The Dust Of Three Papal Encounters: The Extraordinary Odyssey Of Catechist Martin Ndi

The red laterite dust of Cameroon’s North West Region does not merely settle on a man’s clothes after 78 years, it becomes part of his skin. For Catechist Martin Ndi Ngafi, that dust is a sacred ledger, marking the miles of a life lived in a relentless, rhythmic pursuit of the Divine. On this Thursday, April 16, 2026, as the equatorial sun beat down upon the tarmac of the Bamenda-Bafut Airport, Martin stood amongst the vibrant, singing throngs. With his eyes fixed on the horizon where the wings of the Camair-Co airliner - carrying Pope Leo XIV – glinted like a promise kept.

Another Papal Encounter  
It was a scene that felt like a shimmering echo across time. Some 41 years ago, on this very ground, a younger Martin stood in the presence of Pope John Paul II. But this Thursday April 16, 2026, the region had changed - scarred by conflict and divided by checkpoints - but Martin’s internal compass remained fixed. To him, another Papal visit was not only a political event; it was a rupture in the mundane. A moment during which the thin veil between the village of Taku in Ndu Subdivision, Donga-Mantung Division of Cameroon’s North Region, and the Kingdom of Heaven, was momentarily pulled aside.

The Legend Of The Three Popes
Martin’s history with the Papacy reads like a travelogue of devotion. His first encounter was in 1982 - when he travelled 1,057km from Cameroon to Nigeria - an odyssey that has become local legend. Hearing that Pope John Paul II was visiting Nigeria, Martin did not wait for a parish bus or a diocesan sponsorship. He funded himself, traveling from Mbaa village in Donga-Mantung Division to Onitsha in Nigeria.
"I was obliged to trek because there is no motorable road from Dumbo in Donga-Mantung Division to Bissaula in Nigeria’s Taraba State," he recalls. It was a 50 km journey on foot through the wild, crossing the border into Nigeria just to catch a vehicle from Bissaula to Takum; then to Onitsha. After travelling from Mbaa to Dumbo through Nkambe and Misaje by vehicle. 

100km For John Paul II
Then came 1985. Along with a band of pilgrims, Martin trekked 100km from Kumbo in Bui Division of North West Region to Bafut. They spent three nights on the road, sleeping in Babessi, Ndop, and Bambui, their voices rising in hymns that drowned out the fatigue in their legs. When the "Polish Pope" (Pope John Paul II) finally landed on August 12, 1985 at the Bamenda-Bafut Airport, the physical exhaustion on Martin’s legs had vanished.
On April 16, 2026, Catechist Martin Ndi was back at the same airport – 41 years on. The distance from Taku village to Bafut is 130 km - a journey that, in today's climate, is fraught with more than just bumpy roads. "I just happened to pass through the risks," he said simply. "God gave me the grace."

The Uncompromising Marrow
To understand why a 78-year-old man would brave the "insecurity risks" of a region in turmoil to stand on an airport tarmac, one must look at the marrow of the man. Martin is the living embodiment of a lineage that does not know how to blink in the face of trial. He is the son of the late Pa Patrick Ngafi. A man whose reputation as an "uncompromising Catholic Christian" is still whispered about in Mbaa village, Nkambe Central Subdivision of Donga-Mantung Division.
"I have taken after my father," Martin said, his voice steady despite the weight of his years. "I don’t allow anything to stand between me and my faith. I must follow the Christian standards our father set for us."

Such A Family!
This is not a casual faith. It is a fire that saw one of his brothers, Rev. Father Henry Tantoh, become the first Catholic priest of Mbuwarr. And his other brother, Robert Tamfu, undertake a grueling 650km detour to Yaounde just to participate in Pope Leo XIV’s mass on April 18, 2026. While his siblings find their own paths, Martin’s journey has always been one of physical endurance and frontline service.

Shepherd Of The Roofless Church
Though he officially retired as Catechist in 2000, Martin’s hands have never been idle. For 26 years, he has continued to serve the 60 Catholic Christians in Taku because "we have no catechists." His current mission is as practical as it is spiritual. Under his leadership, the Christians have raised a church building that stands at the level of the roof - but they can go no further.
Catechist Martin stood before Pope Leo XIV not as a dignitary, but as a petitioner for his Christians. He is the only one from his church who made it to Bafut, carrying the prayers of those left behind. When asked what he will tell them upon his return on April 18, 2026, Martin’s face lit up. "I will tell them what I saw. I will tell them how wonderful it was."

A Bridge Of Prayer
As the Pontifical Mass began at the Bamenda-Bafut Airport at 3:00 PM, Martin Ndi stood as a bridge between generations. He is the man who walked through the forests of Cameroon in 1982 to get to Nigeria to see Pope John Paul II in Onitsha, covering over 1,000km. And trekked 100km in 1985 to meet the same Pope John Paul II in Bafut. And who just navigated the checkpoints of the North West Region in 2026 to meet Pope Leo XIV in Bafut.

A Fulfilled Man
He was satisfied. He saw the third Pope of his lifetime, a feat he never thought God would grant him the grace. As the incense rose over the Bamenda-Bafut Airport, Catechist Martin Ndi remained a symbol of the "uncompromising" faith of the Ngafi household. A man who knows that while roofs may be missing and roads may be closed, the path to the Divine is always open to those willing to walk it.

Lineage Of Uncompromising Faith...