Freetown Archbishop Tamba Charles says homosexuality is spreading among Catholic youth, links it to Western sexual revolution, and calls for urgent pastoral programs.
Newsroom (09/12/2025 Gaudium Press ) The Catholic Archbishop of Freetown, Most Rev. Edward Tamba Charles, has declared the rise of homosexuality and lesbianism among Sierra Leonean Catholics, particularly the youth, a “worrying pastoral issue” that demands immediate action.
Speaking on December 5 at St. Anthony’s Hall during the inauguration of the Archdiocese of Freetown’s 2025/2026 Pastoral Year, Archbishop Charles proposed the creation of dedicated pastoral programs to address sexuality, family life, and what he termed “sexual deviations” now present in the West African nation.
“The sex revolution of the 1950s and 1960s… transformed an intimate and sacred act of love between a man and his wife into a source of pleasure with anyone, sometimes for money,” the archbishop said. That revolution, he continued, “led to abortion on demand… and has now evolved into sex between people of the same sex.”
“These cultural developments have reached Sierra Leone and are now in some of our pastoral units and Church organizations,” he stated, revealing that young Catholics had confided in priests after resisting same-sex advances and that recent meetings with youth across the archdiocese produced “alarming” opinions on same-sex relationships.
“It would seem many of our Catholic faithful do not see anything morally wrong with homosexuality and lesbianism,” Archbishop Charles observed.
Reaffirming Church teaching drawn from Sacred Scripture, he described homosexual acts as “grave depravity,” “intrinsically disordered,” and “contrary to the natural law” because “they close the sexual act to the gift of life.” “Two men or two women cannot mate and produce a child. Only a union between a man and a woman can do that,” he stressed.
The archbishop appealed directly to priests across the archdiocese to educate their faithful—especially youth and young adults—on these matters, warning that such practices “undermine true Catholic marriage of a man and woman, committed to giving birth to children to start a family of their own.” He also urged the organization of pastoral programs for married couples facing societal challenges.
The address covered additional pastoral concerns for the new year, including the widespread abuse of synthetic drugs known locally as “kush” and tramadol. Describing youth dying “like dogs” on the streets, Archbishop Charles welcomed stepped-up law-enforcement efforts and the discovery of complicit agents among security personnel.
Resistance to archdiocesan financial policies also drew sharp criticism. Some Church organizations, the archbishop said, refuse to accept parish priests as principal signatories on bank accounts, despite approved regulations. He insisted the measure ensures transparency and accountability and rejected “cherry-picking” of policies, reminding organizations that the Archdiocese of Freetown possesses full authority under Canon Law to enact binding norms.
Another liturgical concern raised was the “overloading” of Sunday Masses with thanksgiving and Africana celebrations that could be scheduled on weekdays. Noting low weekday Mass attendance compared with other countries he has visited, Archbishop Charles cautioned against Catholicism in Sierra Leone becoming “a Sunday religion.”
Looking ahead, the 2025/2026 Pastoral Year will prioritize safeguarding, lay evangelization, and progress toward a synodal Church. The archbishop urged Catholics to proclaim their faith publicly in professional and social settings—“If you are a doctor, let others know that you are a Catholic doctor”—while remaining missionary disciples without imposing belief on others.
As President of the Inter-Religious Council of Sierra Leone, Archbishop Charles concluded by calling for collective responsibility in addressing the moral and social challenges facing the nation’s Catholic community.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from ACI Africa
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