The Catholic Church in Liberia has announced the Episcopal Ordination of Gabriel Blamo Snosio Jubwe as Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Monrovia on Saturday, May 4, 2024 at 10:00AM, at the Sacred Heart Cathedral on Broad Street in Monrovia.
The Pontifical Mass is expected to be graced by international delegates from the Vatican in Rome, Italy, the United States of America, Europe, and Africa.
It will also bring together regional prelates from the Gambia, Sierra Leone, Ghana, and Nigeria, as well as the local Bishops and lay faithful from the three dioceses in Liberia, namely Cape Palmas, Gbarnga, and the Archdiocese of Monrovia.
The ordination will be followed by a thanksgiving mass on Sunday, May 5, 2024, to be celebrated by the new Archbishop.
According to the Episcopal Ordination Committee, Monsignor Jubwe becomes the third Archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Monrovia, after Archbishop Lewis Jerome Zeglier and Michael Kpakala Francis, both deceased.
Bishop Zeglier resigned in 2021 before he passed in August 2022.
Very Reverend Monsignor Jubwe will be ordained as Bishop and will immediately ascend to the throne as Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Monrovia, or the Ecclesiastical Province of Liberia, making him the first prelate to undergo this transition in the Catholic Church in Liberia.
On Tuesday, February 28, 2024, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, through the Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Walter Erbi, wrote a letter appointing Monsignor Gabriel Blamo Jubwe as the new Archbishop of Monrovia.
The communication stated, “It is with great joy that I write to inform you officially that the Holy Father, Pope Francis, has appointed you as the new Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Monrovia. The date of publication of this appointment will be Wednesday, February 28, 2024, at 12:00 noon in Rome, that is 11:00 AM in Liberia.”
Monsignor Jubwe comes to the Archbishopric with a wealth of experience, having been a priest for over four decades within the Archdiocese of Monrovia, and serving in many key roles, including Rector of the Sacred Heart Cathedral- the Parish of the Archbishop, Vicar General (1996-2000), Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Liberia (1998-2001), Director of the Pontifical Mission Societies (1999-2004), Rector of the Saint Paul Major Seminary in Gbarnga (2001-2007), and member of the College of Consultors of the Archdiocese of Monrovia (2006-2021), among many others.
Meanwhile, the Protocol Committee for the Episcopal Ordination has announced that Reception after the Pontifical Mass will be held at the Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Ministerial Complex for invited guests, while another will be held within the compound of the Sacred Heart Cathedral.
