Introductory Note

Mr Bickley has received this article from Samuel Waveru, who says he is from Kenya. Mr Bickley’s  first inclination was not to publish it, as is both irrelevant to the work of the Libertarian Alliance and inflammatory in tone. However, I have suggested that it is an opportunity for me to attempt a refutation of a particular set of claims that even some Catholics on the political right have not fully denounced. I therefore begin with Mr Waveru’s article in full as it was supplied to me. I then make my reply.

If anyone disagrees with my reply, I ask that disagreement should follow my own division, between what may be true in terms of political expediency and what is true in terms of the unchanging truth of religion. I appreciate that some commenters may wish to make an ad hominem attack on me, as I am of immigrant heritage. But I will say now that this line of argument does not touch the matters under discussion, where arguments stand or fall on wholly objective considerations of religious truth.

Sebastian

Do We Need a Black Pope?
Samuel Waveru

The Pope is dead, and 1.4 billion Catholics around the world are in mourning. As is customary, we have entered Sede Vacante, which is to say “the period of the empty throne.” The world is about to witness an honored tradition as a new theocratic monarch is elected. The pomp and color associated with the ritual of electing a new Pope have always fascinated the public. The rigid structure, mystical rites, and ancient customs are what give the Catholic Church its gravitas.

For many Catholics, the question of who will have been chosen when the white smoke rises above the conclave is more important today than ever before. This is especially true for Catholics in the West. It is no secret that Western civilization is in crisis; a crisis of meaning, identity, and confidence. At a time when Western society is fractured and moral boundaries are constantly shifting, the Church is supposed to be a beacon of hope and unity. But for many, it no longer feels that way. Pope Francis has left a legacy of division and conflict. In the ongoing culture war, he chose to side with the Left on nearly every issue—from LGBT matters and economics to migration and climate change. He even excommunicated Archbishop Viganò, who was popular with MAGA conservatives.

The question of who should be Pope is therefore of interest not just to Western Catholics but to conservatives in general. Given the unpopularity of the late Pope among right-wingers, many do not want to see a repeat of the same. To this effect, many Western conservatives are now discussing the benefits of choosing a Pope from Africa. Given the current conditions, this seems quite logical. As Dwight Longenecker points out, while church attendance in the West has been declining for decades, “African churches are filled with young, enthusiastic worshippers.” The Catholic churches in Africa also have “vibrant liturgies, packed seminaries, and a growing number of vocations to the priesthood and religious life,” all of which are lacking in the West.

Equally important, Longenecker notes that the African clergy have not been infected by “the ideas of the Protestant Reformation, the Enlightenment, the Scientific Revolution, Liberalism, Modernism, and Postmodernism.” Longenecker is not alone in his beliefs, as is evidenced by several conservative influencers pushing similar messages on X (formerly Twitter). On paper, it seems to make sense to look outside for a cure to what ails the West.

As compelling as these arguments may be, I believe it is important to inspect the matter more deeply. While it’s true that African priests are culturally conservative on issues such as feminism and LGBT, they are not strong thinkers on issues related to race and migration. Given current demographic trends in the West that are leading toward an irrevocable collapse, it behooves us to examine the papal question with this in mind.

Many African priests, despite being good people, have accepted leftist narratives that depict Europeans as racists who must make amends for perceived past injustices like colonialism. The reason this matters is that Western society can recover from damage done by cultural decay—such as feminism and LGBT ideology—but it can never recover from the tremendous damage caused by poor racial and immigration policies. An African Pope who opposes transgenderism but supports unrestricted immigration into the West is not a meaningful solution.

The most conspicuous exception to this observation would have to be the anti-woke Cardinal Robert Sarah, who is very popular with Western conservatives. He is vehemently opposed to reckless immigration policies and rejects anti-white hatred. Cardinal Sarah would certainly make a better Pope than most Europeans or Americans.

As impressive as Cardinal Sarah is, there is a deeper question that Westerners must ask themselves—namely, what is the purpose of religion? The etymology of the word religion means “to bind.” Religion is meant to hold a group of people together. But on what grounds should it bind people? Is it merely based on a shared belief in a particular divine mythology, or is there a deeper and more crucial factor?

The etymology of the word Catholic is literally “universal.” Catholicism is therefore a Universalist doctrine. It has no racial considerations attached to it; one believer is considered as good as another and is thus interchangeable.

