"Out of Africa can rise a hope capable of reawakening the whole Church” — Stan Chu Ilo
In VoiceAfrique, Professor Stan Chu Ilo introduces his article thus:
"The Catholic Church faces its own exhaustion. For centuries, it seemed an unshakable moral anchor. Through Christendom and global missions, the papacy exerted extraordinary influence. Today, beneath its familiar rituals, the cracks are evident. Membership is shrinking in much of the West. Debates over sexuality, morality, and governance deepen divisions. The link between faith and everyday life weakens. In too many places, Catholic witness feels muted, leadership defensive, imagination tired. There is even a contest over which version of Catholicism defines the Church—an old struggle that intensified under Francis and resurfaced in the election of Pope Leo."
"The question is not whether the old order can be restored. It cannot. The deeper challenge is whether a new vision can emerge. Can Catholicism recover a space of hope and spiritual imagination strong enough to respond to this global crisis of history and modernity?"