VaticanNews portal reports on the 2026 Pathways to Freedom Africa Network (PFAN) Summit held in Abuja, Nigeria, where “Bishop” Joseph Mary Kizito and other representatives of the post-conciliar structures gathered to discuss human trafficking in Africa. The event, organized by the Justice Development and Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Abuja together with GrowEdo Support Group UK, brought together delegates from Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Benin, Kenya, and representatives from the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of England and Wales. The summit’s theme was “Inclusive Strategies for Ending Human Trafficking: Reaching the Most Marginalised.” While the evil of human trafficking is real and demands a response grounded in Catholic moral theology, the approach presented in this article reveals the characteristic modernist reduction of the Church’s mission to naturalistic humanitarian activism, devoid of the supernatural order and the necessity of conversion to the Catholic Faith.
The Wound of Human Trafficking and the Church’s True Mission
The article opens with “Bishop” Kizito describing human trafficking as “a wound to humanity” requiring a united continental response. This characterization, while not entirely wrong, is fundamentally incomplete from the perspective of integral Catholic teaching. Human trafficking is not merely a “wound to humanity” in the abstract, naturalistic sense; it is a grave sin against the natural law and the divine law, a violation of the dignity of the human person created in the image and likeness of God, and an offense against the virtues of justice and charity. The Catechism of the Council of Trent teaches that sins against justice, including the enslavement and exploitation of human beings, are mortal sins that sever the soul from God’s grace and lead to eternal damnation unless repented of through the Sacrament of Penance.
The article’s framing of the issue in purely humanitarian terms—focusing on “restoring dignity to victims” and “protecting the most vulnerable”—while omitting any reference to the spiritual dimension of the problem, reveals the modernist mentality that has infected the post-conciliar structures. As Pope Pius XI taught in his encyclical Quas Primas (1925), the reign of Christ the King extends over all nations and all aspects of human life, including the social and economic order. The true remedy for social evils such as human trafficking is not merely improved law enforcement or economic empowerment, but the recognition of Christ’s royal authority and the ordering of society according to God’s commandments. Pius XI wrote: “When God and Jesus Christ were removed from laws and states and when authority was derived not from God but from men, the foundations of that authority were destroyed” (Encyclical Ubi Arcano). The article’s silence on this fundamental truth is deafening and damning.
The Santa Marta Group and the Legacy of the Usurper Bergoglio
The article explicitly states that the initiative “builds on the work begun by the Santa Marta Group, launched under the inspiration of the late Pope Francis in 2014 to combat human trafficking and modern slavery.” This reference to the usurper Jorge Mario Bergoglio—who occupied the See of Peter from 2013 until his death—is highly significant. The Santa Marta Group was one of Bergoglio’s signature initiatives, and its invocation here serves to legitimize the continuity between his pontificate and the current structures of the conciliar sect.
From a sedevacantist perspective, Bergoglio was never the valid Roman Pontiff. He was a manifest heretic who, by his public and persistent denial of Catholic doctrine on matters such as the existence of hell, the indissolubility of marriage, the necessity of the Catholic Faith for salvation, and the moral law, automatically lost his office by virtue of his heresy. As St. Robert Bellarmine taught in De Romano Pontifice (Book II, Chapter 30): “A Pope who is a manifest heretic, by that very fact ceases to be Pope and head, just as he ceases to be a Christian and member of the body of the Church.” The Wernz-Vidal canonical commentary confirms this: “By notorious and publicly manifested heresy, the Roman Pontiff, should he fall into it, is deprived ipso facto of his personal jurisdiction even before any declaratory sentence by the Church.”
Therefore, any initiative “launched under the inspiration” of Bergoglio carries no authority whatsoever and must be evaluated with extreme suspicion. The Santa Marta Group, like so many of Bergoglio’s projects, was characterized by a naturalistic, humanitarian approach that reduced the Church’s mission to social activism while remaining silent on the necessity of conversion, the sacramental life, and the supernatural order. The article’s uncritical endorsement of this legacy reveals the deep continuity between Bergoglio’s modernism and the current direction of the conciliar structures under the usurper Leo XIV (Robert Prevost).
