New leaders are assuming office in the midst of increasing violence against the Church
Father Anthony Ikechukwu Kanu, OSA, the new president of the Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria (Photo: supplied)
The Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria has appointed a new leadership team at its ongoing annual meeting in the West African nation.
Father Anthony Ikechukwu Kanu, OSA, was selected as its president at the meeting held in southwestern Lagos State, attended by men and women superiors from various congregations in Africa’s most populous nation.
The weeklong conference, which ends on Jan. 14, started on Jan 8. The new team will hold office for the next two years.
“God’s grace and wisdom will lead the way as we shepherd the affairs of the Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria to the glory of God and the salvation of souls,” Father Kanu, who also doubles as Superior of the Order of Saint Augustine (OSA) in Nigeria, said.
The Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria has three objectives under the new leadership, Father Kanu told UCA News.
First, to serve as an umbrella body for all consecrated persons in Nigeria.
Secondly, to promote collaboration among religious institutes and societies of apostolic life.
Finally, to serve the Church in Nigeria with various forms of consecrated life that show different aspects of the mission.
The participants held discussions, among others, on credible ways to improve evangelization through inter-generational collaboration.
New executive council members of the Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria include Father Cletus Kpalap, CM, (vice president), Father Thaddeus Dom, OCD, (councilor I) and Father. Nathaniel Eke, CMF, (councilor II).
Father Theophilus Hwande, VC, will head the public relations department, Father Kingsley Okereke, ISCH, will serve as financial secretary, and Brother Godwin Biin, FSC, will act as treasurer, while Father Gregory Ezeokeke, CMF, will do the role of new secretary.
The association was established in 1970 in response to a call by Pope Pius XII in 1950 which asked religious congregations to come together to form national associations.
The Conference of Major Superiors of Nigeria is getting a new team as Africa’s largest economy is plagued by increasing attacks on the Church.
In a report, Aid to the Church in Need, a papal charity, said that at least 12 priests and five religious sisters were murdered in 2022 while fulfilling their mission.
Nigeria accounted for the vast majority of religious sisters kidnapped last year, with seven.
Often, unrest between warring factions takes on ethnic and religious dimensions in Nigeria, which is divided between the predominantly Christian south and the Muslim-majority north.
Nigeria is also gearing up for polls on Feb. 25 when current President Muhammadu Buhari quits after two terms in office.
The risk is heightened this time by the ruling party selecting presidential and vice-presidential candidates from the same faith.
On Jan. 11, delegates from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria met President Buhari to seek urgent steps to curb growing violence against the Church and increasing social unrest in the country.
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