Polycarp Pengo (born 5 August 1944) is a

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who was

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Dar-es-Salaam Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over ...

, Tanzania, from 1992 to 2019. A bishop since 1983, he was made a

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

in 1998.

Biography

Polycarp Pengo was born on 5 August 1944. He was ordained a priest in 1971, he studied Moral Theology in Rome at the

Pontifical Lateran University The Pontifical Lateran University ( it, Pontificia Università Lateranense; la, Pontificia Universitas Lateranensis), also known as Lateranum, is a pontifical university based in Rome. The university also hosts the central session of the Ponti ...

, obtaining a doctorate in 1977. He taught Moral theology in Kipalapala Theological Seminary for a short time, and then became the first Rector of

Segerea Segerea is an administrative ward in the Ilala District of the Dar es Salaam Region of Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the Afr ...

Theological Seminary in Dar-es-Salaam up to 1983. He was made Bishop of

Nachingwea Nachingwea is a district in the Lindi Region of Tanzania. The district is bordered to the north by the Ruangwa District, to the east by the Lindi Rural District, to the south-east by the Mtwara Region, and to the south-west by the Ruvuma Region. ...

(now

Lindi Lindi is a historic southern Tanzanian coastal small city and regional capital of the Lindi Region located at the far end of Lindi Bay, on the Indian Ocean in southeastern Tanzania. The town is south of Dar es Salaam and north of Mtwara, ...

) in 1983, and of Tunduru-Masasi in 1985. In 1990 he was named Coadjutor Archbishop of Dar es Salaam, and in 1992 he became Archbishop of Dar-es-Salaam, following the resignation of Cardinal

Laurean Rugambwa Laurean Rugambwa (July 12, 1912 – December 8, 1997) was the first modern native African Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Dar es Salaam from 1968 to 1992, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1960. Biography Laurea ...

. Pengo was proclaimed a

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistory ...

of 21 February 1998. Pengo was one of the

cardinal electors A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

who participated in the

2005 papal conclave The 2005 papal conclave was convened to elect a new pope following the death of Pope John Paul II on 2 April 2005. After his death, the cardinals of the Catholic Church who were in Rome met and set a date for the beginning of the conclave to elec ...

that elected

Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

and in the

2013 papal conclave The 2013 papal conclave was convened to elect a pope to succeed Pope Benedict XVI following his resignation on 28 February 2013. After the 115 participating cardinal-electors gathered, they set 12 March 2013 as the beginning of the conclave. On ...

that elected

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

. He has the following

Curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...

l Memberships Evangelization of the Peoples, Doctrine of Faith (congregations).

Interreligious Dialogue Interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions (i.e. "faiths") and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels. It is ...

, Culture (councils) Special Council for Africa of the General of the Synod of Bishops. Since 2007 he has been president of the SECAM (

Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar The Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar or SECAM ( French: Symposium des Conférences Épiscopales d'Afrique et de Madagascar) is an agency of the Catholic Church which includes the bishops of Africa and Madagascar. Histo ...

). On 18 September 2012, he was appointed by

as a Synod Father for the upcoming October 2012 13th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops.

accepted his retirement as archbishop on 15 August 2019.

Views

Homosexuality

In 2000, Pengo hit out at the commission of homosexual acts, saying it was one of the most heinous sins on earth.

Clashes in Tanzania

In 2004, he lashed out at the perpetrators of clashes claiming to pursue a religious cause.

Church teaching on AIDS

Pengo has declared that the AIDS epidemic cannot be overcome by relying exclusively or primarily on the distribution of prophylactics, but only through a strategy based on education to individual responsibility in the framework of a moral view of human sexuality.

References

External links

*
Cardinal Pengo's catholic-pages bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pengo, Polycarp 1944 births Living people Pontifical Lateran University alumni Tanzanian cardinals Tanzanian Roman Catholic archbishops 20th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Africa 21st-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Africa Cardinals created by Pope John Paul II 20th-century cardinals Roman Catholic archbishops of Dar-es-Salaam Roman Catholic bishops of Lindi Roman Catholic bishops of Tunduru–Masasi