The Catholic Diocese of Awka on Saturday, ordained eleven priests and one deacon.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 10 priests were Cosmas Emengini, Samuel Ezeafulukwe, Augustine Igwebuike, Vitus Onyekaba, Constantine Okoli and Cyriacus Ezeamaechi.
Others were Dominic Anyaharaekwule, Kevin Nwakpu, Aloysius Odogwu, Nicodemus Izuchukwu, while Innocent Uchenna was the only person ordained a deacon.
Most Rev. Kevin Rhoades, Catholic Bishop of Fort Wayne South Bend, Indiana, United States of America who performed the ordination at St. Patrick Cathedral, Awka, charged them to emulate Jesus Christ the good shepherd.
“Today and forever, you have the seal of Jesus Christ as a good shepherd; this sacred character is something dynamic because you are now an instrument in God’s hand,” he said.
He told the newly ordained that they were configured to speak in the name of God as soul winners for the kingdom.
The visiting cleric urged both new and old priests to positively impact society as they do the church, adding, “you should be servants of God and the people”.
Rhoades who maintained that priests should be prayerful, also charged them to emulate Blessed Michael Tansi.
The bishop who expressed gratitude to the faithful for a warm reception said he had known Bishop Paulinus Ezeokafor of Awka before his consecration as bishop.
NAN gathered that Ezeofor was out of the country for some undisclosed reasons.
Rev. Fr. Peter Akaenyi, Vicar, Awka Catholic Diocese, who welcomed Rhoades, used the medium to remind the congregants of the need to obtain their independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Permanent Voters Card (PVC) ahead of 2023 elections.
“It is regrettable that Anambra has a population of more than five million, yet the number of registered voters is about 2.5 million while Delta State with less population has more registered voters,” he said.
He also advised the faithful on the need to avoid falling prey to agents of vote buying during next year’s elections.
The ordination mass attended by Bishop Jonas-Benson Okoye of Nnewi Catholic Diocese, also had more than 200 priests and hundreds of Catholic faithful in attendance.
