Pope in Cameroon: Peace meetings and Mass attended by over 20,000 people

Pope arrives for Mass in Bamenda. Vatican Media

Source: Vatican Media

Pope Leo on Thursday visited Bamenda, a city in Cameroon's troubled north-west region which is at the centre of a decade-long conflict known as the 'Anglophone Crisis'. Since 2016, rebel groups belonging to Cameroon's English-speaking minority have been fighting government forces in the region, in an attempt to create a separate state in the north-west and south-west of the country.

Huge crowds gathered to greet the Pope Leo on his way to the Cathedral of St Joseph. He spent a few moments of prayer in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament before entering the main Cathedral and being welcomed by the Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya of Bamenda. The Peace Meeting then heard testimonies of the Supreme Traditional Chief of Mankon, Fon Fru Asaah Angwafor IV; the Emeritus Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Fonki Samuel Forba; the Imam of the Central Mosque of Buea, Mohammad Abubakar; a consecrated religious, Sister Carine Tangiri Mangu, Sister of St Anne; and a family of internally displaced persons, Denis Salo, his wife, and their three children.

After hearing the testimonies, Pope Leo joined his voice to theirs and highlighted how their "lived experience of suffering" in community has strengthened their belief in God's constant presence.

The Pope began by reflecting on Archbishop Fuanya's words from the Prophet Isaiah: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace!" (Is 52:7). His response centred on the beauty of the Bamendan community's feet "dusty from this bloodstained yet fertile land that has been mistreated, yet is rich in vegetation and fruit."

Their feet have carried them far in spite of the challenges they have faced, and this community has "remained on the path of goodness." Pope Leo expressed his gratitude for being welcomed to the city. "Because," he stressed, "it is true: I am here to proclaim peace." But, the Holy Father noted, the people of Bamenda have been proclaiming the message of peace to him.

Turning back to one of the testimonies, he highlighted how the crisis affecting Cameroon has brought the Christian and Muslim communities closer together. "Indeed, your religious leaders have come together to establish a Movement for Peace, through which they seek to mediate between the opposing sides," he pointed out.

Pope Leo shared his hope and desire that this could be possible in other places around the world. At the same time, he warned against people who "manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth."

"The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild," the Pope said. "They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation, yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found."

The Holy Father stressed that the people of Bamenda, in spite of the almost decade long conflict, are the light of the world as they hunger and thirst for justice. "Bamenda, today you are the city on the hill, resplendent in the eyes of all," the Pope said, encouraging them not to lose hope.

The world is "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants, yet it is held together by a multitude of supportive brothers and sisters," he said.

Peace is not something to be invented. Rather, he stressed, it is something we discover when we embrace our neighbour as our brother or sister. Family is not something we choose, but people we must accept as we live together in the same common home.

Closing he recalled the words of Pope Francis in Evangelii Gaudium: "My mission of being in the heart of the people is not just a part of my life…that is the reason why I am here in this world." It is with this same heart and mission that Pope Leo explained he came to Bamenda.

Therefore, the Holy Father called each person to be part of the silent revolution of walking together in our own vocations growing in concrete ways the mission of loving our neighbours. "As the Imam said, let us thank God that this crisis has not degenerated into a religious war, and that we are still trying to love one another."

After hte peace meeting, Pope Leo presided over Mass at the airport which was attended by more than 20,000 people.

Expressing support for the people of Cameroon as they struggle to transform the story of the country and create a society in which peace and reconciliation reign, the Pope said he shares their hope "for a future of peace and reconciliation, in which the dignity of every person is respected and their fundamental rights guaranteed."

A hope, he added, that "is continually disappointed by the many problems afflicting this beautiful land."

The Pope praised the joyful and vibrant liturgies and prayers of the faithful, calling them signs "of your trusting surrender to God, of your unshakeable hope and of your clinging… to the love of the Father."

At the same time, he recognised "many situations in life that break our hearts," and reiterated that hopes for peace and justice are often frustrated.

Pope Leo XIV pointed to widespread poverty, including a food crisis and corruption seen above all, "in the management of wealth, which hinders the development of institutions and infrastructure."

He highlighted the problems "affecting the education and healthcare systems, as well as large-scale migration to foreign countries, particularly of young people."

"Added to these internal problems, which are often fuelled by hatred and violence, is the damage caused from outside, by those who, in the name of profit, continue to lay their hands on the African continent to exploit and plunder it," he said.

Thus, he urged the faithful to act, and, interrupted by the applause of the congregation, he said: "The time has come, today and not tomorrow, now and not in the future, to restore the mosaic of unity by bringing together the diversity and riches of the country and the continent" to build a society based on peace and reconciliation.

Despite discouragement, Pope Leo continued, "the word of the Lord opens up new possibilities and brings about transformation and healing," making believers "active agents of change... God is newness… God makes us courageous people who, by confronting evil, build up the good," he said.

"We must obey God rather than any human authority," the Pope said, stressing that those who do so "rediscover their inner freedom… and become builders of peace and fraternity."

In conclusion, he reiterated that change is possible if we "obey God, not human beings," and warned against mixing the faith with "beliefs… of an esoteric or Gnostic nature" that often serve political or economic ends.

"Only God sets us free; only His word opens paths to freedom; only His Spirit makes us new people"

After returning by plane from Bamenda, on Thursday evening Pope Leo met with a group of 12 representatives of several Cameroonian Islamic communities, some of whom he had received in Rome in December 2025.

The communities represented by the Muslim leaders are carrying out several projects to promote social justice and cooperation to support the poorest members of Cameroon's population, in collaboration with the local Catholic Church.

The Pope greeted each person individually and listened to the words of welcome and thanks addressed to him by those present.

The Muslim leaders expressed appreciation for the work carried out together with the Church, for the Pope's visit, and for his words on dialogue and peace delivered on Thursday in Bamenda.

Pope Leo then shared his joy at meeting them and expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome he has received from everyone in Cameroon: Christians, Catholics and non-Catholics, Muslims, and people of traditional religions.

He encouraged all Cameroonians to continue "to communicate everyone's desire to find peace, not a peace of indifference, not a peace that takes away the richness of differences, but a peace that is born when we recognize that we are all brothers and sisters, all creatures of the One alone, all called to respect the dignity of all."

LINKS

Watch the Mass at Bamenda: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HNizQAjUZ0

Homily at Mass:
www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/homilies/2026/documents/20260416-camerun-messa-bamenda.html