African cardinal: Empty churches, not ‘remarried’ divorcees is western church’s

An African cardinal said he is “astonished” to see the church in the west fixated on “remarried” divorcees and on welcoming homosexuals and not on the bigger problem of empty churches. In a March 2 interview with the Austrian public service broadcaster ORF (Österreichischer Rundfunk), the Nigerian Cardinal John Onaiyekan — who is archbishop of Abuja, Nigeria — said he was “astonished that these are the themes that people [in Europe] are concerned about,” referring to the topics of “remarried” divorcees having access to the sacraments as well as homosexuality. While Europe is increasingly secular, the Catholic Church in Nigeria is growing.