10, telling ourselves and the world that everything is OK, nothing serious,” Musaala wrote in the letter. “Then the scandals will surface.”