03/08/2026
At Buea, the message was loud and clear. Bishop Michael Bibi of the Diocese of Buea addressed his congregation without mincing words. His message? Women should stop pursuing Catholic priests. Period. He reminded the faithful that priests have chosen a life of celibacy, they are not going to marry, and that is not about to change. So why keep insisting? Buea is full of single men, he noted, men who are ready to build families. Women should instead direct their attention toward them.
But the bishop did not stop there. In his view, such behavior is one of the factors contributing to the challenges facing the Church today. Bishops and priests, he said, are being harassed by members of their own congregations, and this has become one of the root causes of the Church's struggles.
It was a candid and unusually blunt statement, a sharp contrast to the more measured tone often associated with Church leaders. Unsurprisingly, it has sparked widespread reactions. Across Catholic communities in Cameroon, people are already discussing the often-sensitive relationships between some faithful and members of the clergy—an issue that has long remained largely unspoken, but which has now been brought into the open by the bishop himself.
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