At Quartz Africa, Lekan Oguntoyinbo reported on “a growing trend in the Catholic Church in America: a rising number of African-born priests”.
Nobody knows the exact numbers, but there are some indicators, Fr Martins Emeh, a Nigerian-born priest and the former president of the African Conference of Catholic Clergy and Religious in the United States, estimates that in 2013 the Conference had about 300 members. He estimates that the total number was about 700 six years ago, and is much higher now.
While the overwhelming majority are Nigerian, Oguntoyinbo reported, “there are also a few priests from countries including Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Cameroon.”
According to Sister Joanna Okereke of the US bishops’ conference, this year Nigerians made up three per cent of new priests.
A new kind of civic religion?
At the American Conservative, the Orthodox writer Rod Dreher asked whether America has “a new civic religion”. Looking at Pride parades, Dreher was reminded of his youth.
“The photos of Boy Scouts marching in the parade, of law enforcement, of all the top politicians, and of Bud Light Pride ads – this is exactly what the Fourth of July was when I was a kid.”
The suggestion has been made, by the blogger Scott Alexander, that Pride fulfils some of the key functions of religion: it offers, for instance, a group identity – “We’re the people who believe in pride and equality and diversity and love always winning” – and new “taboos” – values which nobody can challenge.
Christians must accept, Dreher said, that we face “a rival, hostile religion”.
No regrets about becoming Catholic
At One Peter Five, Timothy Flanders said he had “never regretted” converting form Eastern Orthodoxy to Catholicism. The primacy of the Pope “is instituted by God”, Flanders wrote. That was the view of great Eastern saints before the East-West schism: “St Athanasius the Great, St John Chrysostom, St Cyril, St Flavian, the Blessed Theodoret, St Maximus the Confessor, St Theodore of the Studium, etc.” So if the Roman primacy is a heresy, as the Eastern Orthodox claim, they need to call their own saints either heretics or sycophants.
Flanders also said that the Orthodox disagreed on such doctrinal questions as “baptismal doctrine, the Procession of the Holy Spirit, contraception, or the status of every Roman doctrine… When I was Orthodox, I had one faithful Orthodox priest tell me one thing and another faithful Orthodox priest tell me another. I was left to my own private judgment and pride to make up my own conclusions.” And that reflects other kinds of disunity: the different Orthodox churches are divided among themselves and “have no universal government”.
Yes, the Catholic Church has problems: its current crisis “is severe – perhaps the worst we have ever faced – but as with every other crisis in history, God is with us, has foretold it to us, and will again bring the liberty and exaltation of Holy Mother Church.”
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.