NAIROBI — Pope Leo XIV has appointed Fr. Patrick Mwania, vice-chancellor and rector of Tangaza University in Nairobi, to the Vatican’s International Theological Commission, the Holy See Press Office announced Monday, Oct. 19, 2026.
Fr. Mwania is one of 24 members named to the commission, which brings together theologians from different countries and traditions to advise the Holy See on major questions of Catholic doctrine, especially those affecting the Church in the modern world. The commission works closely with the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is responsible for promoting and protecting Catholic teaching.
His appointment gives Kenya a place among the experts who advise the Vatican on theological matters. He is one of two African theologians named to the commission, along with Fr. Gaston Ogui Cossi, head of the Bobo-Dioulasso campus of the Catholic University of West Africa in Burkina Faso.
Fr. Mwania is a member of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, commonly known as the Spiritans or Holy Ghost Fathers. He joined Tangaza University in 2010 as a lecturer and later served in several leadership roles, including head of department and dean of the School of Theology. He subsequently became director of Catholic Identity, Mission and Chaplaincy before moving into the university’s top leadership.
He was appointed vice-chancellor designate on Aug. 3, 2023, and later became Tangaza’s first vice-chancellor after the institution transitioned to full university status. Based in Nairobi, Tangaza is jointly owned by more than 20 institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life.
According to his curriculum vitae, Fr. Mwania holds a doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Anselm in Rome, with specializations in systematic theology and mission studies. His doctoral research examined the role of African women in the Church’s missionary work.
He also holds a licentiate in systematic theology from the Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule SVD St. Augustin in Germany, where his research explored how Catholic teaching on non-Christian religions and salvation developed in light of the Second Vatican Council. In addition, he holds a master’s degree in anthropology and African studies from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, completed through the Maryknoll Institute of African Studies at Tangaza. His research there focused on African spirituality and conflict management among Kenya’s Akamba community.
