Christianity is growing quickly across Africa, but the future form of belief for many people remains uncertain. In Luanda, Angola, Pope Leo XIV’s visit drew public excitement, including people wearing shirts with his image. Rosario Avelino Salvador, a former Catholic, described a shift to the Church of the Kingdom of God in Angola, an offshoot of a Brazilian-based evangelical Pentecostal movement. He said he was not previously connected to Catholicism and later found “truth” that could liberate him. He repeated a critique that only God should be worshiped and added that the pope is human. The pope’s Africa tour also showed Catholicism’s central role on the continent and the challenges it faces as Africa becomes a major arena for competition among organized faiths.
"“Before, I wasn't connected to the religion,” said Salvador, a father of four who joined the Church of the Kingdom of God in Angola, an offshoot of a rapidly growing church headquartered in Brazil - where it is part of a new wave of evangelical, Pentecostal churches that are booming in the world's most Catholic country by population as it undergoes a religious demographic transformation of its own. “Now, I know the truth that can liberate me.”"
"One of those truths, he said, pointing a finger for emphasis as he repeated an age-old critique of Catholicism, was that only God should be worshiped. “The pope,” he added to make sure his point was clear, “is a human.” (Catholics also contend that God alone should be worshiped, while saints are due veneration and the pope obedience and respect.)"
"Leo's tour of Africa, which ended last month, put on display the centrality of the continent to the Catholic Church - and the challenges it faces as Africa emerges as the leading battleground for competition between organized faiths. Christianity hassurged in Africa over the past 50 years, increasing from 39 percent of the population in 1975 to nearly half last y"
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