“The Church Cannot Work Alone”: The False Ecumenism of Partnership
“Bishop” Kizito is quoted as saying: “The Church cannot work alone. We need the police, law enforcement agencies, border management authorities, civil society organisations and the business sector if we are serious about disrupting the networks of traffickers.” This statement, while pragmatically true in a temporal sense, reflects the modernist ecclesiology that has replaced the Catholic understanding of the Church’s mission.
The Church, as defined by the ecumenical councils and the perennial Magisterium, is the one true society founded by Christ for the salvation of souls. She does not “need” the cooperation of secular agencies to fulfill her supernatural mission of teaching, governing, and sanctifying. While the Church may cooperate with civil authorities in matters of mutual concern—such as the suppression of crime—she does so not as an equal partner among many, but as the supernatural society divinely instituted to lead men to eternal salvation. The conciliar sect’s language of “partnership” and “collaboration” with secular entities reflects the false ecumenism and religious indifferentism condemned by Pope Pius IX in the Syllabus of Errors (1864), particularly proposition 15: “Every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true,” and proposition 77: “In the present day it is no longer expedient that the Catholic religion should be held as the only religion of the State, to the exclusion of all other forms of worship.”
The article’s emphasis on “building partnerships capable of responding to trafficking in a coordinated and practical way” reveals the bureaucratic, managerial mentality that has replaced the supernatural vision of the Church’s mission. The true “partnership” that the Church seeks is not with police and business leaders, but with Christ Himself, through prayer, the sacraments, and the preaching of the Gospel to all nations.
Economic Empowerment as a Substitute for the Supernatural Order
The article places great emphasis on economic empowerment as a means of preventing human trafficking. “Bishop” Kizito states: “If young people have opportunities, employment and hope in their own communities, they are less vulnerable to traffickers.” He highlights a pilot agricultural initiative in Nigeria and community gardens in South Africa as examples of such empowerment.
While it is true that poverty and lack of opportunity can make people more vulnerable to exploitation, the article’s exclusive focus on economic solutions reveals the naturalistic reductionism that characterizes modernist social teaching. The Church has always taught that the root cause of all social evils is sin—the rebellion of man against God—and that the true remedy is conversion to Christ and the observance of His commandments. As Pope Leo XIII taught in Rerum Novarum (1891), the solution to social problems lies not in material prosperity alone, but in the restoration of Christian morals and the recognition of the rights of God.
The article’s silence on the necessity of evangelization, catechesis, and the sacramental life as the true means of combating human trafficking is a grave omission. Economic empowerment without conversion to the Faith is like treating the symptoms of a disease while ignoring the underlying infection. The conciliar sect’s approach to social issues consistently prioritizes temporal solutions over supernatural ones, reflecting the modernist heresy that the Church’s mission is primarily humanitarian rather than salvific.
The Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities: A Modernist Obsession
One of the central themes of the summit, according to the article, was “the inclusion of people living with disabilities in anti-trafficking campaigns and prevention strategies.” “Bishop” Kizito noted that people with disabilities are frequently targeted by traffickers and are often overlooked in awareness programmes. The gathering sought to ensure that anti-trafficking initiatives become more accessible and inclusive, including through sign-language interpretation, accessible venues, and direct participation of persons with disabilities.
While the protection of vulnerable persons is indeed a work of mercy, the article’s emphasis on “inclusion” as a central theme reflects the modernist obsession with accessibility and diversity that has infected the conciliar structures. This obsession, while not inherently evil, becomes problematic when it displaces the primary mission of the Church—the salvation of souls—and reduces Catholic social action to a series of bureaucratic accommodations. The Church has always taught that all human beings, regardless of their physical or mental condition, are equal in dignity before God and are called to eternal salvation. However, the modernist emphasis on “inclusion” often serves as a cover for the relativization of Catholic doctrine and the accommodation of practices that are incompatible with the Faith.
