Cameroon monarch pleas for Church understanding of polygamy

A report from SECAM in March acknowledged polygamy’s deep cultural roots, noting that historically, large families ensured economic stability and political alliances.

The traditional ruler of Mankon in Cameroon appealed for the Church to adopt a more compassionate and inclusive attitude toward those in polygamous unions after Pope Leo’s visit to Africa.

In an address at St Joseph’s Metropolitan Cathedral in Bamenda, which the Pope visited on 16 April, Fon Fru Asaah Angwafor IV expressed gratitude for the discussion of polygamy during the Synod on Synodality in 2023-24.

While acknowledging that education has largely overcome traditions incompatible with Christian values, the monarch recalled that the Pope had specifically asked African bishops to study how to better integrate people in polygamous situations into the life of the Church.

The Church maintains that marriage is a union between one man and one woman, but the reality in Africa – where polygamy is legal in 31 countries – places increasing pressure on the Church to avoid estranging believers who wish to adhere to traditional customs.

Alphonse Nfor, a 72-year-old man with four wives, told The Tablet that polygamy is intrinsic to African culture and should not be an issue for debate.

“We are Africans. We are spiritual beings, and I don’t believe that the key to Heaven lies in having only one wife,” he said. “It is quite funny that the Church is so concerned about people marrying many wives and yet allowing some of its priests to bless homosexuals – this is really weird.”

In March, the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) released a 25-page report on polygamy in response to the mandate from the Synod to promote theological and pastoral discernment.

The report acknowledged polygamy’s deep cultural roots, noting that historically, large families ensured economic stability and political alliances. It further observes that marriage in traditional Africa was a communal and spiritual bond involving ancestors, making divorce rare.

The report also cited Old Testament figures who practiced polygamy but contrasts this with the New Testament ideal of monogamy, which SECAM members describe as “a divine pedagogy”.

“If marriage translates into ‘the gift of oneself to another,’” the report asked, “one might wonder how a man or woman can experience this ‘gift of self’ by giving themselves to several wives or husbands at the same time.”

SECAM recommended a pastoral approach to those in polygamous marriages defined by “proximity, listening, and accompaniment”.

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