Stan Chu Ilo is a senior research professor of world christianity, african studies, and global health at the Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural theology, DePaul University, and the coordinating servant of the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network.
I remember the conversation I had with my late uncle, Felix Mgbo. This was a few years after I left my home country, Nigeria, for Rome. Uncle Felix asked me: “Are you coming home for Christmas?” “No, Uncle Felix, not this time,” I replied, sounding rather flat. “Do you realize,” he said, his voice suddenly heavy with emotion, “that you…
In his Angelus address on the eve of the celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of the closing of the Second Vatican Council on December 7, 2025, Pope Leo reminded the Church that Vatican II remains a living experience—a work of the Spirit whose fruits continue to unfold in unexpected ways. He noted that the Kingdom of God often buds forth…
❝ By following in St. Augustine’s footsteps to Africa, Pope Leo hopes to deepen the dialogue between Christianity and Islam, which lies at the very heart of his papal mission: to build bridges among peoples, cultures, civilizations, religions, races, and nations.” — Stan Chu Ilo On his return flight to Rome after a deeply symbolic and pastorally courageous journey to…
When Nigeria’s senior national team coach, Éric Chelle, accused DR Congo of practicing “voodoo” during the penalty shootout that ended Nigeria’s 2026 World Cup dream, many dismissed it as another episode of African football drama. But embedded in that accusation is a deeper and more troubling story about the strange, persistent entanglement between fear and ritual manipulation in the beautiful…
The Catholic Bishops of Nigeria have released a bold and prophetic statement on the state of the nation—one that echoes from the depths of our moral conscience with spiritual authority and pastoral urgency. With clarity and grief, the bishops lament the persistent violence that has “claimed many lives, destroyed homes, and displaced families.” Their sorrow is rooted in the disproportionate…
The recent story of Father John K. Ojuok, a Kenyan priest serving in the Diocese of Ogdensburg in upstate New York, is a small local news item that reveals a much larger crisis. Fr. Ojuok, who had been ministering legally in the United States on an R-1 religious worker visa, travelled home to Kenya in September to visit his mother…
When Lydia Polgreen sat down with Howard W. French for The New York Times podcast The Opinions, they confronted one of the most important questions facing Africa and the world today: Can the world afford to turn its back on Africa? French’s answer, grounded in history and moral realism, is an emphatic no. A retreat from Africa would not only…
The post-election protests in Tanzania shook many across Africa, exposing once again the deep wounds of governance and democracy on the continent. They reminded us that when elections are stripped of fairness, they become instruments of domination rather than expressions of the people’s will. President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared the winner of the national election, “winning” by a staggering…
One of the earliest disappointments I experienced as a newly ordained priest was that the first three sick people I anointed never recovered. They all died. I was then serving in a rural community in Eastern Nigeria where many had no access to good healthcare. The visit of a priest was not only for spiritual healing but also, in faith,…
The Nigerian Christian community has been shaken by a recent address given in Rome by Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah during the launch of Aid to the Church in Need’s 2025 Religious Freedom in the World Report. In his remarks, the Bishop of Sokoto acknowledged the widespread violence and insecurity ravaging Nigeria but questioned whether Christians in the country are being…