Christianity in the Middle East has received significant attention because of the plight of its adherents in the region. The Vatican has offered nothing but diplomatic silence. North Africa has a dwindling Christian population. And Algeria is one of the ‘not so liberal’ countries when it comes to managing minorities.
The Pope’s historic apostolic journey to Algeria took place from April 13-15. Pope Leo XIV became the first Bishop of Rome ever to set foot in Algeria. As a US-born pontiff, he sought to navigate a landscape defined by colonial cleavages, while looking upon a repressed Protestant community and a very small, almost vanishing, Catholic minority. Both the Vatican and Algeria present this visit as a convivial interfaith encounter. Both stand against the neocolonial military force. However, this visit might have sugar-coated an increasingly repressive state and portrayed Algeria as a liberal state that is tolerant toward religious minorities. Being invited by a repressive state and not demanding the protection of their own people indicates how diluted the Vatican’s stance is. Moreover, occurring against the backdrop of the escalating US-Israeli war with Iran, the timing of the trip could not be more significant. Leo XIV used Algiers as a platform to deliver a sharp rebuke of contemporary global power dynamics.
One of the key takeaways of the papal visit was its spiritual dimension, including a pilgrimage to the ruins of Hippo in modern-day Annaba. Pope Leo XIV, himself an Augustinian and walking in the footsteps of Saint Augustine, paved the way for modern Christianity to reconnect with its indigenous North African roots. For the Pope, beyond a spiritual homecoming, the visit pursued a diplomatic strategy that presented Christianity not as a European import but as an integral part of the Mediterranean’s history and landscape. Solely focusing on the Pope in the 5th century and romanticising the past may have shifted attention away from the demons of the Algerian state, which were hidden in plain sight and strangling contemporary religious life in Algeria.
The spiritual pilgrimage and triumphant interfaith conviviality drew significant attention. A large gap remained between the Pope’s rhetoric and the lived reality of Algeria's Protestant community. In Algeria, the Catholic Church is not problematic and, in fact, enjoys state-sanctioned status. By contrast, Berber converts within the large Protestant community have faced a sharp rise in state-sponsored repression. In recent years, almost 50 Protestant churches were reportedly shut by the authorities under the usual pretext of safety permits and zoning violations. Although this was not merely a matter of bygones for the Pope, he raised the issue of church closures and the criminalisation of pastors in private meetings with President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. Nevertheless, discreet advocacy for Christians is insufficient when every activity is carried out within the framework of the state. For many observers, this constitutes faith-washing.
Additionally, the Pope’s visit to the Grand Mosque of Algiers is an undeniable symbol of interfaith respect, yet it also exposes imbalances in religious freedom in the region. Removing his shoes to pray at the mihrab, Leo XIV invoked the “spirit of peace” that should guide all religions. The trip also drew scrutiny for its humanitarian aspects. The Pope was deemed to possess selective moral outrage, focusing criticism only on the West while treading lightly on the woes of his hosts. By not publicly and forcefully condemning Algeria’s repressive practices during the state reception, the Pope was selective, at least for the region’s Catholics.
Ultimately, Leo’s mission in Algiers signified a high-stakes Realpolitik that enabled the papacy to re-establish itself as a moral mediator in world affairs and to confront the contemporary war situation. It at least gave a rare psychological boost to a neglected Christian community. However, it is unclear that much improvement will result. If the visit is not followed by the official reopening of the Protestant churches and a reform of the restrictive 2006 decree on non-Muslim worship, it is unlikely to be remembered for the breakthrough it promised in terms of religious freedom, but rather as an elaborate diplomatic gesture. In the end, Leo XIV offered hope to the Christians of Algeria, but one that remains dependent on the neocolonial and authoritarian power structures he professes to oppose.
The author is a doctoral candidate at the Centre for West Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.