Guinean cardinal Robert Sarah, 79, emerges as one of the main bets of the conservative wing of the Catholic Church to succeed Pope Francis. If chosen at the Conclave, Sarah could become the first African – and also the first black – to occupy the throne of St. Peter.
Known for his conservative positions, Sarah was appointed Cardinal in November 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI. During the pontificate of Francis, he gained notoriety as one of the most critical voices to the reforms promoted by the Argentine Pope.
In 2023, for example, he spoke against Francis’ decision that authorized the blessing to same-sex couples, provided it was not confused with the sacrament of marriage. “The freedom we should offer to people living in homosexual unions lies in the truth of God’s Word,” he told the Italian blog Settimo Cielo at the time. He added that these people would be “in prison” of sin.
Born on June 15, 1945, in the village of Ourous, Guinea, he had a trajectory marked by overcoming. After high school, he left the country to continue his studies at the Minor Seminary of Bingerville, on the Ivory Coast. With the independence of Guinea in 1958, he returned to the country and concluded religious formation. He was ordained priest on July 20, 1969 in Conacri.
Following, he studied theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, and deepened in Scripture at the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum in Jerusalem. After returning to Guinea, he assumed the rectory of the Minor Seminary of Kindia and served as a parish priest in various locations in the country, such as Bokè, Katace, Koundara and his homeland, Ourous.
In August 1979, at the age of 34, he was appointed Archbishop of Conacri by John Paul II, becoming the youngest bishop in the world, nicknamed by the Polish Pope of “Bishop Baby.” His consecration occurred in December of the same year.
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With extensive experience in the Roman Curia, Sarah was appointed secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of People in 2001 and began to preside over the Pontifical Council Cor Unum in 2010. In 2014, he assumed the position of mayor of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the discipline of the sacraments, which he held until February 2021.
Participated in the 2013 Conclave, which elected Pope Francis, and is now considered a strong name to lead the Catholic Church in a new cycle.
