Papacy, not a race about races, By Emmanuel Onwubiko

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69, was elected the new pope under the papal name Pope Leo XIV, making him the first pope from the U.S.

This unprecedented history was made on Thursday, May 8, over an hour after white smoke billowed from the Vatican just after 6 p.m. Vatican time (noon ET), indicating that the new head of the Catholic church had been selected.

Historically, Pope Leo XIV was born in Chicago and attended Villanova University and Catholic Theological Union in Chicago before earning a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. I read somewhere that he has a degree in Mathematics.

The new Supreme Pontiff was reportedly ordained in 1982( exactly when this writer enrolled into the high scool at the Kafanchan Teachers College, in Kaduna state), just as the new pope has reportedly spent much of his clerical life in Peru, serving as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023, reported the National Catholic Reporter.

Before that, he served as a parish pastor and diocesan official in the Augustinian mission beginning in 1985. After a short stint in Chicago in 1987, he returned to Peru. Already, a dubious accusation from a particular European tabloid has emerged that the new Pope as the Bishop of Chicago overlooked accusations of child abuses by his priests. The question to ask is how come this accusation only surfaced now that he has been elected by the Church as the new Pope. But many more stories are been told including many observers who feel disappointed that the new Pope did not come from Africa or that a core progressive did not make it( whatever that means).

The truth is that this new Pope can be said to have thoroughly prepared for his new vocation as the Vicar of Christ given the vast experiences he garnered as a technocrat inside of the Vatican even as the man with the onerous responsibility for appointing Bishops all over the World and then forwarding for approval by the late Pope Francis.

The new Pope was appointed as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops (formerly known as the Congregation for Bishops) by Pope Francis in 2023, an important role from which he advised the pope on bishop appointments worldwide. He was also named president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America in 2023.

The truth is that the new Pope has a very solid background and the other truth is that these wise men who elected him through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit couldn’t have been misled to appoint someone with a baggage knowing as it were the sophisticated nature of the technology and media of mass communication.

But what really is in a name that made the new Pope to opt for the name Pope Leo XIV? The new Pope directly took after Pope Leo X111 just as there is another great inspirational Pope Leo the great whose life achievements were phenomenal.

The direct inspiration for the new Pope is said to be Pope Leo XIII (born March 2, 1810, Carpineto Romano, Papal States—died July 20, 1903, Rome) was the head of the Roman Catholic Church (1878–1903) who brought a new spirit to the papacy, expressed in more conciliatory positions toward civil governments, by less opposition to scientific progress, and by an awareness of the pastoral and social needs of the times.

Early career

Vincenzo Gioacchino Pecci was the sixth child of a family of the lower nobility. After his early education in Viterbo and Rome, he completed his studies at the Accademia dei Nobili Ecclesiastici (Academy of Noble Ecclesiastics) in Rome. In 1837 he was ordained a priest and entered the diplomatic service of the Papal States. His superiors immediately appreciated his qualities: flexibility and lucidity and great energy, despite his delicate health. Thus promotions came quickly; he was made delegate (the equivalent of provincial governor) of Benevento in 1838 and was transferred in 1841 to the more important delegation of Perugia. In January 1843 he was appointed nuncio (a papal legate of the highest rank, permanently attached to a civil government) to Brussels and shortly after was consecrated an archbishop.

There is therefore no doubt that the new Pope is indeed a top quality Pope in the area of courageously defending the mother Church and her doctrines. We will look at the other Pope Leo who is also one of the greatest of the fathers of the Church.

A scholarly encyclopedia informs us that St. Leo I (born 4th century, Tuscany?—died November 10, 461, Rome; Western feast day November 10 ([formerly April 11]), Eastern feast day February 18) was the pope from 440 to 461, and a master exponent of papal supremacy. His pontificate—which saw the disintegration of the Roman Empire in the West and the formation in the East of theological differences that were to split Christendom—was devoted to safeguarding orthodoxy and to securing the unity of the Western church under papal supremacy.

Consecrated on September 29, 440, as successor to St. Sixtus III, Leo, one of the few popes termed great, immediately worked to suppress heresy, which he regarded as the cause of corruption and disunity. Yet his most significant theological achievement was not his negative suppression of heresy but his positive formulation of orthodoxy.

His treatment of the monk Eutyches of Constantinople provides an example. The monk had founded Eutychianism, an extreme form of monophysitism holding that Christ had only one nature, his human nature being absorbed in his divine nature. Patriarch Flavian of Constantinople excommunicated Eutyches, who then appealed to Leo. After examining the case, Leo sent Flavian (449) his celebrated Tome, which rejected Eutyches’ teaching and presented a precise, systematic doctrine of Christ’s Incarnation and of the union of both his natures. In 451 the Council of Chalcedon (modern Kadikoy, Turkey), summoned to condemn Eutychianism, declared that Leo’s Tome was the ultimate truth. Furthermore, the council recognized Leo’s doctrine as “the voice of Peter.” Thus for the church Leo’s Tome established the doctrine that Christ’s natures coexist and his Incarnation reveals how human nature is restored to perfect unity with divine, or absolute, being.(https://www.Britannica.com).

The above qualitative attributes of Pope Leo the great provides some information on the inspirational standards that the new Pope intends to exemplify. He has started well by affirming that his mission is to be a true Vicar of Christ.

Hear him: “Peace be with all of you!

Dearest brothers and sisters, this is the first greeting of the Risen Christ, the good shepherd who gave his life for God’s flock. I too would like this greeting of peace to enter your heart, to reach your families, to all people, wherever they are, to all peoples, to the whole earth. Peace be with you!

This is the peace of the Risen Christ, an unarmed and disarming peace, humble and persevering. It comes from God, God who loves us all unconditionally. We still have in our ears that weak but always courageous voice of Pope Francis who blessed Rome!

