(LifeSiteNews) — One of the most prominent cardinals in Africa believes the reason clergy on his continent adamantly opposed Pope Francis’ support for blessing homosexual couples is because they viewed it as a form of “Western imperialism.”
In an interview with French-language Catholic television channel KTO on Sunday, Congolese Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo explained that Fiducia Supplicans was perceived as “cultural colonization” because it called for “practices that are considered normal in the West (being) imposed on other peoples.”
“We had just come out of the first session of the Synod on Synodality, and we’re now waiting for the second session,” he said. “All these questions we raised during the first session of the Synod; we’re going to come back to them, and we would have gained a lot by waiting for the end of the second session and mature this kind of subject in a spirit of synodality.”
“Personally, I think that what surprised and shocked us the most was the way in which the text was published,” Ambongo added. “I believe that if we had consulted beforehand, if we had analyzed Fiducia Supplicans in the spirit of synodality, perhaps we could have presented it in a different form and with a different tone, taking into account the sensitivities of others.”
Ambongo is the president of the Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM). He is also the Archbishop of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. One of Francis’ closest advisers, Ambongo has served as a member of his Council of Cardinals “C-9” since October 2020.
Ambongo, 64, announced in letter issued January 11 that SECAM would not be implementing Fiducia Supplicans after he came to an “agreement” with Pope Francis.
“We, the African bishops, do not consider it appropriate for Africa to bless homosexual unions or same-sex couples because, in our context, this would cause confusion and would be in direct contradiction to the cultural ethos of African communities,” the letter explained. “The constant teaching of the Church describes homosexual acts as ‘intrinsically disordered.’”
Among those who praised SECAM’s announcement was Guinean-born Cardinal Robert Sarah, former prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments. During the question-and-answer portion at a two-day symposium at the Catholic University of East Africa in Nairobi on February 23, Sarah said he was “very proud” that the African bishops have “completely” rejected the controversial document.
In February 2024, Archbishop Lucius Iwejuru Ugorji, the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, likewise stated that “there is no possibility of blessing same-sex couples or same-sex unions … we must also continue to stress that God loves the sinner unconditionally and calls him to repentance so that he might live.”
In his interview on Sunday, Ambongo reiterated that since the SECAM statement was issued, there is “peace and tranquility” on the continent. “Since then, we no longer speak of Fiducia Supplicans in terms of virulent opposition to Rome or the Holy Father.”