12, April 2026
Bamenda: 97-year-old man ready for his third papal encounter 0
At 97 years of age, Pa Chrysantus Nfor sits quietly at his Nkwen residence in Bamenda, his frame slightly frail, but his eyes fixed on a horizon of hope.
He has traveled from his hometown in Tabenken, Donga Mantung Division – a district to the northwest of the city – to Bamenda, not this time on the arduous trek he undertook nearly four decades ago, but to seek medical treatment.
Surrounded by children and grandchildren, the nonagenarian finds himself waiting for something far more miraculous than medicine. He is waiting to see the pope.
Pope Leo XVI is expected in Cameroon from April 15 to 18. That visit is stirring excitement across the nation. Pa Nfor stands out as a veteran of papal expeditions, having witnessed the visits of Pope John Paul II in 1985 and 1995; Pope Benedict in 2009, and could witness his fourth papal visit when Pope Leo comes calling.
“I heard that the Pope is coming to Bamenda again, so I have just been waiting that if he comes, then I may likely see him too as well,” Pa Nfor told Crux Now in a shaky but firm voice.
He recalls the historic visit of Pope John Paul II in 1985 with the vividness of yesterday. But the memory of that visit is not just about the arrival of a pontiff; it is about the journey it took to witness the event.
Pa Nfor was about 56 years old then. He recalls the priest for Tabenken at the time putting out a call for volunteers to travel to Bamenda to greet the pope. While many hesitated due to the daunting distance, Nfor stepped forward.
The journey was a test of endurance that few would volunteer for today. The group left Tabenken by vehicle to Kumbo, where they spent the night. But the real pilgrimage began at dawn. They walked from Kumbo to Babessi, then to Ndop, then to Bambui, and finally to the Bafut Airport, where the pope was to land.
They trekked for over 62.14 miles, but Pa Nfor insists the physical weight of the journey was lightened by their spiritual purpose.
“We were praying, we were singing. That was the main thing we were doing,” he recalls. But there was a physical burden as well. Pa Nfor was one of the chosen few who carried a heavy wooden cross along the route, symbolizing the faith they held in their hearts.
Reflecting on that trek today, surrounded by his children and grandchildren who have come to support him during his treatment, Pa Nfor believes that journey was a turning point for his life. He notes that many of those who trekked with him have since passed away, but he has remained standing.
“I don’t know whether it is the cross I carried that has made me live up to now,” he humbly admits. But the fruits of that journey are evident to him.
“Since I took the trek to Bamenda and back, my family and I are still here… No trouble in the house. No quarreling as a father and the children. I feel that journey, meeting the pope has been a blessing to me,” he said.
Today, the trek has been replaced by a different kind of waiting. Pa Nfor is suffering from breathing difficulties, back pain, and frequent urination— ailments that have worn him down. His hope for the visit of Pope Leo XVI is simple and profound: That healing may come.
“As a patient, that’s the main thing I pray for,” he says. “I think the main thing he can do for me is to pray for me for a long life and good health.”
“I would be grateful to God if I live up to 100 years,” he adds, putting up a smile that momentarily shades the pain he is going through.
However, his vision extends beyond his own health. As Cameroon grapples with internal turmoil, particularly the separatist crisis that for ten years now has resulted in the deaths of at least 6,500 people and the displacement of nearly a million others, Pa Nfor sees the Papal visit as a potential balm for the nation.
“I have a feeling that if the Pope should reach here, this trouble in Cameroon would end,” he says with quiet conviction.
Pa Nfor, however, wonders if the spirit of sacrifice that fueled his 1985 journey still exists in his children and grandchildren.
” The young children, they cannot do it because they expect money,” he muses.
“If somebody is doing anything that should affect them, they should get money. They cannot just travel like that,” Pa Nfor said.
Despite the changing times, his advice to the youth and his family remains anchored in the faith that carried him from Kumbo to Bafut all those years ago. He urges them to look past their screens and their desire for material gain.
“They should all believe in God,” he advises. “If somebody hears that the Pope is coming, they should also come to see the Pope. And then get the prayer which the Pope gives to people.”
