POPE JOHN PAUL II’S LEGACY OF DECOLONIZATION: TOWARDS AN IGWEBUIKE TRANSFORMATIVE PEDAGOGY

Abstract

Pope John Paul II was a Roman Pontiff of several memorable and remarkable parts. George Bush described him as “a champion of human freedom, and a good and faithful servant of God”. Lech Walensa, related that he was a leader “…without whom there would be no end of communism.” Kofi Annan, chronicled him as a “tireless advocate of peace”. Gerhard Schroeder described him thus: “Pope John Paul II wrote history…[and] changed our world”, and for Moshe Katsav, he, “bravely put an end to historic injustice”. The present paper distinguishes itself from other works on Pope John Paul II by its focus on a specific dimension of his many accomplishments, which is, his legacy of decolonization. He stood against all forms of political, economic and cultural colonialism, and called for an attitude of exchange, comprehension and sympathy towards cultural identities and ethnic groups. This study began with a specificity of decolonization and the backgrounds that animated his position. It also discussed his promotion of decolonization, manifest in his addresses, encyclicals and post-synodal exhortations. The basic principles of his philosophy of decolonization were interpreted from an Igwebuike hermeneutic perspective, and formed a basis for the generation of an Igwebuike pedagogy for decolonization. While relying on the Igwebuike theoretical framework for structure, the historical, hermeneutic and thematic methods of inquiry were employed for the articulation of ideas. This piece discovered the major dimensions of Pope John Paul II’s legacy on decolonization. This served as a basis for the development of a unique African decolonization pedagogy.