Pope Leo XIV picks SA bishop for top Vatican role

Pope

Cape Town – Pope Leo XIV has appointed South African Bishop Thulani Victor Mbuyisa CMM of the Kokstad Diocese in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) as a member of the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life, the Vatican announced this week.

The appointment places Bishop Mbuyisa among a select group of global church leaders tasked with advising the Holy See on matters pertaining to religious life and apostolic communities within the Catholic Church.

Bishop Mbuyisa, 52, is widely regarded for his leadership within the Church in Southern Africa. He serves as Vice Chairperson of the Commission for Synodality of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), and chairs the SACBC’s Social Action Department. He is also the Liaison Bishop for the Justice and Peace Commission.

Born on 13 February in IXobho in the Diocese of Mariannhill, Bishop Mbuyisa joined the Congregation of Mariannhill Missionaries in 1992. He made his perpetual vows in 1997 and was ordained a priest in 2000.

His pastoral and academic career includes service as parish vicar, university chaplain, vice-director of novices, and formator in Nairobi, Kenya. He later became Provincial Superior of the Mariannhill Missionaries in East Africa and, in 2016, was elected Superior General of the Congregation—a role he held until his episcopal appointment in 2022.

He holds a Licentiate in Canon Law from Saint Paul University in Ottawa, Canada.

Church leaders have welcomed the news, describing it as a significant milestone for the Church in Southern Africa. The Dicastery appointment is seen as a recognition of Bishop Mbuyisa’s theological insight and deep commitment to the renewal of consecrated life.

His inclusion in the Vatican body is expected to amplify African perspectives within the Church’s global discourse on religious vocations and synodal renewal.

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