Pope Francis on Saturday appointed Fr. Valentine Kalumba, O.M.I., as bishop of Livingstone, Zambia.
He was born in Mufulira, Zambia, in 1967, gave his religious vows with the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in 2002 and was ordained a priest in 2005. He has served in a number of pastoral roles, including deputy bursar and parish vicar, parish priest, director of the Oblate Radio Liseli in Mongu, and bursar of the Centre of Philosophical Formation in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
He is currently deputy delegate of the Delegation of Oblates in Zambia and pastor of St. Theresa’s parish, Kabwe, Zambia.
He succeeds Bishop Raymond Mpezele, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese upon reaching the age limit was accepted by the Holy Father.
The diocese has a population of some 429,000, with less than 100,000 Catholics. They are served by about 30 priests and 100 religious.
This south-central African country is majority Protestant (75%) with about 20% of the population being Catholic.
