NAIROBI, Kenya (RNS) — Catholic Church leaders in Africa remember Pope Francis as a pontiff who kept the continent close to his heart, advocating for its poor and the marginalized. As Catholics’ attention around the world turns from Francis’ funeral to the election of his successor at the Vatican, bishops and priests in Africa express hope that the next pope will continue Francis’ concern.
Francis’ death is being widely mourned on the continent, where many people felt he was “their” pope.
“I think even as cardinals pray and reflect during these congregations, we need a moral global leader, in an increasingly divided world — someone who will follow up on the agenda or legacy of Pope Francis,” said the Rev. Marcel Uwineza, a Rwandan Jesuit priest who is president of Hekima University College in Nairobi.
“A leader who can be a global figure, a prophet of our time in an increasingly divided world,” he added.
The priest, who attended Boston College and is a survivor of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, approved of a homily by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s secretary of state, on Sunday (April 27) that urged the church to continue outreach to the marginalized, care for the Earth and interfaith dialogue.
Francis visited Africa five times in the 12 ye …