Overview
François-Xavier Maroy Rusengo (born 1 September 1956) is a Congolese Catholic prelate who is the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bukavu in DR Congo since 26 April 2006. Before that, from 22 November 2004 until 26 April 2006 he was auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of Bukavu. He succeeded as archbishop on 26 April 2006, following the death of Archbishop Charles Kambale Mbogha, on 9 October 2005. Archbishop François-Xavier Maroy Rusengo was installed at Bukavu, DR Congo on 18 June 2006.
Background and education
He was born on 1 September 1956 in Bukavu, South Kivu, Archdiocese of Bukavu. He completed elementary education at the Sainte-Thérèse School in Bugabo. In 1970 he entered the Notre-Dame-de-la-Victoire College, where he studied chemistry and biology. He then studied philosophy and theology at the major seminary. He was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bukavu on 19 August 1984.
Priesthood
He was ordained a priest on 19 August 1984 by Archbishop Aloys Mulindwa Mutabesha Mugoma Mweru, Archbishop of Bukavu. He served in that capacity until 22 November 2004. He served in various roles and locations while a priest, including as: * Vicar at the parish of Burhale from 1984 until 1985. * Rector of the Cibimbi Minor Seminary from 1985 until 1987. * Deputy general bursar at the General Bursar's Office from 1987 until 1988. * Rector of Mugeri Propaedeutic and Minor Seminary from 1988 until 1997. * Pastor at the parish of Saint-François-Xavier in Kadutu from 1997 until 2002. * Episcopal vicar in charge of pastoral care from 2002 until 2004. * Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Bukavu from 2002 to 2004.
As bishop
On 22 November 2004, Pope John Paul II appointed Father Monsignor François-Xavier Maroy Rusengo as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Bukavu. He was contemporaneously appointed as Titular Bishop of Thucca in Mauretania. The bishop has spoken out against conflict in the region. In January 2025 he published a “message of comfort” in which he lamented that “for two years, many of our brothers and sisters have had nothing other than their eyes to weep and their feet to flee, sometimes without a destination, and even the camps for the displaced are not secure, several villages are saturated, and others emptied of their populations.
See also
* Catholic Church in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
External links
* Africa/DR Congo: The Archbishop of Bukavu denounces "A wind of war and insecurity is blowing again in eastern DRC" as at 28 June 2022.