Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero, S.D.B., Archbishop of Rabat, Morocco, was born on 19 May 1952 in Vélez-Rubio, in the diocese of Almería, Spain. In 1964 he entered the religious family of the Salesians and was ordained a priest in 1979. After a long time in South America, he returned to his homeland as superior of the Salesian province of María Auxiliadora in 2017, and was appointed by Pope Francis as archbishop of Rabat.
He received episcopal ordination on 10 March 2018, and – maybe in one of the fastest process – created and proclaimed Cardinal by Pope Francis in the consistory of 5 October 2019, with title Cardinal-Priest of San Leone. Besides being a bishop and a cardinal, he is also a member of the fourth estate: in 1982 he obtained a diploma in information science, in the journalism school, at the autonomous University of Barcelona. humanity, to be, with Christ, builders of the Kingdom that He has come to announce, propose and inaugurate.
Interviewed by The Synodal Times, the cardinal, a priest immersed in the North African context and a man of dialogue, a pastor attentive to the demands of the most marginalised in society, spoke about the Synod and Africa, the challenges of the Church in Islamic lands, migration, and the Maghreb bishops’ reaction to the Fiducia Supplicans.
You were present at the Synod sessions and like you, many delegates from Africa (over 60). What significance does this event have for the African Church? The Synod on Synodality is being (because it is still ongoing) for every Christian a magnificent experience of “Catholicity”, universality, communion and participation in a common mission.
For Africa it has been an opportunity to become aware of existing as an African Church and to make its voice heard as such: the first time that a continental Assembly has been held with the participation of lay people, religious men and women, priests and bishops.
But at the same time it is an opportunity to discover the universal Church and not to fall into the temptation of closing in on itself. Africa has the possibility and the duty to share its Christian experience with the rest of the Church, but also the obligation to allow itself to be enriched, questioned and enlightened by the experiences of other places.
The Churches in North Africa live in an almost totally Islamic context, what is the main meaning of their presence? What are the main challenges and goals?
The meaning of our presence in North Africa is the same as in the rest of the world. We exist to be signs and bearers of God’s love for the world, to be a manifestation of God’s tenderness for humanity, to be a sacrament of the encounter or covenant that God wants to establish with The Church, neither here nor anywhere else, is not self-referential, it does not live for itself, it does not aim at self-aggrandisement and “fattening”.
Christ has been defined as “man-for-others”. The Church, the Body of Christ, must also be and exist “for others”, not for itself In North Africa, in a context of Islamic majority, we see this very clearly, it is evident to us; in countries with a Christian tradition and majority, it ends up being lost sight of and the Church can dangerously become closed in on itself, becoming an objective of itself, forgetting that it is a means to a greater end: the Kingdom of God.
The Churches of North Africa humbly wish to render this service to the universal Church: that the goal is the Kingdom of God. The objective, then, is unique, universal and of all times: to make peace, justice and freedom, life, truth and love reign in the world; that is to say, that God reigns in everything and in everyone.
And the challenge is to build this Kingdom by already being part of it, by being a visible sign of what we want the whole of humanity to be: a family, the family of God, in which He is the Father and we are all brothers and sisters; in short, universal brotherhood.
You became bishop and cardinal in a very short time, do you see this as a sign of the Holy Father’s special interest in the Maghreb Churches?
Yes, the fact that I have been named cardinal, with only a year and a half of episcopate, indicates that it is not something personal, but rather institutional. I believe that with this gesture the Pope wanted to give a boost to the Churches of North Africa, to the Churches that live in a predominantly Muslim environment and to all those who are committed to living and promoting the Islamo-Christian dialogue.
The question of migrants: Libya, Tunisia, Morocco itself are places of passage and often of great pain for hundreds of thousands of individuals, how does the Church position itself? The Pope has indicated to all Christians four verbs that express the attitudes with which we must face, as Christians and as citizens, the phenomenon of migration: welcome, protect, promote and integrate.
From Caritas, but not only, our Churches do their best to put into practice what these four words indicate, especially the first two; in promotion and integration we have fewer possibilities because they require time, and people who are in a situation of mobility do not stay with us for long, they are really just passing through.
Unlike the Churches of sub-Saharan Africa, the Churches of North Africa had a different attitude towards Fiducia Supplicans. In the final communiqué of the Cerna meeting in Rabat from 11 to 15 January, there is an invitation to the ecclesial communities to assess their concrete attitudes on reception and accompaniment in the light of the Document on the pastoral meaning of blessings. Can you tell us more about your position?
We start from three principles. First, the Christian doctrine on marriage and sexuality, which does not change but is reaffirmed. Second, the existence of people – not few – who live at a distance from the Christian ideal in this area, for various reasons, but who are Christians and want to come closer to that ideal.
And thirdly, the understanding that a blessing does not necessarily mean approval of the conduct of the person or persons blessed, but a request for help from God so that, with his grace and strength, they may be converted and improve in their life of faith.
If these three principles are accepted, it is logical that we use blessings as a spiritual and pastoral resource (third point) to bring people who are in an irregular and incorrect situation (second point) towards the ideal (first point).
These blessings, which do not condone the conduct of the recipient, are not obligatory; the priest can discern whether they are suitable or not and whether the necessary conditions are met (above all that there is no confusion or intention to assimilate them to the sacrament of marriage); therefore, in conscience, he decides whether to give them or not. But what a pastor cannot exempt or escape from is to welcome these people, to listen to them, to proclaim the Gospel to them, to pray with them and to accompany them in a discernment that will help them to come closer to God and to live their Christian life correctly.
Frankly, if we do all this, it matters little to me whether they are blessed or not: the welcome, the prayer, the affection with which they are treated, the reflections to which they are invited and the accompaniment they are offered will be the best blessing, beyond raising one’s hand and making the sign of the cross over them, however good that may be.
Are blessings the problem at hand… or is it the homophobia and moral rigidity that still nestle in the hearts of some Christians, whether pastors or lay people, and which translate into attitudes of rejection, contempt, discrimination and insult?
Luca Attanasio is a journalist, writer and teacher.
