Bishop Ezeokafor Visits St Gabriel’s Catholic Church

… Confirms over 500 Candidates

By Adejumoke Adebiosu, Anthony A. Akinomolafe and Ifeanyi Ndukwe

The Catholic Bishop of Diocese, His Lordship, Most Rev Paulinus Ezeokafor, has admonished the faithful to uphold faith and love between one another. The chief shepherd made this call when he paid a pastoral visit to St Gabriel’s Catholic Church, Nodu, Okpuno.

The Catholic Prelate was the Chief Celebrant of the Mass, while Rev. Fr Patrick Okafor, Episcopal Vicar. Awka Region: Rev. Fr. Emmanuel Ofomata, Parish Priest, St Gabriel’s Parish.

Okpuno; Rev. Fr. Dr. Charles Ndubisi, Chancellor, Awka Diocese; Deputy Director 1 of Fides Media, Rev. Fr. Pio- Anthony Okafor, amongst other priests and religious, were present at the Mass.

During the homily, Bishop Ezeokafor admonished the faithful to show gratitude for the many blessings of God on them, pointing out that one of administrative ingenuities was to have additional concrete plans such as siting various institutions like schools, dormitories and other social amenities for the welfare of the people.

He decried what he

described as the lackadaisical attitude of parents towards nurturing their wards and exhorted parents and guardians to spend time in inculcating the values and traditions of society like spending time to pray as a family and learning good morals.

While giving the vote of thanks, the parish priest of St Gabriel’s Catholic Church, Rev Fr Emmanuel Ofomata, thanked the bishop for what he termed his selflessness and fatherly role in upholding the faith of the people. He also thanked the brethren for their continuous support and contributions to

Christendom.

While speaking to Fides, Fr. Ofomata expressed delight over the courtesy visit, noting that it was an honourable gesture to him by his spiritual father to grace the occasion amidst his cumbersome schedules.

Also speaking, a member of. the planning committee, Arch. Emeka Gabriel Nwokolo, shared his experiences on the journey of hosting the programme. He affirmed support for the parish priest and prayed for good health and long life for the bishop.

Highlights of the occasion were the unveiling of the status of st Gabriel presentation of gift to the bishop and dance performance.