In this edition, we have the privilege of a truly remarkable priest, Very Rev. Msgr. (Prof.) Francis Ishola Ogunmodede, Parish Priest, Ss. Phillip and James Catholic Church and former Episcopal Vicar, Lekki Region, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, who will be celebrating a milestone, 50th anniversary of his priestly ordination in a fortnight. With a lifetime of service and dedication to the Catholic Church, the priest and academic has left an indelible mark on the Church, as well as lives of countless individuals and communities.
As a former Dean and Episcopal Vicar, as well as Parish Priest, and seasoned cleric, Msgr. Ogumodede has seen it all. From his early days as a Mass Server at St. Michael Catholic Church, Mushin, to his ordination on December 29, 1974, at St. Mary Catholic Church, Ajegunle, Msgr. Ogumodede’s journey has been one of faith, perseverance, and unwavering commitment to his calling.
In this exclusive interview with the Editor, NETA NWOSU, Msgr. Ogumodede shares his reflections on 50 years of priestly service, his experiences, challenges, and triumphs, as well as his hopes and dreams for the future. Join us as we celebrate this remarkable milestone with a truly inspiring and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Congratulations on your 50th priestly ordination anniversary. How does it feel to have reached this milestone?
The Grace of God is at work. 50 years is half a century and here I am since December 29, 1974 when I was ordained at St. Mary Catholic Church, Ajegunle. From this ‘Fada work’, I have derived Joy. First of all, I thank God for choosing me to be a priest. I will say my story is like that of Samuel, who worked early in the temple. I was a Mass Server in St. Michael Catholic Church, Mushin which later became Regina Mundi Catholic Church. I was born at No 51 Railway line, in Odi Olowo, Mushin. There used to be a market nearby, I think the market has been revived now. There was this market where my mother used to sell clothes. We were eight children, four boys and four girls. Now, my parents and four sisters have passed on, leaving behind my three brothers and I: My elder brother, two younger brothers and myself. I was an Altar Server, my father and mother were of a Catholic family.
As a child, I went to live in the mission at about 12 years of age. I was born in 1948, in Mushin. My knowledge of towns and places in Nigeria came from living by the railway line. The railway used to pass in front of our house and we used to see all the names of cities in Nigeria: Abeokuta, Ibadan, Oshogbo, Ilorin, Kaduna, Katsina, Enugu, Owerri, Port Harcourt and others. I learnt these names earlier on naturally by watching the train pass by. The train used to make some beautiful noises, “faga figi faga figi,” so we used to sing funny songs because of the railway station that had a stopping place just in front of our house. I went to school at St. Michael’s, Mushin. Then I moved in 1960 to St. Patrick’s, Yaba where St. Dominic’s is. Then in 61/62 I was in St. Mathias, Lafiaji. I was an Altar Priesthood is not an eight-hour service per day, it is a 24-hour service – Very Rev. Msgr. (Prof.) Ogunmodede In this edition, we have the privilege of a truly remarkable priest, Very Rev. Msgr. (Prof.) Francis Ishola Ogunmodede, Parish Priest, Ss. Phillip and James Catholic Church and former Episcopal Vicar, Lekki Region, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, who will be celebrating a milestone, 50th anniversary of his priestly ordination in a fortnight. With a lifetime of service and dedication to the Catholic Church, the priest and academic has left an indelible mark on the Church, as well as lives of countless individuals and communities. As a former Dean and Episcopal Vicar, as well as Parish Priest, and seasoned cleric, Msgr. Ogumodede has seen it all.
From his early days as a Mass Server at St. Michael Catholic Church, Mushin, to his ordination on December 29, 1974, at St. Mary Catholic Church, Ajegunle, Msgr. Ogumodede’s journey has been one of faith, perseverance, and unwavering commitment to his calling. In this exclusive interview with the Editor, NETA NWOSU, Msgr. Ogumodede shares his reflections on 50 years of priestly service, his experiences, challenges, and triumphs, as well as his hopes and dreams for the future. Join us as we celebrate this remarkable milestone with a truly inspiring and dedicated servant of the Lord.
Server and a Mission Boy. It was there I went to the Seminary and I thank God that since then I have not turned back. I went to the Minor Seminary, St.Theresa in Oke Are, then to the Major Seminary, Ss. Peter and Paul in Bodija. There the Bishop found me worthy to be sent to Rome for studies. I went to finish my studies in Rome. Then I returned again to the same Seminary and finished up there. Until I was ordained in 1974 in a famous place in Ajegunle, St. Charles Catholic Church. Although my parish was St. Michael’s. I was ordained in St. Charles to promote vocation. We were three from my class that were ordained. One was Emmanuel Babatunde, the other Msgr. Philip Hoteyin and myself.