South Africa and the Scapegoating of Migrants
The article addresses the migration situation in South Africa, where “Bishop” Kizito acknowledges the frustrations of unemployed youth but warns against scapegoating migrants. He states: “South Africa has become fertile ground for traffickers because borders are overstretched and many people are desperate for employment and resources.”
This analysis, while containing elements of truth, is incomplete and one-sided. The article fails to address the root causes of the migration crisis, which include the failure of African governments to establish just and orderly societies, the legacy of colonialism and neo-colonialism, and the demographic pressures resulting from the abandonment of Catholic teaching on family planning. Moreover, the article’s exclusive focus on the economic dimensions of migration ignores the spiritual dimension—the fact that many migrants are fleeing not only poverty but also persecution for their faith, and that the Church’s primary concern should be the spiritual welfare of both migrants and the host communities.
The article also fails to address the moral obligations of migrants to respect the laws and customs of their host countries, as taught by the Church. While the Church has always welcomed the stranger and provided for the needy, she has also taught that migration must be orderly and lawful, and that migrants have a duty to integrate into their new communities and contribute to the common good. The conciliar sect’s approach to migration, as reflected in this article, consistently prioritizes the rights of migrants over the rights of host communities, reflecting the modernist heresy of religious indifferentism and the denial of the Church’s right to govern her own affairs.
The Absence of the Supernatural: A Damning Silence
Perhaps the most striking feature of this article is its complete silence on the supernatural dimension of the Church’s mission. There is no mention of prayer, the sacraments, the necessity of conversion to the Catholic Faith, the reality of sin and grace, the existence of heaven and hell, or the final judgment. The article reads as if it were written by a secular humanitarian organization rather than by representatives of the Church of Jesus Christ.
This silence is not accidental; it is the defining characteristic of the conciliar sect. Since the Second Vatican Council, the post-conciliar structures have systematically replaced the supernatural mission of the Church with a naturalistic, humanitarian agenda. The “Church” described in this article is not the Catholic Church founded by Christ, but a humanitarian NGO that uses the name and vestments of the Church to advance a secular agenda.
As Pope Pius X warned in his encyclical Pascendi Dominici Gregis (1907), the Modernists—the “synthesis of all heresies”—seek to reduce the Church to a purely human institution, stripping it of its supernatural character and divine mission. The article’s approach to human trafficking is a perfect illustration of this modernist reductionism: the Church is presented as a partner in a secular coalition, her mission reduced to social activism, and her supernatural identity erased.
Conclusion: The True Remedy for Human Trafficking
The evil of human trafficking is real and demands a response from the faithful. However, the response must be grounded in Catholic truth, not in modernist humanitarianism. The true remedy for human trafficking is the restoration of Christ’s reign over all nations, the preaching of the Gospel to all peoples, the administration of the sacraments, and the conversion of hearts to God.
As Pope Pius XI taught in Quas Primas: “If men were ever to recognize Christ’s royal authority over themselves, both privately and publicly, then unheard-of blessings would flow upon the whole society, such as due freedom, order, and tranquility, and concord and peace.” The conciliar sect’s approach to human trafficking, as reflected in this article, offers none of these blessings, because it rejects the very foundation upon which they rest: the recognition of Christ as King.
The faithful must reject the modernist reduction of the Church’s mission and return to the immutable Tradition of the Catholic Church. Only through prayer, penance, and the preaching of the true Gospel can the evils of this world be overcome. The structures occupying the Vatican, with their humanitarian conferences and bureaucratic partnerships, offer no remedy for the wounds of humanity—only the illusion of action where true faith and supernatural grace are required.
Source:
South Africa: Church leaders call for united action against human trafficking in Africa (vaticannews.va)
Date: 03.06.2026