Three Catholic Msgrs, 10 Others Get Pope Francis Papal Honours in Lagos
Truetells Nigeria reports that Head of the Catholic Church Pope Francis has honored three monsignori and 10 others in the Archdiocese of Lagos for their contribution to the mission of the Church in Nigeria.
Three Monsignori namely, Rev. Msgr. Gabriel ‘Kunle Amolegbe, Rev. Msgr. Peter Babatunde OKE, and Rev. Msgr. Patrick ‘Yinka OBAYOMI are among the thirteen catholic faithful of the Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, who have been honoured by the Holy Father, Pope Francis for their contribution to the mission of the Church in Nigeria and particularly in the Archdiocese of Lagos.
While the trio of Amolegbe, Oke and Abayomi were honoured as Chaplains of His Holiness, three lay faithful have been honoured as Knights of St. Gregory the Graet, five others as Knights of St. Sylvester the Pope and two get Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice honour.
The awardees were: Gregory Ehimare ENAHORO, Knight of Saint Gregory the Great; Robert Soji OLAGUNJU, Knight of Saint Gregory the Great; Edward Soleye HUGHES, Knight of Saint Gregory the Great; Patrick Okwudili IGWILO, Knight of Saint Sylvester the Pope; Anthony Ikemefuna IDIGBE, Knight of Saint Sylvester the Pope; Cyril Oluwatoyin PINHEIRO, Knight of Saint Sylvester the Pope; Patrick Onyema AMAECHI, Knight of Saint Sylvester the Pope; Winifred Nwaukpo AKPANI, Dame of Saint Sylvester the Pope; Sena Donata ANTHONY, Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice and Chinyelu Nkem AMANGBO, Cross Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice.
Speaking at the event the Archbishop Adewale Martins, on behalf of the Clergy, the Religious, and the Lay Faithful of the Archdiocese of Lagos, congratulated the honorees and urged them not to rest on their oars.
“The church has its own ways of recognizing and acknowledging the contributions people have made to the church in terms of the services they rendered, many of these men and women have taken active part in the life of their parishes, as members of council and committees. And they are also people who have proven themselves in the act of charity within their different parishes. Many of them have also helped the archdiocese with regards to education, health and social services. There are many more of such persons in our archdiocese but gradually other people will get their acknowledgement as well.
“We hope by the conferment of these honors, the honorees would bind themselves more closely to the Church as they carry out their responsibilities with renewed vigor. It is our prayer that the good Lord will renew their strength as they aspire to dedicate themselves more intently to the service of the church in our Archdiocese”. He said