…commend its management
The newly appointed Papal Nuncio to Nigeria, Archbishop Michael Francis Crotty has commended the management of the Lagos Resource Centre, Victoria Island, formally the Apostolic Nunciature, for the meticulous manner it has maintained the standard of the Centre since it was acquired by the Archdiocese of Lagos in the year 2001.
Archbishop Crotty who visited the Centre over the weekend in the company of the Archbishop of Lagos, Most Rev. Alfred Adewale Martins, said he was particularly happy to note that most of the legacies of the center which once served as the official residence of the Papal Nuncio in Nigeria are still well maintained years after the monumental building was acquired by the Archdiocese following the building of a new nunciature in Abuja.
The Papal Nuncio said he was on the ground to have a first-hand assessment at the nunciature which once housed the late St. Pope John Paul II in 1982 during his first visit to Nigeria. He said he was also there at the instance of Cardinal Parolin who was always recounting the happy years he spent in Lagos at the Centre as he was very curious to know what happened to the place.
“I was told that Nigeria is a big country, so when you get there you have to hit the ground running, he said”
On arriving at the Nunciature by exactly noon on Saturday, January 4, 2025, the Papal Nuncio went straight to the chapel for a brief prayer before the Blessed Sacrament before being conducted around the complex by the Director of the Centre, Rev. Fr. Anthony Godonu, his predecessor, very Rev. Fr. Julius Olaitan and the first Director of the Lagos Resource Centre, Dame Bridget Itsueli who was accompanied by her husband Rt. Hon. Chevalier Imo Itsueli.
Also on the ground to welcome the Papal Nuncio were Rev. Fr. Paul Ariole, Secretary to the Archbishop and Administrator of St. Gregory’s College Very Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Ayeni.
The Papal Nuncio was taken around the various sections and offices in the Centre, including the room in which St. Pope John Paul II once slept during his first visit to Nigeria in the year 1982.
In his remark at the event, the Director of the Centre, Very Rev. Fr. Anthony Godonu, went memory lane on how the Apostolic Nunciature which is located at No 9 Anifowoshe Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, provided a place of worship in the quiet chapel for some of the Catholics who live and work in Victoria Island area of Lagos.
According to him, the Apostolic Nunciature as it was then known, has hosted very significant people in the Catholic Church Including Cardinal Battista Enricco Montini who visited Nigeria in 1962 and later became Pope Paul VI in 1963, and Pope John Paul II during his visit to Nigeria in 1982.
“The movement of the Nunciature in 2001 to Abuja provided a great opportunity to have a public place of worship which was quite different from the private chapel. His Eminence, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, showed interest and acquired the structure and converted it into the Lagos Resource Centre, offering retreat and accommodation services. The Archbishop also opted to erect a church behind the Centre. The Holy Cross Cathedral’s parishioners were quite instrumental to the building of the Church now known as Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church, Victoria Island, Lagos.”
Speaking on the original vision of the Lagos Resource Centre, the pioneer Director, Dame Bridget Itsueli, recalled how she was suddenly invited by the Emeritus Archbishop of Lagos in October 2001 to take over the running of the Resource Centre and turn it into a place of nurturing evangelization in the Archdiocese.
‘We decided from the onset that as much as possible the Archdiocese will keep the integrity of the Nunciature, keeping it the way the Church in Lagos would like it to be. The whole place became a place for evangelization and conducted several researches that impacted positively the life of the church and the nation as a whole. And it was during one of these sessions we discovered that most girls come into the faith through emotions and the men come through the brain. And so we decided to develop evangelization processes that met the needs of men and at a point we had more men coming in to do evangelization things than women.”
In 2010, due to the demand for a place of meditation in the Archdiocese, the Centre saw the need to erect a new structure which was added to the main building to provide a conducive atmosphere for people to meditate and grow their faith.
On her retirement in the year 2016, the Archbishop of Lagos appointed Rev. Fr. Immanuel Agbulu, C.Ss.R, who was in charge till 2020 before Very Rev. Fr Julius Olatain was appointed as Director of the Centre in 2021 and he handed over to the new Director, Very Rev. Fr. Anthony Godonu in November 2023.
Speaking to appreciate Archbishop Crotty for visiting the Centre, Archbishop Alfred Adewale Martins assured him that the Archdiocese will continue to ensure that the purpose for which the Centre was started does not derail, “But rather we shall develop upon that which was done in the light of the present circumstances. Granted that we have had our ups and downs over the years, but I believe that we are at the cruising level now. I am sure that the purpose for which it was taken over from the nunciature will continue to be fulfilled.”
