afrol News, 20 April - Most of Africa's 140 million Catholics were satisfied with the election of German cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as the new Pope, Benedict XVI, although many had hoped for an African successor for John Paul II. Other church communities - with Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu in the lead - however demonstrated disappointment over the choice of a conservative Pope.

Bishop Arlindo Furtado of the predominantly Catholic Cape Verde islands yesterday strongly welcomed the new Pope. "Ratzinger will be a man of reference of our times," Bishop Furtado told 'A Semana'. He added that Mr Ratzinger had been very close to the late Pope, both personally and in terms of theological interpretations.

The Cape Verdean Bishop's reaction is representative of the African Catholic clergy, which looks forward to conservative continuity under Pope-elect Benedict XVI. Cardinal Ratzinger is known to have been the theological mastermind behind Pope John Paul II's conservative doctrines regarding abortion, contraceptives, celibacy, female clergy and sexual minorities.

The National Conference of Bishops in Congo Kinshasa (DRC) - the country with Africa's largest Catholic population - thus today welcomed the "great sign of continuity" that had been demonstrated in the election of Cardinal Ratzinger. Also the Catholic churches of Kenya, Nigeria, South Sudan and Algeria welcomed the conservative choice.

Equally, Africa's top politicians have praised the Vatican's election. South Africa's President today hailed Benedict XVI as a potential ally for Africa to fight the "racist evil" and "create a new, safer and fairer world." President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal sent his congratulations and hoped the new 78-year-old Pope would also contribute to the "promotion of Muslim-Christian dialogue." Congratulations also came from the presidencies of Kenya, Congo Kinshasa and Morocco.

The only disappointment registered among Catholics was in Nigeria, the fatherland of one of the candidates to head the Holy Sea. Nigeria's Cardinal Francis Arinze had been presented as a front-runner in the election by the Nigerian press, which today caused some disappointment. While many Nigerians said Cardinal Arinze had not been chosen only because he is African, the national clergy was quick to congratulate Mr Ratzinger and state its satisfaction.

Other church communities in Africa were more split in their views, in particular those promoting a more liberal theology than the Catholic Church. Nobel Peace Price laureate Desmond Tutu, the retired Anglican Archbishop of South Africa, today forwarded the strongest criticism of the Vatican's election. Mr Tutu and the Southern African Anglicans are strongly opposed to the Catholic ban on condoms, a contraceptive that is seen as the best protection against the AIDS pandemic.

The Anglican Archbishop fears that Pope Benedict XVI will continue his predecessor's anti-condom policy, which he had been part of formulating. "We would have hoped for someone more open to the more recent developments in the world, the whole question of the ministry of women and a more reasonable position with regards to condoms and HIV/AIDS," Archbishop Tutu told the press today.

Also Reverend Ishmael Noko - a Zimbabwean who is President of the world-wide Lutheran World Federation (LWF) - in a statement today was unable to hide his disappointment. While hailing John Paul II's ecumenical work, Reverend Noko urged Benedict XVI to protect human dignity "from continuing gender-based oppression," a clear reference to Catholic-Lutheran differences on gender issues.

Reverend Noko also made indirect references to the fight against AIDS in his statement: "The ravages of preventable illnesses must be curbed by social development and adequate ethical guidance. Faced with these challenges and many others, the new Pope will be expected not only to continue the many contributions of his predecessor, but also to provide new strategies where such are needed," the Lutherans' Zimbabwean leader said.

In other Anglican, Lutheran and Evangelist churches in West and East Africa, the election of a conservative Pope however was welcomed. In the parts of Africa were missionaries "fight" with Islam to recruit new converts, a conservative union of church societies has formed. Here, neither Anglicans nor Lutherans support women clergy, the use of condoms or sexual minorities.

By staff writers

© afrol News

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