Pope Leo XIV has accepted the retirement request of His Eminence Cardinal Berhaneyesus Souraphiel, following the prelate reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75. The Ethiopian Catholic Church officially announced that Abune Tesfasellassie, who has served as the auxiliary bishop for the past year, will succeed him as the new Metropolitan Archbishop of the Addis Ababa Archdiocese.
The Holy See’s decision was officially delivered by the special envoy, His Eminence Cardinal Claudio, after ensuring all canonical prerequisites and succession plans were met. While the administrative transition has already taken effect, the Ethiopian Catholic Church confirmed that the official, formal installation ceremony for the new Archbishop will take place within the next three months.
Cardinal Berhaneyesus leaves behind a profound legacy, having led the Ethiopian Catholic Church—an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See—since his appointment as Archbishop in 1999. Born in 1948 near Harar, his life and ministry spanned critical eras of Ethiopian history, including surviving a seven-month imprisonment in Jimma during the crackdowns of the Mengistu Haile Mariam military junta in the late 1970s.
Elevated to the rank of Cardinal by Pope Francis in 2015, the outgoing prelate’s influence extended far beyond national borders. He served as the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Ethiopia and Eritrea, and was elected chairman of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) in 2014, representing regional Catholic leadership on global platforms like the Synods on the Family.
Throughout his decades of service, Cardinal Berhaneyesus focused heavily on socio-economic development, championing poverty alleviation and infrastructure improvements in health. In 2005, he founded the Ethiopian Catholic University of St. Thomas Aquinas, reflecting his deep conviction that accessible education remains the primary weapon against material deficiency and human trafficking in East Africa.
The Cardinal was also widely recognized as a staunch conservative voice on moral, social, and environmental issues. He actively campaigned against human trafficking, co-authored appeals to global leaders on climate change policy, and consistently maintained rigid traditional stances on marriage and family structure in line with broader African Catholic leadership.