Though there is no exact statistic for the percentage of Africa’s Catholic Gen Z population, a recent survey published by Bible Society shows that “young adults aged 18-34 are among those newly drawn to Christian beliefs after years of declining congregations.” Also, the Vatican noted that “Africa added the greatest number of Catholics in 2021 out of all the continents.” Interestingly, there appears to be a global increase in Catholic converts from the Gen Z demographic. In parts of Europe, such as France and England, as well as in Australia and the United States, there is an increase in the percentage of young people converting to the Catholic Church. This reality calls for both celebration and taking seriously the pastoral and theological formation of these new converts. One may wonder why this ought to be the case.
In the Western world, research shows that Gen Z Catholics are mostly rejecting the liberal values inherent in the social cultures in which they grew up. A turn to Catholicism is not just a statement of faith; it is also a socio-cultural statement on their part. Again, it is not just an embrace of Catholicism in its rich expressions. Rather, it is a specific aspect of the tradition that seems alluring to this generation within the Western Hemisphere. As it was noted by the National Catholic Register, “a quarter of Catholics between the ages of 18 and 29 attend church once a week or more, compared to 98% Latin Mass goers in the same demographic.” Interestingly, the love for a specific trend of Catholicism that overlooks its rich cultural tradition is driven by personal choices, rather than intentional evangelization on the part of the Church and its missionary agents. The need to have the previously empty churches filled with attendees and the refusal on the part of some hierarchs and relevant voices in the Church in the West to embrace the rich heritage of Catholicism have created a reluctance to catechize these new converts into a richer understanding of Catholicism that stands as the theological and pastoral summons inherent in the teachings of the Second Vatican Council.
Though it is not my intention to water down the increase in church attendance and embrace of some Catholic devotions by Genz in the western world, one ought to ask the question: what is the Church in the process of losing with this reluctance to be fully open to the rich expression of the Church’s liturgical and theological traditions? I teach theology at a Catholic institution in the United States. In fact, I am in a region of the United States that is historically understood as an unchurched region (the Pacific Northwest). Most of my students are Gen Z. A few among those who embrace Catholicism tend to be on the traditionalist side. My interactions with these few have taught me the following; first, they want to have a unique sense of identity that sets them apart from the crowd. They like to be spiritual ‘Goths.’ They embrace their Catholic faith with a sense of purpose but one which tends to lack a healthier understanding of how the faith ought to embody an awareness of the signs of the times. Rather than seeing the faith as one that summons them to engage the unfolding future within an awareness of the realities playing out in the present, they prefer to turn to the past. It sometimes comes across as though they are afraid of facing the social and cultural realities before them. Third, when it comes to their personal lives, they tend to be very faithful to the ideals of the ethical life as it pertains to their sense of purpose. But they embrace individualism firmly and understand the faith as a personal (individualistic) relationship with God. Their sense of fellowship is limited to their circles of fellow traditionalists.
With the above in mind, I am compelled to ask: How can Gen Z Catholics in Africa help correct some of the issues shaping the moral embrace of Catholicism among their peers in the Western world? Before addressing this question, it is worth noting the fact that Africa’s Gen Z population is not typically rejecting cultural liberalism. Active evangelization by missionaries, catechists, and ecclesial leaders is ongoing throughout the continent. Priests and religious are visible to the people. They are comfortable wearing their religious habits. These do not have the ideological markers that seems to be the case in the West among the ordained and the professed religious. The Church in Africa embraces the cultural praxis of respect for religious leaders as their elders. There are positive and negative aspects to this. But the focus of this article is not on this point. However, generally, Africa’s Catholics, whether of the Gen Z population or not, tend to be practicing Catholics in a manner that would be termed conservative. Here, I am using the term without the cultural baggage typically associated with it, as observed within the Western context. Rather, they tend to follow what they are told by Rome without asking the question, What is the face of Africa in what we are doing? Or how can Africa’s questions and needs be addressed through an inculturated praxis of the faith in the continent?
