A leading figure in the Catholic church in Nigeria has told Africa Live Pope Francis was very upset with the clergy in the diocese of Ahiara in the south-east for not accepting the appointment of a bishop (see earlier story).
The president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama, was at the meeting in Rome where the Pope issued his 30-day ultimatum for the clergy to pledge obedience or face suspension.
He said:”I could see the pain in the Pope’s eyes. He was upset that his children were going in a different direction.”
Archbishop Kaigama said that obedience to the Pope was central to the way the Catholic church worked:
“The Catholic church has had a system operating for hundreds of years and that is not going to change now because they want someone from their area.
We are shocked, surprised and disappointed that they have rejected an appointment by the Holy Father.”
Archbishop Kaigama also said that he had been trying to persuade the clergy in Ahiara to accept the bishop for the past four-and-a-half years but to no avail.
He is now praying for God’s intervention to help solve the problem, he said.
