Chika Unigwe Meets the Pope!

June 09, 2023

Photo sourced from Chika Unigwe’s Instagram.

Nigerian author Chika Unigwe finally got to meet the Pope, fulfilling a lifelong dream!

Unigwe was in Rome, Italy for a conference on “The Global Aesthetics of the Catholic Imagination” from May 25 to 27. Sponsored by Georgetown University and La Civiltà Cattolica, the conference featured an address by His Holiness Pope Francis.

The conference brought together both critical readers and creative artists from across the world who self-identify as Catholic or pay homage to Catholicism as a formative dimension of their artistry.

Unigwe, who just published The Middle Daughter this year, is a devout Catholic who often speaks to her religion in her writing. She explained in her Instagram caption that this conference and the opportunity to meet the Pope was a dream come true:

How long does a surreal feeling last? I’m still buzzing. What a week! Spoke at the same conference as #martinscorsese; met the pope ( shall never tire of dropping this!!); and spent time with the most fascinating creators; hung out with old friends, made new ones and thought intentionally about what it means to write as a Catholic. This week was also a reminder that what we do as artists is a calling, it’s a gift freely given. What does it mean for me to write from a Catholic imagination? It is to write towards the margins. To inscribe worlds/ narratives that are not always seen/heard. Creation is about making visible. Giving flesh. Even to those stories that are difficult. Perhaps esp. to those. So help me God.

Unigwe said that she sees a strong link between her writing and her Catholic imagination, adding “I loved doing this. Thinking through my writing. The passion/anger/faith that fuels it and how. How writing is about word(s) made flesh, is about bearing testimony, is (like ) grace: a gift freely given.”

The highlight of the conference for her was definitely meeting the Pope as she posted dozens of photos of the Pope, including one where she shook his hand and said, “Some posts need no words”.

The experience seemed deeply meaningful for Unigwe. We are happy for her!