Originally published at The Crux
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LUANDA – When Pope Leo XIV arrives in oil-rich Angola on Saturday, he will likely bring a message of both condemnation and encouragement to a nation where the faith is rapidly growing, amid widespread inequality and a legacy of war.
In comments to Catholic charitable organization Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop António Jaca of Benguela in the west, said the legacy of the nation’s war for independence from Portugal, which ended in 1975, are still felt, and that while progress has been made, there is still a lot to be done.
“Those were long years of suffering. But peace is also about development and social harmony, so there is still a long way to go,” Jaca said.
Speaking of widespread poverty in the nation, he lamented that the current economic situation in Angola was “still very, very difficult,” saying, “We have high levels of unemployment and criminality, which is no doubt a consequence of unemployment and an idle youth.”
“Most families survive on fragile income and informal trade,” he said, saying, “There is no peace in society without peace among families, and for that families must have enough to get by.”
Angola is an oil-rich nation, boasting
