His Holiness Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of His Eminence Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya, and has appointed Coadjutor-Archbishop Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, OFMCap. as Archbishop of Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo). The Holy See’s Press Office made the announcement in its communiqué on the Feast of All Saints.
The Archbishop was born in 1960 in Boto, in the Diocese of Molegbe. He pronounced vows as a Franciscan in the Order of Friars Minor in 1981, was ordained a priest in 1988, and holds a degree in Moral Theology from the Alphonsianum. His Grace Archbishop Besungu has served as a parish priest, professor at the Catholic University of Kinshasa, as a major superior for his Order in the DRC, and as President of the Assembly of Major Superiors (ASUMA). He then became Bishop of the Diocese of Bokungu-Ikela in 2005.
His Excellency Archbishop Besungu has served as Apostolic Administrator of Kole and Mbandaka-Bikoro, and as President of the Bishops’ “Justice and Peace” Commission. In 2016 he became Vice-President of the National Episcopal Conference (CENCO) and Coadjutor-Archbishop of Kinshasa.
Source: Vatican news
