A cross-section of priests and religious, officials of Serra International District 130-B, Nigeria, and members of Serra Club of Satellite Town, after the convention Mass. Back row: Anthony Cardinal Okogie, Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos; Most Rev. Dr. Peter Odetoyinbo (m), Catholic Bishop of Abeokuta, and other priests.
The worrisome killings across the country, particularly as they affect Christians and ordained people, featured prominently at the just-concluded 6th Convention of Serra International District 130-B Nigeria at Ikorodu, Lagos.
Serra International is a lay organization in the Catholic Church that promotes vocations to the priesthood and religious life. According to John Paul II, Serrans “possess a deep appreciation of the ministerial priesthood as being essential to the Church” and “have been generous in offering their support to those who hear the call to serve Christ in the priesthood”.
Speaking on the topic “The Worrisome Kidnappings and Killings of Priests and Religious in Nigeria: Implications Thereof”, Rev. Fr. JoeBen Onyia, chaplain, Serra Club of Ikorodu, said it was lamentable that priests and religious had become victims of vicious attacks and thus endangered species in places that they had hitherto lived and thrived as their vocation requires.
Reeling out a long list of priests and religious who had either been kidnapped or killed in the country since 2009, Fr. Onyia regretted the April 24, 2018 violent killing of two priests, Rev. Frs. Joseph Gor and Felix Tyolaha, and about 17 other worshippers in Gwer East LGA of Benue State by armed herdsmen.
As a way of discouraging kidnapping of priests and religious, he informed that the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) instructed that no ransom should ever be paid to crooks who want to be rewarded for doing evil, adding that some priests in some dioceses have also said no ransom should be paid if they were kidnapped.
He decried the loss of value for human life and the incessant bloodshed that have pervaded the Nigerian society, advising those in power to use their political positions to do the right things and better the lot of humanity.
“We need to do something not just as Serrans but as Christians in Nigeria. We need to defend our faith. We need to do the needful around us, and that is conscientising our people who are in the political arena and those who can make things happen to make things happen in the right way,” he said.
Fr. Onyia admonished Christians to eschew infighting among themselves and to learn to bear the burden of one another, saying, “If there is infighting among us, we cannot tackle external aggression.”
Other topics that came up at the convention include “Formation of Priests after God’s Heart in the Present-Day Realities: Myths or Realities”, which was handled by Rev. Fr. Paul Chukwukebe, vocations director, Catholic Diocese of Awka, Anambra State, and “The Duties of Lay Persons, Nay Serrans, in Affirmation of Vocations to the Priestly and Religious Life”, which was discussed in a town hall session by Serrans Peter Ezike, Tomi Asenuga and Smart Ebhodaghe, as well as Rev. Fr. Melvin Mayaki.
The two-day convention held May 4-6 and themed “Chosen from among Men” also witnessed the induction of new members during a Mass at Divine Mercy Catholic Chaplaincy, Ijede Road, Ikorodu officiated by the Catholic Bishop of Abeokuta, Most Rev. Dr. Peter Kayode Odetoyinbo. The Mass also had in attendance the Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos, Anthony Cardinal Okogie.
Inducting the new members, Okogie charged them to be good examples and not disappoint the expectations and confidence reposed on them. He also prayed that they would be worthy and dedicated ambassadors of Christ through the work they do in Serra.
Carved out of the old Serra International District 130 Nigeria and approved by the Board of Trustees of Serra International in 2013, Serra International District 130-B comprises Serra Clubs of Ipaja, Agege, Ikeja, Maryland, Ikorodu, Satellite Town, and Ketu, as well as Serra Clubs in-formation Ogba, Ilupeju, Magodo, Shomolu, Ojota and Odongunyan, all in Lagos.
CHUKS OLUIGBO
