Pope Francis Appoints Two New Catholic Bishops for Dioceses in DR Congo

Once he is Consecrated Bishop, the Congolese members of the Missionaries of Africa will serve as the fourth Local Ordinary of Wamba Diocese that has a population of 247,230 Catholics, according to 2020 statistics. 

Pope Francis has also appointed Mons. Mukwenye as Bishop of Kilwa-Kasenga.

From 2021 to the time of his episcopal appointment, Bishop-elect Mukwenye has been serving as the Diocesan Administrator of the Congolese Episcopal See, which has  been vacant since May 2021 when Archbishop Fulgence Muteba Mugalu was transferred to the Archdiocese of Lubumbashi.

Mons. Mukwenye was ordained a Priest in July 1994 after completing his philosophical and theological studies at St. Paul Major Seminary in Kambikila, Lubumbashi. He holds a Licentiate in Biblical Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome.

As a Priest, he has served as a Parish Priest, lecturer, and spiritual director at St. Paul Major Seminary in Kambikila and Vicar General of Kilwa-Kasenga Diocese. 

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The Congolese Bishop-elect, who has also served as Director and lecturer at the Major Seminary of Lubumbashi since 2016 is set to become the seventh Bishop of the Diocese that was erected in July 1948 as the Vicariate Apostolic of Lulua e Katanga Centrale. 

The Congolese Diocese, which is part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Lubumbashi has a population of 443,000 Catholics, according to 2021 statistics.

Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.