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Three popes have had African birth or heritage.
According to the records of the Liber Pontificalis, all three were from the Roman Province of Africa (corresponding to the territory of modern Tunisia and Libya). The conquest of Byzantine North Africa by Islam during the 7th century largely eliminated the chance for another African pope until modern times.
- Pope Victor I (189 to 199)
- Pope Miltiades (310/311 to 314)
- Pope Gelasius I (492 to 496)
Modern African papabile
Francis Arinze, a Nigerian cardinal and advisor to Pope John Paul II, and was considered papabile before the 2005 papal conclave, which elected Benedict XVI. Archbishop Desmond Tutu openly endorsed calls for the election of a pope from Africa or the developing world, saying that he hoped the cardinals would "follow the first non-Italian pope by electing the first African pope" since Gelasius. According to the Financial Times, an African such as Arinze would "boost the popularity" of the Church, which is facing strong competition in Africa from Pentecostal, Baptist, and Evangelical sects.
In the next conclave, Peter Cardinal Turkson of Ghana has been called "the most likely" candidate from Africa.
References
- Carroll, Rory. 2003, October 3. "The Guardian Profile: Francis Cardinal Arinze." The Guardian.
- "The new pope should be African, says Tutu". The Star (South Africa). April 4 2005. Retrieved 2008-04-20.
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(help) - Andrew England (April 4 2005). "Kenyans pledge to carry on papal projects". The Financial Times. Retrieved 2008-04-20.
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(help) - Greg Watts (November 2 2007). "A mission to speak out of Africa". The Times. Retrieved 2008-04-20.
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