That said, with Africa being a rising center of Catholicism, the responsibility of educating both cradle Catholics and new converts to the faith must be taken seriously. Surface catechetical education, shaped by the missionary reality that demanded a simplistic and basic training of converts, can no longer suffice. Africa now owns the Church’s future in a way that Europe and North America once did. If Africa is to assume this new responsibility, it must ground itself in ways that explore the riches of the Catholic tradition. By this, I mean that both the theological and pastoral traditions of the faith cannot be reduced to an either/or approach that seems to plague the churches in the West, whether among conservatives or liberals. Africa’s Gen Z populations should be encouraged to reject a cafeteria approach to church teachings and liturgical praxis.
The rise of Catholic ‘goth’ culture among the Gen Zs of the West ought to be queried. This is because a healthy church must stand on the rich and diverse fountain of insights and praxes that define global Catholicism. The faith cannot be reduced solely to theological insights from a few historical figures, as seems to be the case with some Catholics in the West. Yes, Thomas Aquinas, Anselm of Canterbury, and Augustine of Hippo are all excellent theologians and leaders of the Catholic faith. They are part of the rich foundation upon which the Church stands. Also, are Cyprian of Carthage, Maximus the Confessor, Hildegard of Bingen, Cyprian Tansi, the Martyrs of Uganda, Pope Francis, Mother Teresa, Karl Rahner, and many more. Africa’s Gen Z Catholics ought to be taught to understand that to be Catholic is to take seriously the hermeneutic turn that allows for a critical engagement with one’s faith, which can sometimes trigger epistemic discomforts. These allow for an embrace of the dynamic presence of the Holy Spirit, who guides all to the truth of God, which can be fully realized within the horizon of history. The faith that Africa’s Gen Z must embrace is not individualistic. Neither is it selective. It is grounded in a fellowship of love with all and must challenge us to become better social beings, whose lives are to be ritualized in an embrace of discipleship in Christ.
I want to believe that this was what Pope Francis had in mind when he called African youths to take on the challenge of helping both the continent and the world church to reimagine how to be church for our times and how to heal the planet from the culture of ecological exploitation. Luckily, the call of Pope Francis has been taken seriously by the members of the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network, who have been working with Africa’s young social media influencers to devise a way of being Catholic in Africa that resonates well with the Church’s vision, as taught by Pope Francis. In fact, the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) has called on Africa’s youths to help build the Africa they want. I would add to this by saying that Africa’s Gen Z ought to help the Church in Africa to become a church that can respond prophetically to the signs of the times in a manner that addresses their needs, hopes, and aspirations.
How can this happen? I argue that the African Church ought to be intentional in articulating how both the formation of its ecclesial leaders, priests and lay, and the catechetical formation of would-be Catholics can address the rich traditions of the Church. Whether theological formation or catechetical formation, the question must be posed: how can we center the insights, creativity, desires, and hopes of Gen Z in the passing on of the rich traditions to allow for the instantiation of a prophetic transformation of social issues while building bridges of fellowship with other parts of the Catholic world? Theological training cannot just be about getting good grades. It must be about constructive theological imagination and reasoning that instantiate the tradition as a living one, rather than an archival artifact to be retrieved when needed. Each African theologian, I included, ought to ask the question, how do I do theology that allows for an embodiment of the signs of the times? This dynamic approach, in my opinion, can be a catalyst for change that the global Catholic Church earnestly desires and which Africa stands at the crossroads of history to help midwife. Should Africa embrace this summons, then the Church in Africa can take pride in being the avant-garde of the faith for our times and the light that guides all Gen Zs around the world to appreciate the beauty of the Catholic faith.
Finally, the rich tradition of the Catholic faith calls for a keen interest in taking seriously the pneumatological witness for our times. Gen Z Catholics around the world deserve to be introduced to this reality if the Church is to have a solid foundation in their imagination and their actual practice of the faith.