African Catholic: Decolonization and the Transformation of the Church by Elizabeth Foster (review)

Foster performs a veritable tour de force in this book that strides political, social, intellectual, and religious history, equitably balances French and African voices, and covers the time period between the 1946 Fund for Economic and Social Development (instrumental for infrastructure, missionary and social programs in French Africa) and the 1962 second Vatican council that deeply changed the Catholic church. The second Vatican council debated crucial issues posed by the decolonization of French Africa: a European vs. universal, traditional vs. modern Church, Catholicism as a conservative pillar of order or a liberating force for subjugated people, and Catholicism in its relations with other faiths. Foster persuasively shows how "decolonization was a pivotal factor in the reorientation of the church in the mid-twentieth century" (13) and, by choosing the prism of religion, offers a new perspective on (post)colonialism, independence, and Négritude. In seven thematic, minutely-researched chapters—the book is based on intensive archival work with 70 pages of notes—Foster offers a comprehensive view of the turbulent, rapidly-changing, politically-charged period and untangles the skein of issues and points of view then at work, examining the manner in which they influenced one another. When tackling Négritude, instead of Senghor, she showcases the less famous Alioune Diop, whose journal and publishing house Présence africaine (among other ventures) ensured the movement's lasting impact, and who advocated for the respect of African dignity (in the spirit of French Catholic intellectual Emmanuel Mounier's personalism) and support for African self-determination. Foster frames the 1956 dispute between Fathers Michel and Ducattillon as an illustration of the ideological and generational chasm among French Catholics. She singles out Spiritan priest—consecrated bishop of Conakry in 1962—Raymond-Marie Tchidimbo, another Mounier follower and the author of the 1963 essays L'homme noir dans l'Église, to exemplify the religious, interpersonal, racial, but also political challenges African prelates had to face and maneuver around, as attested by the front cover picture of Tchidimbo with Sékou Touré, who expelled French Catholic missionaries from Guinea in 1967 (back cover picture). She pits archbishop of Dakar Marcel Lefebvre, who supported the colonial order, opposed all innovations in the church, and equated Islam with communism, against his successor Hyacinthe Thiandoum, whose support of a dialogue between Catholics and Muslims influenced pope Paul VI. Pope John XXIII stands out, as he ushered in an era of openness and took the church in a more universal and liberal direction, presiding over key steps in the transition from a missionary French colonial church to an African-led postcolonial one. Male-centered because the church is, this book does address African women and nuns in its last chapter. It also addresses the often-overlooked African Catholic students whose activism lent them the Vatican's attention. With its abundant sources, its list of archives and key periodicals, this book is an essential tool for researchers. Its subject matter, clear organization, jargon-free language, tables, and illustrations make it a compelling and enjoyable read for all.