Schismatic African Priests Want a Pope to Call Their Own | Sojourners

Schismatic African Priests Want a Pope to Call Their Own

Rev. Peter Njogu, a former Roman Catholic priest, is now bishop of Restored Univ
Rev. Peter Njogu, a former Roman Catholic priest, is now bishop of Restored Universal Apostolic Church (RUAC). Photo via RNS.

Schismatic Roman Catholic priests, who left the church to claim their right to marry, are now asking for an “African pope” to lead them.

The priests say they regret their former church is “allergic” to change. They believe priestly celibacy is neither rooted in the teachings of Jesus nor in the work of his apostles, who were married. And they insist celibacy does not work in an African context.

Former Zambian Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo who married a Korean acupuncturist in a 2001 celebration sponsored by the Unification Church and presided by its late founder, the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, serves as “African patriarch” of a number of church groups affiliated with his movement.

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