Cardinal Richard Baawobr, 63 years old Ghanaian, of the African Missions Society, passed away on the afternoon of November 27, three months after being appointed a cardinal by the Pope on August 27 of this year. .
G. Tran Duc Anh, OP | RVA
Last Sunday afternoon, November 27, the headquarters of the Superior General of the African Missionary Society in Rome, known as the White Orders, said: “The cardinal was transported to the Gemelli hospital at 5 o'clock. 45 minutes later that same day, but 40 minutes later we received the sad news that the Cardinal had passed away. May Cardinal Richard rest in peace in the Lord he generously served... We also pray for his family, diocese and brother bishops, friends and acquaintances of the cardinal." .
Cardinal Richard Baawobr was born in 1959, joined the Society of African Missions and was ordained a priest in 1987 and served as Superior General, from 2010 to 2016, the first African to hold this position. In 2016, he was appointed by the Holy See as bishop of the Diocese of Wa, his hometown.
At noon on Sunday, May 29, the Feast of the Assumption, the Pope announced his appointment as a cardinal, during the following August 27 synod at the Vatican along with 19 others.
Then, on July 30 of this year, he was elected President of the Union of Bishops' Conferences for Africa and Madagascar, or SECAM for short, during its 19th session in the city of Accra in Ghana.
When he arrived in Rome to receive his cardinal hat, Bishop Richard Baarwobr fainted from a heart attack and was transported to the Holy Spirit Hospital (Santo Spirito) for emergency treatment and heart surgery. As a result, he was not present at the cardinal consecration and only received the cardinal cap through the Pope's representative.
A few days ago, he returned to the headquarters of the African Missionary Society, after a long period of treatment.
With the passing of Cardinal Richard Baawobr, the College of Cardinals has 126 cardinal electors under the age of 80 and 99 over the age of 80.
(Aciprint 27-11-2022)