The Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC), with the endorsement of President Cyril Ramaphosa, has extended an official invitation to Pope Leo XIV to visit South Africa.

The invitation, which emerged from discussions during the SACBC’s August plenary session and was later confirmed during President Ramaphosa’s recent audience with the Holy Father at the Vatican, marks a significant milestone in the relationship between the Church and the State.

In an interview with the SACBC Communication Office shortly after returning from Rome on Monday, November 10, Cardinal Stephen Brislin, Archbishop of Johannesburg and Apostolic Administrator of Cape Town, reflected on the meaning and potential of this gesture.

“You would have read that President Ramaphosa, on behalf of the South African government, invited Pope Leo to visit South Africa,” Cardinal Brislin said.

“He was endorsing the resolution made by the Southern African Catholic Bishops at the end of the August plenary session that we would invite the Pope ourselves as the Catholic Church. But when a Pope visits a country, it’s necessary for both the Church and the government to invite him, because he is both the shepherd of the Catholic Church and he is the head of state. So, it takes the cooperation between the state and the church to organise and to welcome the Holy Father to a country,” He explained.

In a separate interview with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), Cardinal Brislin said the Pope’s potential visit would extend beyond the Catholic Church. “A visit by the Holy Father would be for everyone,” he said.

A Hopeful Yet Measured Outlook

While the invitation to Pope Leo has been extended, Cardinal Brislin cautioned against premature expectations.

“We mustn’t get too excited,” he said with a smile. “It’s a very important step, and we are grateful to President Ramaphosa for endorsing our wish that Pope Leo come here. However, this is an invitation to him; it doesn’t mean that the invitation has been accepted or will automatically be accepted. He has, of course, many, many invitations from different countries to visit them, and he’s only one person; he can only do what he can do.”

He also noted that if Pope Leo XIV were to accept the invitation, the process of preparation would take considerable time, involving close coordination between the Vatican, the local Church, and the state.

“Even if he does accept it, it’s not going to be that quick,” Cardinal Brislin said. “These visits take a great deal of time to prepare and to organise. But let’s keep praying that it will happen.”

A Meeting Months in the Making

Cardinal Brislin confirmed that he had been approached months earlier by representatives of the South African government to assist in facilitating the meeting. “The meeting between President Ramaphosa and Pope Leo was months in the planning,” he said.

During his visit to Rome, President Ramaphosa also paid tribute to Pope Francis, visiting the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore to lay flowers at his tomb. Cardinal Brislin described the moment as deeply moving:

“After he had done so, some of the South African priests who are studying or working in Rome sang a hymn, and we said a very short prayer outside the basilica. It was a wonderful opportunity for the priests to meet with the president, who was very genial, very courteous, and very open to that, very humorous.”

Building Bridges Through Shared Values

The Vatican, officially recognized as an independent sovereign state, occupies a unique position in global diplomacy. As Cardinal Brislin noted, it is unlike any other state.

“The Vatican is a recognized independent state… but it’s unlike any other state; we don’t have an army in the Vatican. There are, of course, the Swiss Guards, but they are there to defend. They are not an army that would seek to invade another country or another place,” he explained.

 “What makes the Vatican State very different as well is the values with which we operate, because truly the Vatican is trying to promote the values of the kingdom of God, the values that Jesus taught us in the gospel,” he added.

Reflecting on the broader meaning of President Ramaphosa’s meeting with Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Brislin emphasized that the Vatican’s approach to diplomacy is rooted not in politics, but in moral leadership and the desire to build unity.

“I think the recognition on the part of the South African government is that there is a need for us to work together, not only as the Vatican and the South African government, but working together with all those who share the ideals of peace, of equality, of justice, of promoting the dignity of human beings… to align ourselves together for that purpose.”

The Cardinal concluded his message with a call for continued prayer and collaboration:

“I think that we do need to really pray for this endeavour, that by working together with the Vatican and through the Vatican, working with many other countries with similar aims and values, that we can together make the world a better place and build bridges among people.”