Looking back on your 50 years of priesthood, what are some of the most significant changes you’ve witnessed in the Church and in the Society?
In Nigeria, so many things have changed. Nigeria is a big country in terms of population. We are told that we are about 230 million people now. Lagos is the largest populated state in Nigeria. Mushin is very populated now. Even this part of Lekki where we are, there were almost no people here before. Now, you can see the physical changes, development of people and places. The Church has grown too. When I was a young Altar Server, I remember my experience as an Altar Server in Mushin. I used to go early in the morning at about 5:30am from our house at the Railway line to serve the Mass. Now, all those places are all built up. The same thing here too. Look at Lekki, I came here 17 years ago. This place was all heavily forested, now it is all built up. Look at our street, all built up.
Physically, Nigeria is tremendously growing in population. Our social life too has followed and the way things are now is totally different from before. There is a lot of mix up now. Look at this area, for example, this area is mainly Igbo and Benue people, with a bit of Efik and Ibibio in this place. They were non-indigenes here and the other peoples have also moved in here today. I was told that it is the Efik people who first came here. They found this place so good that they brought in their brothers, but the Igbo and the Benue also came in afterwards. It also shows that the Yoruba are accommodating, otherwise they won’t allow these people to come in. They would not sell land unto them. The openness of the Yoruba people is a factor to reckon with. When I came in here, we were celebrating the opening of one estate after another, almost every week. The place was growing with an influx of people, which was good. At the same time too, if I remember, people in the Church were always doing thanksgiving. Thanksgiving for God saving their lives after armed robbery attacks.
Many of them were maimed because of armed robbery attacks almost every week. Thank God the security has come and people are better off than before. Typical of developing countries, Water is still a problem, Housing is a problem, Hospitals are not there yet, because of lack of demographic planning for the people. For instance, in this area do you find a Library or a Playing Ground? That is lack of planning, unlike the European countries where all these things will be laid down before they allow people to move in. Here is, ‘Omonile syndrome’, where land grabbers sell people’s lands. You can see the social development and problems that have also emerged. To the extent that Lagos that is the smallest state in the country is the most densely populated.
What is population of Ghana, Gambia, Sierra Lone, compared to Lagos? These are the changes that have taken place. The latest of changes is the ‘Japa’ Syndrome, people are now moving out. Even in this area, because of the Calabar-Lagos coastal road and demolition taking place, many poor people have had to move out of this area. Parishes are also affected. In this parish, we used to be over 5000 people. That is why the church was built to that capacity. But because of migration now and the cost of living, many poor people cannot pay for rent again, they’ve had to move out towards Epe to find accommodation. So, you can see the various changes that have taken place.
What advice would you give to young priests who are just starting their journey?
I was a young priest at a time, I cannot say I am still a young priest now. I started at the Holy Cross Cathedral, I spent two years there. At the end of my two years, the Bishop sent me to the Seminary. First the Minor Seminary where I was for 4 years. Then to the Major Seminary, from one Major Seminary to another Major Seminary. After being there for over 32 years, I moved to the Parish: I have had the experience of School life and the Parish Life. This is, in fact, the first Parish I will be responsible for. That was after my tenure in the three Seminaries where I worked. I left that place in 2006 and I went for a oneyear sabbatical then I came here. Since 2007, I have been here after Fr. Adegbite died. That is my life: School Life, Parish Life. I tell you I enjoyed both of them.
I thank God for giving me this dual experience. As a Priest, I believe that we should model our lives after that of Christ. Christ has taught us to be good and holy Priests, to be compassionate and to serve the people in need. When I was Rector, that is what I always told them. I used to tell them to study hard and aim at academic excellence. Don’t aim at getting 40%, aim at getting 70% upwards. The same too is my motto in the spiritual life, that the Priest should serve the people of God. Christ, we were told, never had any time for himself, people were always following him. When he wanted to rest here, people will come and disturb him. He will move to another side, they would follow him. There was never a dull moment, it was always an active period. That is how I see the life of a Priest. We are to truly model our lives after that of Christ. Priesthood is not eight hours service per day, it is a 24 hours service.
That is why I don’t put off my phone. If people say they don’t get me, it is because of the internet system in Nigeria. That is my own concept of Priesthood, full service of the people. Make yourself available. It is not easy to do that, but you should consider the need of the people. It cost me pains, lose of sleep, but rest is in Heaven not in earth. Earth is a place of work. You work first before you rest. You should know many young priests. Compare them to me, see the mentality. Why should a Priest be saying time has changed? And you people agree with them too. I say this is idle thing to do. That was what I was taught and that was what I also taught people. There are many good Priests otherwise they won’t be given positions in the Parishes, Dioceses as they are given.
