B
ishop Godfrey Onah of
Nsukka Diocese has told
workers of the Catholic Sec-
retariat of Nigeria (CSN)
and other agencies of the
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria
(CBCN) that purity of heart would ena-
ble them to encounter Christ and trans-
form them to positive agents of change
in their environment, with a view of get-
ting the country out of distress.
The Bishop made this assertion while
moderating the 2020 Annual Retreat
for the workers of the Bishop Confer-
ence, at the 2-day retreat held at the
CSN Resource Centre, Durumi, Abuja.
According to the retreat facilitator, the
Catholic Church is on mission to pull
Nigeria out of distress; and as workers
of the Church, they must be part of this
determination of the Church, spiritually
and pastorally. The theme of the retreat
was: The Story of the Maggi: Walking in
the Footsteps of the Magi
Other agencies whose workers were
present at the retreat are: Catholic Cari-
tas Foundation (CCFN); Veritas Travels
Ltd; National Catholic Service Centre
(NCSC)Salus Trust Ltd, Opus Securita-
tis, Pontifical Mission Societies (PMS)
and Catholic Secretariat Investments
Concepts Ltd (CICL).
He told the workers that while work-
ing in the Catholic Secretariat, they do
not need sign of the Stars like the Maggi;
as the nature of the services they render
on behalf of the Bishops’ Conference
and the Church are clear indications
of their mission. He however urged
them to be properly informed about the
Church and not just rely on any source
for their information. While telling
them that much is expected of them as
workers of the Church, Bishop Onah
urged them not to search for knowl-
edge about the Church alone. He added
that since nobody has the monopoly of
knowledge, this search is better sought
through communal efforts.
Using the story of the Child Jesus,
the Maggi, King Herod to buttress his
point, the retreat master stressed the
importance of sincerity of purpose and
positive motive, which king Herod did
not have towards the child Jesus. While
pointing out that there are many Herods
in the world today, the bishop advised
the workers not to be the Herod in their
place of work or within the society at
large.
He declared: “Today’s Herods can be
anybody – pretending to serve Christ
but with their own devilish and per-
sonal projects. Herod represents dark-
ness in our lives while Jesus is the Light.
Darkness is absence of Light.” While
noting that Christianity is a dynamic re-
ligion, Bishop Onah also used the occa-
sion to remind the workers that religion
is not business and God does not need
what we give Him but we need what
he gives. He added: “In Christianity,
you give freely – surrender yourself
to God completely. Our relationship
with God is one of total submission.”
Speaking further on the mission
of the Church to get Nigeria out of
distress, Bishop Onah noted that we
have overrated our country as the
giant of Africa out of self-deceit, and
the country has now turned out to be
the continent’s problem. Pointing out
that while small African countries are
making progress and developing in all
facets of life, Nigeria is neither here
nor there.
He noted that for the country to get
out of her present predicament, “there
is need for us to humble ourselves in
order to be elevated”. He urged the
workers to join in the efforts to remove
the Herods in the Nigerian nation by
discharging their duties as workers of
the Church with love and compassion
as Christ did for the human race.