The exact opposite of this outlook can be observed by looking at two distinct groups—namely, the Jewish religion and the few remaining European pagans. The Jewish religion is something many Westerners would profit from studying. It doesn’t just bind Jews through common mythologies and sacred narratives. More important than this, is the belief that Jews are united by race and blood. A Jew is identified by DNA first, not by faith. Yahweh is a tribal God. This is a healthy and admirable way to live as far as racial survival is concerned. Given current demographic patterns, racial survival is something Europeans need to think deeply about.

The second group worth studying is the small but growing number of European pagans. The conquest of the West by Christianity centuries ago erased the previous organic religions across Europe that prioritized racial, tribal, and clan loyalties.

It is interesting to note that the few Europeans who still practice Ásatrú (the worship of Norse gods) or Hellenism often exhibit strong racial consciousness. They also tend to have un-egalitarian views on feminism and LGBT issues. Many of them see bearing children as a sacred duty. Additionally, many pagan groups have concluded that small, decentralized societies based on bioregionalism are healthy for their faith. An unintended but positive consequence of this outlook is that decentralization naturally limits state power.

While some European pagans might look a bit odd or even silly dressed in old-fashioned clothing and practicing strange rituals, they at least take pride in their racial identity. (Some pagans do hold leftist views on race, culture, and economics, but these are usually modernists using paganism as a form of countercultural cosplay.)

Whether the West chooses Catholicism or rediscovers its ancestral faiths is not the central issue. What matters is that religion—true religion—must do more than provide divine mythologies. It must bind people together in the most essential ways: through a shared blood, a shared heritage, and a shared will to survive.

The west needs a faith with two crucial principles: First is racial consciousness. The second is an anti-egalitarian perspective on gender roles, economics, and culture. Ultimately, group survival must be prioritized over universalism.

We Only Need a Catholic Pope
Sebastian Wang

Dear Mr Waveru,

Thank you for presenting your reflections. I acknowledge the thought and evident passion you have devoted to them. However, as a faithful Catholic who places the truth of the Faith above all earthly attachments, I must respond—formally and without ambiguity—that your argument is fundamentally in error.

You write that “religion—true religion—must do more than provide divine mythologies. It must bind people together in the most essential ways: through a shared blood, a shared heritage, and a shared will to survive.” I assure you that this is not, and has never been, the religion instituted by Our Lord Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church binds men together not by blood or race, but by faith, hope, and charity. Our unity is not based on the corruptible and mutable accidents of ancestry, but on the incorruptible bond of supernatural grace.

You correctly note that religio means “to bind.” Yet you err gravely in imagining that this binding ought to be that of blood and tribe. From the beginning, the Church has taught that man is bound to God and, through God, to one another—οἳ οὐκ ἐξ αἱμάτων, οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος σαρκὸς, οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος ἀνδρὸς, ἀλλ’ ἐκ Θεοῦ ἐγεννήθησαν (Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.¹)

You lament that Catholicism is “a Universalist doctrine,” observing that “one believer is considered as good as another and is thus interchangeable.” Again, this is no defect, but the perfection of the Faith: καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Πορευθέντες εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἅπαντα κηρύξατε τὸ εὐαγγέλιον πάσῃ τῇ κτίσει (And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.²)

Catholicism is catholic—universal—because God Himself wills: ὃς πάντας ἀνθρώπους θέλει σωθῆναι καὶ εἰς ἐπίγνωσιν ἀληθείας ἐλθεῖν (Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.³)

You praise Judaism’s racial exclusivity, writing that Jews are “united by race and blood” and that this is “a healthy and admirable way to live.” You also admire the racial consciousness of neo-pagan movements. In doing so, you propose to exchange the light of Christ for the tribalism of the Old Covenant, or for the idolatries of the Gentiles. This is not a renewal but a regression into darkness.

The Catholic Church has consistently rejected ethnic exclusivism. As Pope Gregory XVI taught in In Supremo Apostolatus (1839):

Monemus et obtestamur in Domino, ut nulla quis posthac audeat injuste vexare Indos, Nigritas, aut alios hujusmodi homines; aut bona eorum diripere, aut in servitutem redigere.
(We admonish and entreat in the Lord, that no one in future dare unjustly to molest Indians, Blacks, or other such men; or to despoil them of their goods, or to reduce them to slavery.⁴)

Thus, all men stand equal before the altar of God. No race is privileged; no tribe is exalted above others in the order of grace.

