Pope Francis has named Rev. Fr. John Bonaventure Kwofie, C.S.Sp. S.S.L, as the new Bishop for the Catholic Diocese of Sekondi-Takoradi.
The Bishop-elect is an Assistant Professor of Theology at Duquesne University, Pittsburg, Philadelphia, USA.
Bishop elect John Bonaventure Kwofie, a native of Ghana, arrived at Duquesne in 2013 to teach an undergraduate course in critical examination of biblical and historical perspectives.
The bishop-elect hails from Apowa in the Western Region of Ghana. He was ordained a priest in 1988 as a member of the Spiritan Congregation. Bishop-elect Kwofie, holds a licentiate in Sacred Scripture in biblical exegesis (the interpretation of the Bible) from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome.
Bishop-elect Kwofie’s pastoral work included serving in parishes in Bohyen Bantama, in the Catholic Archdiocese of Kumasi and other parishes in the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra. In addition to this, he served as a missionary in The Gambia.
Apart from serving in various parishes, Bishop-elect Kwofie also has varied experience as an academician, a pastor and a leader in his congregation. Besides teaching at Duquesne University, the Bishop-elect has been involved with the Spiritan International School of Theology in Nigeria.
Bishop-elect Kwofie has served in various leadership positions with the Spiritan Congregation, which is the order that founded and operates Duquesne. These positions included Vice President of the Conference of Major Superiors for Africa, Provincial Superior of the Congregation of West Africa, Coordinator of the Continental Conference of Major Superiors for Africa and First Assistant of the Superior General of the Congregation.
Bishop-elect Kwofie received his bachelor's degree in theology from Paul's College-Seminary in Liberia and the Urbaniana University in Rome and continued his studies in pastoral leadership formation at Lumko Institute, South Africa. He earned his S.S.L. from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome.
Additionally, he holds a certificate from the Ghana Institute of Management and Professional Administration (GIMPA) in Accra.
He will become the fourth Bishop of the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese. Bishop-elect Kwofie, succeeds the late Bishop John Martin Kwaku Darko who passed on to eternity on January 12, 2013.
The late Bishop Darko resigned on health grounds on December 14, 2011 after his letter of resignation was accepted by Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI, who was then the Holy Father.
After the resignation of the late Bishop Darko, the Holy See appointed Archbishop Mathias Kobina Nketsiah, Metropolitan Archbishop of the Cape Coast Catholic Archdiocese as the Apostolic Administrator for the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese and was to be responsible for the Diocese until a new bishop is elected for the diocese.
Bishop-elect Kwofie is the second bishop who hails from Apowa. The first Bishop from Apowa is Bishop Joseph Francis Kweku Essien of the Wiawso Catholic Diocese who was appointed Bishop on December 22, 1999 and ordained a Bishop for the Wiawso Diocese on March 25, 2000.
Holy See appointed His Grace, Most Rev.
