Aboard Flight to Angola, Pope Leo XIV Clarifies Purpose of Africa Journey: “I primarily come to Africa as a pastor”

By ACI Africa Staff

Aboard the papal plane, 18 April, 2026 / 11:48 pm (ACI Africa).

Aboard the papal flight from Cameroon to Angola, Pope Leo XIV offered journalists a clarification of the purpose of his ongoing Apostolic Journey to Africa, stressing that the visit is fundamentally pastoral while also addressing misunderstandings surrounding comments linked to the U.S. President, Donald Trump.

Opening his remarks with greetings, the Holy Father reflected on the significance of the Cameroon leg of his four-nation African visit, describing the Central African nation as symbolically central to the continent.

“The visit in Cameroon was very significant because in many ways it represents the heart of Africa in many different ways,” he said, and explained, “They are English-speaking and French-speaking, around 250 local languages and [ethnicities]. At the same time, it has great wealth and great opportunity, but also the difficulty that we find throughout Africa of many times an unequal distribution of wealth.”

St. Augustine of Hippo at the Center of the Apostolic Journey

Pope Leo XIV also spoke about the spiritual inspiration guiding the journey, which began earlier in Algeria with a focus on the legacy of St. Augustine of Hippo, one of Christianity’s most influential theologians and a native of the North African nation.

“I was personally very pleased, as you know we began the trip in Algeria with the theme of Saint Augustine,” the Pope explained, and continued, “Yesterday at the Catholic University we had the blessing of beautiful monument they had prepared, which was a map of Africa, and Saint Augustine at the center.”

For the American-born member of the Order of St. Augustine (OSA), who served as Prior General of the worldwide family in the Catholic Church inspired by the life and spirituality of St. Augustine of Hippo from 2001 to 2013, that image at the Yaoundé-based Catholic University of Central Africa (UCAC) captured the spiritual logic of his Apostolic Journey to Africa. 

“So, in one sense (it) expresses part of what this trip is about, and I primarily come to Africa as a pastor, as the head of the Catholic Church to be with and to celebrate with, to encourage and accompany, all of the Catholics throughout Africa,” he clarified.

Dialogue beyond the Catholic community

While emphasizing the pastoral character of the visit, Pope Leo XIV acknowledged that his Apostolic Journey also carries broader interreligious dimensions.

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He pointed in particular to a meeting with Muslim leaders during his stay in Cameroon.

“Yet of course there are other dimensions to the visit,” he said, and recalled, “I had a very fine meeting with a group of imams in Cameroon to continue to promote, as we’ve done in other places already, and as Pope Francis has done during his pontificate, the dialogue, promotion of fraternity to understanding acceptance (and) peacebuilding for people of all faiths.”

Clarifying Controversy with U.S. President

The Pope also addressed media interpretations that emerged after comments made by the U.S. president, Donald Trump, on the eve of the Papal pastoral trip to Africa.

On April 12, President Trump publicly attacked Pope Leo XIV on social media, calling the pontiff "WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy" in a lengthy post that appeared to be reacting to the Holy Father's recent appeals for peace and an end to war.

In comments to reporters at Joint Base Andrews shortly afterward, Trump said: "I don't think he's doing a very good job. … I am not a fan of Pope Leo." He added: "He's a very liberal person."

According to the Holy Father, subsequent coverage misinterpreted his remarks as part of a political exchange.

“There’s been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all of its aspects,” he said, explaining that commentary had tried to link his public speeches to the political controversy.

Pope Leo XIV gave a specific example involving a prayer meeting for peace held during his ongoing pastoral visit to Africa.

“The talk that I gave at the prayer meeting for peace a couple of days ago was prepared two weeks ago, well before the president (Trump) ever commented on myself and on the message of peace that I am promoting,” the Holy Father said aboard his flight from Cameroon to Angola on April 18. 

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“And yet as it happens, it was looked at as if I was trying to debate, again, the president, which is not in my interest at all,” he further said.

Continuing the mission of the Gospel

Reiterating the broader purpose of his Apostolic Journey, the Pontiff stressed that the Church’s mission remains centered on proclaiming the Gospel and promoting peace and justice.

“So, we go on the journey, we continue proclaiming the Gospel message,” he said.

Reflecting on the liturgical themes of his Apostolic Journey, the Holy Father noted that the Gospel readings used during the visit emphasize key elements of Christian life.

He said, “The texts of the Gospels that we have been using for the liturgies give a number of different fantastic, beautiful aspects of what it’s about to be Christian, of what it’s about to follow Christ, of what it’s about to promote fraternity and brotherhood, trusting in the Lord, but also looking for ways to promote justice in our world, to promote peace in our world.”

Enthusiasm of the faithful in Cameroon

Pope Leo XIV also expressed gratitude to the people of God in Cameroon for their reception during his four-day visit to the country.

“I would just like to thank everyone in Cameroon for the wonderful welcome and the great enthusiasm,” he said.

The Holy Father went on to recall his time in three ecclesiastical provinces in Cameroon,  Yaoundé, Bamenda, and Douala, saying, “The joy of the people was absolutely fantastic. The experience of a faith community, people who really discovered in the shared enthusiasm, if you will, how wonderful it is to experience what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ and to celebrate our faith together.”

“That enthusiasm was very much present in Cameroon,” he said, and added. “I’m very happy to have had the experience and to accompany all of your people during these days.”

In Angola, Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to preside over Holy Mass in the Kilamba district of Luanda on Sunday, April 19 morning, before traveling by helicopter to the Marian shrine of Mama Muxima, where he is to lead the recitation of the Holy Rosary with pilgrims gathered at one of Angola’s most significant places of Catholic devotion.

On Monday, April 20, the Holy Father is to visit Saurimo in Angola’s Eastern region. His program there includes a visit to a nursing home and the celebration of Holy Mass in the Saurimo esplanade. 

Later that day in Luanda, the Holy Father is scheduled to meet Catholic Bishops, Priests, women and men Religious, and pastoral workers at the Our Lady of Fatima Parish.

The final leg of the Apostolic Journey is to take the Holy Father to Equatorial Guinea on Tuesday, April 21, where he will conclude the four-nation trip on Thursday, April 23, having visited Malabo, Mongomo, and Bata.

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