Saint Thomas Aquinas similarly affirms the fundamental unity of mankind. In the Summa Theologiae:

Omnes homines natura sunt unus homo.
(All men by nature are one man.⁵)

And Blessed Pius IX declares in Quanto Conficiamur Moerore (1863):

Omnes enim homines, tametsi in peccato originali nati, veram vitam in Iesu Christo habere possunt.
(For all men, although born in original sin, can have true life in Jesus Christ.⁶)

There is no place in Catholic doctrine for a racial hierarchy.

Moreover, your argument lacks focus in detail. You praise Cardinal Robert Sarah for opposing reckless immigration and anti-white hatred, and yet you insist that an African Pope would be unsuitable because “religion must bind people together” by “shared blood.” Which principle do you follow? If he shares your political opinions, he is better than those who do not. Because he is black, he is unworthy regardless. In either case, you have ceased to think as a Catholic.

I turn to your argument, that “Western society can recover from damage done by cultural decay—such as feminism and LGBT ideology—but it can never recover from the tremendous damage caused by poor racial and immigration policies.” Here, I am with you to a degree. It is true that Western immigration policies in recent decades have been reckless and damaging. They should be resisted firmly and prudently. However—and this must be stated without compromise—this is a secular matter. It is a question of public prudence, not of divine revelation. The Catholic Church, as the guardian of the deposit of faith, has no more to say on these political matters than She does on scientific controversies. Just as She did not define whether the sun or the earth moves, She does not define whether immigration levels should be high or low. Her concern is the salvation of souls, not the ethnic composition of Europe.

Furthermore, your admiration for modern pagan movements demands rebuke. You write that pagans “exhibit strong racial consciousness” and “un-egalitarian views on feminism and LGBT issues.” Even if some of them reject modern degeneracy, they do so not in the name of truth, but in the name of blood and soil and the worship of false gods. European paganism was, and remains, a collection of superstitions born of darkness and fear, overthrown by the Cross of Christ. Its revival is not a harmless curiosity. It is a conscious rejection of the one true God. As Scripture declares: ὅτι πάντες θεοὶ τῶν ἐθνῶν δαιμόνια (For all the gods of the nations are idols.⁷). Those who would restore it, however “racially conscious” they may be, offer incense to demons.

You conclude that “Ultimately, group survival must be prioritised over universalism.” I answer that this is the logic of the world, not of Christ: τί γὰρ ὠφελήσει ἄνθρωπον ἐὰν κερδήσῃ τὸν κόσμον ὅλον, καὶ ζημιωθῇ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ; (For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?⁸) How much less shall it profit him to preserve his racial group while forfeiting eternal life?

Thus, while I share your horror at the corruption within the Church and society, I flatly reject your proposed solution. You would rebuild Christendom on the sand of racial consciousness, when the only true foundation is Christ:

Θεμέλιον γὰρ ἄλλον οὐδεὶς δύναται θεῖναι παρὰ τὸν κείμενον, ὅς ἐστιν Ἰησοῦς Χριστός
(For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.⁹)

In short, whether the next Pope is black or white—or, indeed, Chinese—is a matter of zero concern to a Catholic believer. All we can want as Catholics is that he should be an orthodox Catholic.

Therefore, I urge you, with the full charity of truth: abandon these tribal fantasies. Return to Christ. Return to His Church. Return to the Cross.

In Christ the King and under the protection of the Immaculate Virgin,

Sebastian

¹ John 1:13, Greek Text from Nestle-Aland 28th ed.; KJV translation.
² Mark 16:15, Greek Text; KJV translation.
³ 1 Timothy 2:4, Greek Text; KJV translation.
⁴ Gregory XVI, In Supremo Apostolatus, 1839.
⁵ Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae I, q. 96, a. 4, ad 1.
⁶ Pius IX, Quanto Conficiamur Moerore, 1863.
⁷ Psalm 96:5 (LXX); KJV Psalm 96:5.
⁸ Mark 8:36, Greek Text; KJV translation.
⁹ 1 Corinthians 3:11, Greek Text; KJV translation.