“Let them turn off the screens and make the trip,” he continues.
As Bamenda prepares to roll out the red carpet for Pope Leo XVI, Pa Chrysantus Nfor will be there, not carrying a cross this time, but bearing the weight of nearly a century of faith and the hope that a prayer from the Holy Father will bring healing to his body and peace to his country.
Source: Crux
12, April 2026
US and Iran end ceasefire talks and Vance heads home without an agreement 0
The United States and Iran failed to reach an agreement at the end of historic, face-to-face talks after the U.S. said Tehran refused to commit to not developing a nuclear weapon, leaving uncertainty over a fragile, two-week ceasefire.
Vice President JD Vance, who led the U.S. delegation, said the talks lasted 21 hours in Pakistan’s capital Islamabad but in the end they did not see “an affirmative commitment” from Iran “that they will not seek a nuclear weapon.”
Vance’s comments did not indicate what will happen after the 14-day ceasefire initially agreed to by the U.S., Iran and Israel, but Pakistani mediators called on the U.S. and Iran to maintain the ceasefire.
“It is imperative that the parties continue to uphold their commitment to ceasefire,” Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said, adding that his country will try to facilitate a new dialogue between Iran and the U.S. in the coming days.
In one of the first reactions from Iran, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the talks fell apart over a “gap between our opinions over two or three important issues.” He told Iran’s state TV that the Strait of Hormuz was among the topics discussed by negotiators and blamed “U.S. overreach.” He did not mention nuclear weapons.
The discussions in Islamabad began Saturday, a few days after the fragile ceasefire was announced as the war that has killed thousands of people and shaken global markets entered its seventh week.
“We need to see an affirmative commitment that they will not seek a nuclear weapon, and they will not seek the tools that would enable them to quickly achieve a nuclear weapon,” Vance told reporters. “That is the core goal of the president of the United States. And that’s what we’ve tried to achieve through these negotiations.”
“We leave here with a very simple proposal, a method of understanding that is our final and best offer. We’ll see if the Iranians accept it,” he added.
Since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28, it has killed at least 3,000 people in Iran, 2,020 in Lebanon, 23 in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states, and caused lasting damage to infrastructure in half a dozen Middle Eastern countries. Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz has largely cut off the Persian Gulf and its oil and gas exports from the global economy, sending energy prices soaring.
The United States and Iran entered talks with sharply different proposals and contrasting assumptions about their leverage to end the war. Before negotiations began, the ceasefire was already threatened by deep disagreements and Israel’s continued attacks against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Iran’s 10-point proposal ahead of the talks called for a guaranteed end to the war and sought control over the Strait of Hormuz. It included ending fighting against Iran’s “regional allies,” explicitly calling for a halt to Israeli strikes on Hezbollah. The United States’ 15-point proposal includes restricting Iran’s nuclear program and reopening the strait.
Indeed, Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has proved its biggest strategic advantage in the war. Around a fifth of the world’s traded oil had typically passed through on over 100 ships a day. Only 12 have been recorded transiting since the ceasefire.
During the talks, the U.S. military said two destroyers transited the critical waterway ahead of mine-clearing work, a first since the war began. Iran’s state media, however, reported the country’s joint military command denied that.
“We’re sweeping the strait. Whether we make a deal or not makes no difference to me,” Trump said as talks extended into early Sunday morning.
The U.S. delegation led by Vance and the Iranian one led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf discussed with Pakistan how to advance the ceasefire already threatened by deep disagreements and Israel’s continued attacks against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Israel wants Lebanon’s government to assume responsibility for disarming Hezbollah, much like was envisaged in a November 2024 ceasefire. But the militant group has survived efforts to curb its strength for decades.
Hezbollah joined the war in support of Iran in the opening days. Israel followed with airstrikes and a ground invasion.
The day the Iran ceasefire deal was announced, Israel pounded Beirut with airstrikes, killing more than 300 people in the deadliest day in Lebanon since the war began, according to the country’s Health Ministry.
Source: Crux