You’ve had a distinguished career, serving as Dean, Episcopal Vicar, and Parish Priest, a Rector. Which of these roles has been the most challenging and why?
I have been happy all these while. I tell you with all the mentality that a person has; if you think you have been ordained just to come and enjoy, it is a wrong conception. Jesus never had any easy time. Our life is full-time work. There is no partial Ministry in the priesthood. The new concept of administration in the Archdiocese now is to be involved and engaged. If the people are set to be involved and engaged, the Parish Priest too has to lead them as a religious leader. For me, I do not see anyone that was enjoyment. When I was in the academia, I worked hard. When I became Rector, I worked very hard. So, I came to this Parish, it is obvious the development that has taken place.
Physical development of this place. Not only here, as Episcopal Vicar I am one of the four main officials of the Archbishop in charge of a region. When I was made Vicar. In fact, from the time I was made Dean, it was not only, no longer about this parish, but other parishes too became my responsibility. When I became Vicar, I now had to go round the whole region to visit. It was then I realised Outstations that have been established since the last century by the Missionaries and some of them are still Outstations. I took some money from this parish to develop some of those areas. I had to buy land for various Churches so that they can build places of worship in those Outstations, until the recession came and poverty began to set in. I want to say that a Priest is religious leader, he should always work as Christ worked. Priesthood is not a bed of roses. There are many souls waiting to be saved. I am very happy that even some Muslims on their own came to be converted and say they want to be Catholics. Some people left the church to other denominations, it was not only going to another country.
They defected from one Religious body to another. That is why we talk of Mushroom churches. I say that our Priesthood involves a lot of work. They also have to save their own souls as they help to save the souls of the faithful, that is how God will access them. Frank Olise will say, “if you are a Priest, priest well. If you are Doctor, doctor well. If you are a player, play well.” For the young, it is a time to work hard. As you grow older, diminishing return will come in. Wherever we go, we should make contributions to the progress and development of life.
Can you share a particularly memorable experience or story from your years of priestly service?
I will say one thing as a teacher, a formator, a parent, the joy of seeing others grow. A parent will nurture his own child to grow and it will be his joy to see them succeed in life. What I enjoyed is that I have seen growth and development among my students. From tonight, there is arrival of participants for the Conference that will take place in my honour. Who are these people organising it? They are my students, many of whom are now Doctors and Professors. They are building up their various parishes and this gives me joy, fulfilment. Coming here into the parish and the work I had to do.
What Fr. Adegbite has done, I have gone beyond. I went ahead to develop further what he has developed. I started with six parishes, today there are 31 parishes, not to talk of Outstations in them. Shall I say, according to St. Paul, that I have fought the good fight. The good Lord is the one who will crown me. Like my own Parish Priest, Fr. John Kelby, who died here at the age of 87 and was buried here in the Parish in Lafiaji, Lagos. When you have a task, do it. Don’t be lazy, be hardworking, industrious, creative.
How have you seen the needs of your parishioners change over the years, and how have you adapted your pastoral goals to meet those needs?
Shall I say that I have not succeeded in that area. People here are materialistic minded, that is why they have not been able to produce a priest from this Parish. It is not that we have not tried, but our trial has not yielded fruits. We have a half priest ordained in the time of Father Adegbite, Fr. Moses by name. He started here and I continued to sponsor him in the Seminary but his parents moved away from here to Surulere and he was ordained there. Thank God he became Senior Prefect in the major seminary just like me. I thank God for this. In the secular world however, they have made it. At least one of our parishioners here is the World Champion, in the person of Emmanuella who led the Nigerian team to Malaysia. She was the youngest of the participants who was made the head of the robotic team.
They won the competition. While I say I am not happy that no one has become a full Priest, in their various areas they have excelled. We have great sportsmen in this place. We had a boxer here, Martins Onyekachi, who was heavy weight champion, even an NBM player, Obinna. Of course, we have many of our children who got a first-class in their various disciplines in the university. So, this parish is a parish of achievers. Their PPC Vice-Chairman who became a doctor after he had headed the West African Institute of Accountancy and retired. Not the honorary Doctorate, but the one that was merited through writing of dissertation. I am happy with this Parish. We have some politicians here too. There is an old man who was made a governor in this parish. We thank God.
What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the Catholic Church today?
Heaven is the challenge for all. Make sure that you are saved and you go to heaven, including the Priest and the Cardinal. Our goal in life is that at the end of our life, we go to heaven. In other words, we most know the purpose why we are here. In the seminary, I always asked the students ‘why are you here?’. Always bear that in mind to question yourself, why are you here? Why are you in this Parish? Why are you in this school? What is your purpose? God created all of us with a purpose, to love him and to serve him in this world and to be happy with him in the next. How many of us believe and act according to this purpose? Know your faith. Bear in mind why you are in this parish and in this world.