The pope who blessed Rome gave his blessing to the world, to the entire world, that Easter morning.

Allow me to follow up on that same blessing: God cares for us, God loves all of us, and evil will not prevail! We are all in God’s hands. Therefore, without fear, united hand in hand with God and among ourselves, let us move forward.

We are disciples of Christ. Christ goes before us. The world needs His light. Humanity needs Him as the bridge to reach God and His love.

Help us too, then help each other to build bridges – with dialogue, with encounter, uniting all of us to be one people always in peace. Thank you, Pope Francis!

I also want to thank all the fellow cardinals who chose me to be the Successor of Peter and to walk with you, as a united Church always seeking peace, justice – always trying to work as men and women faithful to Jesus Christ, without fear, to proclaim the Gospel, to be missionaries.

I am a son of Saint Augustine, (an) Augustinian, who said: “With you I am a Christian and for you a bishop.” In this sense, we can all walk together towards that homeland that God has prepared for us.

To the Church of Rome, a special greeting! We must seek together how to be a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges (and) dialogue, always open to receive (people), like this square, with open arms – everyone, all those who need our charity, our presence, dialogue and love.

(Switching into Spanish) And if you allow me also, a word, a greeting to all those, and particularly to my beloved diocese of Chiclayo, in Peru, where a faithful people have accompanied their bishop, have shared their faith, and have given so much, so much to continue being a faithful Church of Jesus Christ.

(Switching back to Italian) To all of you, brothers and sisters of Rome, of Italy, of the whole world, we want to be a synodal Church, a Church that walks, a Church that always seeks peace, that always seeks charity, that always seeks to be close especially to those who suffer.

Today is the day of the Supplication to Our Lady of Pompeii. Our Mother Mary always wants to walk with us, to stay close, to help us with her intercession and her love.

So I would like to pray together with you. Let us pray together for this new mission, for the whole Church, for peace in the world, and let us ask for this special grace from Mary, our Mother,” he concluded.

Philosophers say that the first step in everything is the most important. Analytically, the Pope’s first speech shows the blueprint of a Papacy that would truly represent Jesus Christ on earth and as Catholics, our obligation is to pray for our Holy Father so that God would make him to remain true to his calling as the Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth. This is what matters and not the banality of seeking to pigeonhole the new Pope as an American Pope or to recall the disappointment of those who had expected that an African or Asian Pope would emerge or even the Italians that actually thought that it is the time of Italy to produce a Pope which hasn’t happened in about 47 years back or more.

Many who are true Roman Catholics know that the election of the Pope is not a race of races.

In a report titled: “New Pope’s Race Unimportant, Africans Say,” written on February 12, 2013 9:11 AM By Nancy Palus for Voice of America radio, it was disclosed that Pope Benedict XVI resignation triggered anew the question of whether it is time for a non-European pope – notably a black African, after centuries of European popes, mostly Italian. But Catholics in Senegal and Ghana say they see the leader’s race as largely irrelevant.

“For us in the Catholic Church it does not play any role at all and it should not play any role at all,” said Gabriel Charles Palmer-Buckle, archbishop of Accra, the capital of Ghana. “The word Catholic means that all cultures, all races, all peoples are united in one body so it shouldn’t play a role whether the person is black, white, or yellow.”

Cardinal Théodore Adrien Sarr, archbishop of Dakar, will be among the cardinals to elect the next pope. Speaking to reporters on Monday he said it’s not the pontiff’s ethnicity that counts but his strength and conviction to lead the Church.

He said he has his doubts that the moment has come for a black African pope.

He says this question has been with us for a long time now. “Is the Catholic Church ready for a black African leader? Is the world ready for a black African pope? I’ve got my doubts,” he says. “It’s true – we’ve got the case of Barack Obama.” Still, he says, given how Africans are generally seen and treated, it is not very likely.

Dominique Basse, a member of the Church of Uganda’s Martyrs in Dakar, says having a black African pope would certainly enhance Africa’s place in the world. ” It’s like when a president who’s of your party comes to power,” he says, “it enhances your group. But what’s most important is that the new Pope be able to help us all grow in our faith and be able to strengthen the Catholic community.”

On Monday as parishioners gathered for a daily mass at the Church of Uganda’s Martyrs, a few chatting about Pope Benedict’s resignation said they saw the decision as wise and noble.

But for some, Basse said, Africa’s culture of chiefdom remains a strong force, and they were put off by the pope’s move.

He says for some the decision is troubling, provoking questions about what might have been behind it. Basse says some people are still quite attached to the concept of a chief and the chief does not step down.

At the second special assembly of bishops on Africa, in 2009, Pope Benedict talked about the role of the church as the continent faces religious fundamentalism, poverty, injustice, and war. He said part of the church’s calling is to reconcile different ethnic, linguistic and religious groups.

Bishop Palmer-Buckle of Accra says while Africa has particular challenges and it is important to discuss them in such assemblies, the Catholic Church is not about serving only certain “constituencies”.

“I don’t think that’s what the Catholic Church is about,” he says. “The pope is definitely going to be a universal spiritual leader for the whole world. And he must be as concerned about Africa as he would be concerned about Europe as he would be concerned about Latin America or Asia.”

So just as these Africans said since 2013, we as Roman Catholics are more concerned about the holiness, pursuit for social justice, speaking for the poor, migrants, underprivileged and defending the Gospel of Christ Jesus, are exactly the genre of Pope that we need and not about his race, his tongue, his tribe or his class stratification.

EMMANUEL ONWUBIKO is the founder of the HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA and was NATIONAL COMMISSIONER OF THE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF NIGERIA*