Ngige Nwachukwu
In the Catholic liturgical calendar, every first day of November is an all-important one. On that date, the feast of All Hallows, or All Saints, is celebrated. It is a day dedicated to the remembrance of all those who have worthily done the race, the saints-triumphant, known and unknown. Of course, all the canonized saints of the Catholic Church have their respective remembrance days, but the church is also aware that beyond the known litany of saints, there are other good men and women who, beyond human knowledge, lived impeccably and are now in eternal bliss, in the bosom of God Almighty, the owner of the universe. In the infallible teachings of Holy Catholicism, saints canonized and saints un-canonized are special friends of God who should be celebrated and their lives emulated; hence, the feast of All Hallows.
For me, it would be a very great omission to discuss the feast of All Hallows without due mention for the All Souls, which comes the following day, November 2. This is another significant date in Catholic Christianity. On this great day, we on earth are reminded of our short pilgrimage here. Most importantly, all the souls departed in Christ Jesus are remembered and prayed for in a most special way. In the ageless, infallible dogma of the Catholic Church, through the prayers of the pilgrims on earth, the souls in purgatory, a place of purification of sins, receive remission before they are ushered into heaven. On this mournful, joyous day, when we also prepare for our own death, it is always a common sight seeing the clergy and the faithfuls gather at cemeteries to celebrate the Requiem mass. The holy mass gets to the most sobering climax when the priest, in vocalizing the Eucharistic preface in Latin, declares the stanza, “vita mutati…,” which translates, “for those who are troubled that they will one day die, let them be consoled for life endeth not. It is only transited.”
As a journalist and an unrepentant Catholic who has been part of these November celebrations in various parts of Nigeria at different times, in no place have I witnessed the greatness of these feasts like I did for five unbroken years as a student of the glorious All Hallows Seminary, Onitsha. Hence, this year’s celebration, therefore, offers me a good opportunity to reflect and recreate those memorable days when, in teenage innocence, over three decades ago, we were modelled, some would say, indoctrinated, in the ceaseless imagination of magnum regnum christus, the great reign of Christ. All Saints’ Day was and still is the greatest day on the calendar of the school, having derived its name thus. It is a day, but a day like no other, which every student and parent looked forward to. It was celebrated with pomp.
The then rector of the school, Rev. Dr. Monsignor O.P. Achebe, scholar par excellence, native of Abatete in Idemili North Council of Anambra State, one of the most brilliant Catholic priests I have ever met, a polyglot who bagged a doctorate degree at the age of 28, was a great teacher and playwright. For over 20 years as the head of the school, he nurtured many souls into priesthood, while others have distinguished careers in various fields of life today. Exercising his immense power of literary creativity, he impressed indelibly in our sub-conscious the vision of heavenly hosts, the saints and the uncreated Creator in his play, titled, All Hallows in Heaven. Staging the play in front of dignitaries was the peak of the schedule of activities marking All Hallows day, with the secluded gates of the seminary thrown wide open for visitors of all walks of life.
I flash back particularly to November 1, 1983, when, as a Form 3 student, the cast of All Hallows in Heaven performed so well that then Archbishop of Onitsha Arch-diocese, now Francis Cardinal Arinze, out of excitement and appreciation, extended our free day by a day! Unusually characteristic that day was the role of God on His throne of eminent holiness so graphically and divinely imitated by a senior student we used to know as Little Lamb, now Reverend Father Onwudinjo, with Stephen Ahanonu, who was in my class, now a Nollywood artiste, playing Saint Peter with the iron moulded key of heaven, almost longer than his hand!
It was in the same year that Dr. Achebe founded the Man of Order and Discipline (MOD) a voluntary, church-based, civil defence outfit that has spread to all Catholic dioceses in Nigeria. The first commander-general of the MOD was Francis Obikwelu, now a reverend father in Awka Diocese, while the deputy commander was Placid Ugheonu. Ugheonu held special attraction to me and most junior students. He was a very brilliant boy who made nine alphas (9A’s), including additional mathematics, in WASC examination. On a historical note and of coincidence to the course of history, he hails from Isseke, a town in Ihiala LGA, Anambra State, which is today confirmed as the birthplace of great Olaudah Equiano (1745-1797), also called Gustavus Vassa, who was enslaved and sold to the United States. He was the first black man to author a book. Through hard work, he was able to secure his freedom. Using his influence and learning, he permeated the ranks of the British parliamentarians to drive home the evil of slavery and slave trade. His abolitionist autobiography and speeches as well as the great friendship of William Wilberforce, an eminent British parliamentarian and humanist, were instrumental to the famous abolitionist judgement of Lord Mansfield, the chief Judge of England. Lord Mansfield had in 1772, in a case involving another slave, James Summerset, declared that it was neither in the laws of the universe nor in the laws of England that Africans be enslaved. He, therefore, set James free, thus, the first major step towards the abolition of slave trade in England.
As Catholics celebrate the feast of All Saints and that of All Souls this year, it is of great essence to remember our dear nation and the President in prayers for St. Paul, the greatest crusader of the Christian faith, admonished that every authority comes from God. No doubt, the leading role of the Catholic Church in social responsibilities cannot be underrated. Her avuncular lead in education and healthcare are unmatched. It is instructive that, in this age of cut-throat mercantilism even among the religious, schools and hospitals belonging to the Catholic Church still remain the most affordable. The Prayer for Nigeria in Distress, recited almost as a rosary in the dark days of 1996-1998, was pivotal to the birth of our democracy. The Prayer Against Bribery and Corruption, which has been ceaseless, will certainly find favour before God one day. But prayer without good work is in vain, the Bible says. There are many Catholics in the commanding heights of the nation’s leadership. Let them show the way so that others will emulate. To my fellow All Hallows alumni, Christus via veritas et vita, let Christ remain the way, the truth and the life, our school motto.
•Nwachukwu, a journalist, writes from Abuja