How has your personal life and prayer practice evolved over the years?
As a child of God, I will say this: I have a friend who is in the US at the moment. His name is also Francis, he is a knight and an Engineer, Sir Francis Onipede. We started in Lafiaji, our mentor and teacher was one ex Seminarian, Brother Peter Itabor. He dropped out of the Seminary, but he continued his spiritual life after he left. To the extent that he formed groups of children to guide them in prayer. I was part of this group. I suppose that was what helped me to aspire to be a priest in Lafiaji. I have grown in my spiritual life. As we grow, there are growth levels. There is a growth of a child and the growth of an adult. I will say that I have the growth of an adult now. I will like to do more for God. I think it goes in with my perception of life that whatever you do, do it well. Excellence in spirituality, in academics, in pastoring, in being available and of help to your people. Do all things for Christ’s sake. It is the level of maturity that I can say I will rate my spirituality. I thank God for making me who I am and I pray to him that I gain heaven. Now that I am retiring, though a priest is a priest forever.
This is also where the rate of progress can be mentioned. This place was once a parish headquarters and became head of the Deanery and head of the Region. Now, by the grace of God, is being tipped to be the Cathedral of the would-be diocese. Let me say that it doesn’t mean that one is perfect. I am perfect to some degree and not perfect to some degree. I have my faults and I ask God to forgive me. So that wherever I go to, I will continue to aspire at goodness.
Are there any regrets?
Regrets? No regrets at all. If I come to this world again, I will like to continue as a priest. How do you stay energised and motivated in your pastoral vocation? Being a parish priest for 17 years, it might get boring overtime doing the same thing over again. There are always needs. Issues that didn’t arise before are now arising and you have to cope. Those new issues are challenging. People are coming and going here. They see this big Church along the road. They come here and they are attracted by it, they praise God. But look, when some come and find the Church locked and not able to enter, are they happy? Circumstances have brought that. Human beings, some are good while some are terrible.
You’ll meet all kinds of people here. There is always increasing demands on the leadership of the parish. That could be very tasking. How many people make donations? It is always the same people. There are some people who never pay for anything but they complain about everything. They are also the ones who enjoy the benefits of what others have provided. These are problems. They are antisocial. They should have a rethink and join others in contributing to the building of the church.
Who are some of the key mentors or figures, both those that have passed on and those that are still alive, that have guided you in the last 50 years?
First of all, the man who brought me up, Father John Kelby was in my parish. Brother Itabor who I also mentioned earlier. He became a priest later on, a Franciscan Priest. He nurtured my spiritual life. While I was in the seminary, we had D. J. Okono. I was made Senior Prefect under him. You know what he did? He brought a time of change where he allowed students appoint their own prefects. That was a radical change in administration. He said because they know themselves. So, I happened to have been made a Senior Prefect as a result of that and he ratified it.
In the major seminary, the people who inspired me to learn Philosophy. One of them, Msgr. Alphonsus Obine from Warri diocese. He taught me Metaphysics and Epistemology. There was another priest, a Dominican priest, Fr. Harkins. He too inspired me very much. Msgr. Obine died and Fr. Harkens came in. He taught me a methodology which I myself adopted and applied as a teacher in the Seminary, to give students Term Papers to write. Student don’t like Term Papers. They don’t like to work hard, but that is the best way to make students learn. They will never have much time for partying or going out. They will be involved in their studies. Those were my mentors, people who inspired me to work hard to be what I am. There were others also that I emulated.
If you had not ventured into Priesthood what would have become?
I would have probably been an Actor. I took part in plays when I was in the Seminary. There was a time when I acted as a woman. They made me act as the wife of a poor man who later became a king. I also acted as Daotu, the first son of the king in Kongi Harvest written by Wole Soyinka. While I am a Priest, I am also acting in the Church. I dance. I loved dancing even from the seminary days. Wasn’t David a dancer and a beloved of God? People thought I was aspiring to be a politician. In fact, one of my latest books is Awoo, Awooism and Awoology. Does that make me a politician?
How many books have you written?
I have written about 20 books. Those are just books, not to talk of other Articles and papers, and so on.
What are your parting words for your children, mentees as we draw this session to a close?
Know who you are as a child of God. Continue to remain a child of God, to seek holiness as well as excellence at whatever you do. Whatever you do, do it well. You remember Frank Olise of NTA? If you a teacher, teach well. If you are a doctor, doctor well. If you an interviewer, interview well.
