Pope hails joy of Angola’s people, denounces extractivism
April 18, 2026
Pope Leo XIV arrived this afternoon in Angola, the third nation he is visiting during his apostolic journey to four African nations.
Located in southern Africa (map), the nation of 39 million is 92% Christian (52% Catholic) and 6% ethnic religionist.
Following a welcome ceremony at Quatro de Fevereiro Airport in Luanda (video), Pope Leo paid a courtesy visit to President João Lourenço (video). He then addressed political civil leaders and members of the diplomatic corps.
“I desire to meet you in the spirit born of peace and to affirm that your people possess treasures that cannot be bought or taken away,” the Pope said. “In particular, there dwells within you a joy that not even the most adverse circumstances have been able to extinguish.”
“This joy—which is no stranger to sorrow, indignation, disappointment and defeat—endures and is continually reborn among those who have kept their hearts and minds free from the seductions of wealth,” the Pope continued. “You know well that all too often people have looked—and continue to look—to your lands in order to give, or, more commonly, in order to take. It is necessary to break this cycle of interests, which reduces reality, and even life itself, to mere commodities.”
The Pope added:
Dear friends, I have mentioned the material riches upon which powerful interests lay their claim, even within your own country. How much suffering, how many deaths, how many social and environmental disasters are brought about by this logic of extractivism! At every level, we see how it sustains a model of development that discriminates and excludes, while still presuming to impose itself as the only viable option. ...
You are witnesses—thanks to the ancient wisdom that shapes your thoughts and sensibilities—that creation is harmony in the richness of diversity. Your people have suffered time and again when this harmony was violated by the arrogance of a few. They bear the scars not only of material exploitation, but also of the presumption of imposing an idea upon others. Africa urgently needs to overcome situations and dynamics of conflict and enmity that tear apart the social and political fabric of many countries, fostering poverty and exclusion.
“Do not be afraid of disagreement; do not suppress the ideas of the young or the dreams of the elderly; and know how to manage conflicts by transforming them into paths of renewal,” the Pope advised the nation’s political and civil leaders. “Place the common good before every particular interest, never confusing your own part with the whole. History will then vindicate you, even if in the near term some may oppose you.”
The Pontiff concluded:
Together, you can make Angola a project of hope. The Catholic Church, whose service to the country I know you greatly esteem, desires to be leaven in the dough and to foster the growth of a just model of coexistence, free from the various forms of slavery imposed by the elite who are laden with much wealth but false joys.
Only together can we multiply the talents of this wonderful people, even in the urban peripheries and the remotest rural areas, where life is vibrant and the future of the people is being prepared. Let us remove the obstacles to integral human development, working and hoping together alongside those whom the world has discarded but whom God has chosen.
For thus our hope has arisen: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone” (Ps 118:22), Jesus Christ, the fullness of man and of history. May God bless Angola!
CWN coverage of Pope Leo’s apostolic journey to Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea:
Day 1 (April 13)
- Pope departs for Africa
- Pope Leo: ‘I have no fear of the Trump administration’
- I am ‘very happy’ to visit the land of St. Augustine, Pope says on flight to Algeria
- ‘The future belongs to men and women of peace,’ Pope says in first Algerian address
- Pope calls on Algeria’s leaders to promote ‘vibrant, dynamic, and free civil society’
- Pope visits Great Mosque of Algiers, recalls St. Augustine’s search for truth
- Pope emphasizes prayer, charity, unity in address to Algerian Catholics
Day 2 (April 14)
Day 3 (April 15)
- Pope bids farewell to Algeria, departs for Cameroon
- Pope, in remarks to journalists, highlights importance, relevance of St. Augustine
- Pope calls on Cameroon to embrace peace, break chains of corruption
- ‘Jesus cares especially for children like you,’ Pope tells orphans in Cameroon
Day 4 (April 16)
- Pope hails peacemaking efforts of Christian, Muslim leaders in Cameroon
- Now is the time to change this country, Pope preaches in Cameroon
- Pope meets with several Muslim leaders in Cameroon
Day 5 (April 17)
- ‘Bring the bread of life to your neighbors,’ Pope preaches in Cameroon’s largest city
- Societies flourish on the foundation of upright consciences that seek the truth, Pope tells university students
Day 6 (April 18)
- Draw near to the suffering and the poor, as Jesus did, Pope preaches at final Cameroon Mass
- Pope Leo departs from Cameroon, says his remarks there did not refer to President Trump
- Pope hails joy of Angola’s people, denounces extractivism
Day 7 (April 19)
- Pope, at Mass in Angola, warns faithful against syncretism, encourages them to ‘become like broken bread’
- Pope renews call for peace in Ukraine, Middle East
- May the Mother of the Heart make our hearts like hers, Pope says at Rosary in Angola
Day 8 (April 20)
- Pope flies to remote Angolan city, visits nursing home
- Reject superstition and follow Christ in freedom, Pope preaches at Mass in Angola
- ‘The first path is fidelity to Christ,’ Pope tells Angola’s priests and religious
Day 9 (April 21)
- Pope departs from Angola, heads to Equatorial Guinea
- Addressing journalists, Pope Leo recalls Pope Francis, says no date set to name new cardinals
- Serve the city of God and not love of self, Pope exhorts Equatorial Guinea’s leaders
- In Christ, the harmony between truth, reason, and freedom is manifest, Pope tells university community
- In Christian civilization, the sick are loved, Pope says at psychiatric hospital
Day 10 (April 22)
- Pope emphasizes the Eucharist and evangelization at Mass in Equatorial Guinea
- Pope tells prisoners: ‘No one is excluded from God’s love!’
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