Pope Francis died on the morning of Monday (21), at the age of 88, in the Vatican. With his death, the Catholic Church officially begins the period of the vacant headquarters – when the San Pietro chair remains not occupied until the choice of a new pontiff. Among the names listed to be successful, the cardinal gets the strength Fridolin Ambongongo BesunguArchbishop of Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Who is Cardinal Fridolin Ambongongo Besungu?
Capuchin and graduated in moral theology in Rome, Ambongo is 65 years old and built a trajectory marked with political and social activism. The cardinal was created by Francisco in 2019 and since then he joined the so called “C9”The group of cardinals who directly assists the Pope in the government of the Church.
In the African scenario, it is one of the most influential voices of the Church. The episcopal conferences of Africa and Madagascar (Secam), a function that has expanded its international projection. His firm performance in defense of human rights and against the exploitation of natural resources by foreign companies approached him to the social guidelines defended by the Argentine pontiff.
At the same time, Ambongo was critical for the recent Vatican decisions. In 2023, he negatively reacted to the affirmation that authorized the blessings to the same couples of sex in pastoral contexts, stating that the measure did not apply to African reality. Posture has strengthened its image of leaders capable of balanced loyalty to doctrine with regional autonomy.
In April 2024, he became the subject of judicial investigations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, accused of having incited the population to rebel and make seditious statements. The local church denied the accusations and interpreted the action as an attempt to intimidate the Congolese government.
With the approach of the Conclave, Fridolin Ambongongo Besungu emerges as a central figure in the debate on the future of the Church. Its election would not only represent the choice of an African Pope – something unprecedented since the fifth century – but also the continuity of a church focused on the outskirts of the world.
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Source: Terra
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