Catholics across Africa are seeking a revitalized church under Pope
Francis that is "true to its call to the Gospel and not a power
structure," the archbishop-president of one of the continent's national
bishops' conferences said.
"We don't need a power structure," said Archbishop Berhaneyesus
Souraphiel, head of Ethiopia's Addis Ababa archdiocese and the country's
conference of bishops.
"That's why the Papal States were given away," Souraphiel said,
referring to the vast Italian landholdings controlled by the papacy
until the 19th century. The Vatican should be a "moral voice in the
world [that is] credible, whether here in the States or in other parts
of the world," he said.
Souraphiel spoke Oct. 25 in an exclusive interview with NCR during
a luncheon hosted by the Washington nonprofit Catholics in Alliance for
the Common Good. The archbishop toured several U.S. cities in late
October to garner support for a planned new Catholic university in his
archdiocese, which encompasses Ethiopia's capital.
Souraphiel said Pope Francis is drawing particular praise from
Africans for his focus on migration issues, especially his statements
regarding the Italian island of Lampedusa.
Located off Italy's southern coast, the island is the intended
destination for migrants and refugees from Africa who sometimes cross
the Mediterranean in dangerously overcrowded or unworthy vessels.
An October study
by the pan-European migrant network Migreurop estimated that
approximately 20,000 people have died in such crossings since the 1990s.
Francis visited Lampedusa on his first visit as pope outside Rome on
July 8 and has on several occasions criticized the world's response to
migration issues.
In a speech Oct. 3, the pope said the world's economic system is "inhuman" and treats people unfairly.
Souraphiel said he first met the pontiff during a trip to Rome about
two weeks ago and prayed with him for the victims of the sea crossings.
"[The pope] is touching all Africans because he was there in
Lampedusa before the accident," Souraphiel said. "He went there to visit
purposefully. Now, the president of the European Union is going, prime
ministers are going -- more attention is given to the whole issue of
migration because of the Holy Father."
Souraphiel said across his continent, Africans "have great respect
and great love for the Holy Father because of the emphasis he's putting
on the poor, on the migrants, on the disabled, and on the simplicity of
life."
The Ethiopian archbishop said he equates the pope very closely with his 13th-century namesake, St. Francis of Assisi.
Referring to the historical story that the saint became inspired to
found his religious order after hearing an apparition of Jesus tell him
to "repair the church," Souraphiel said the saint was asked to repair
"not the physical structure, but to revive the church."
"I think that's one goal the Holy Father has -- to revive the church
from all angles," Souraphiel said. "St. Francis was asked by the Lord to
revive the church, to renew the church, to be near to the poor, and to
be near to nature."
Souraphiel's Addis Ababa archdiocese stretches over the central
quarter of Ethiopia and borders Sudan and South Sudan to the west and
Djibouti and Eritrea to the west. Ethiopia, thought to have been the
home of one of the earliest Christian communities, has a population that
is 63 percent Christian.
Catholics, however, make up less than 1 percent of that population,
with the majority -- approximately 44 percent -- saying they belong to
an Eastern Orthodox community. About 34 percent of the population
identifies as Muslim.
Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good hosted the luncheon Oct. 25
in conjunction with Friends of the Ethiopian Catholic University, a
D.C.-area group raising money for the project.
The group was founded by Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, the Vatican's
ambassador to the U.N. offices in Geneva and a former Vatican ambassador
to Eritrea and Ethiopia. Its co-chairs are Peter Allgeier, a former
Deputy U.S. Trade Representative, and Fred Rotondaro, the chair of
Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good.
Called the Ethiopian Catholic University of St. Thomas Aquinas, the
Addis Ababa university opened its academic programs in 2008 and
currently offers courses in social work, information technology and
medical technology.
The university is temporarily housed in the
archdiocesan cathedral while construction continues on academic
buildings, located on a 60-acre plot the Ethiopian government gave to
the project.
Souraphiel, the university's chancellor, said they hope to eventually
expand the university's academic programs to include natural sciences,
agriculture and ethics.