…engage discussions on missiology
As part of her operational mandate of coordinating the activities of the Catholic Bishops of Nigeria in the areas of Mission, Ecumenism and Interreligious dialogue, the Department of Mission and Dialogue, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN), recently, carried her routine annual Seminary visitation to the Seminary of all Saints, Uhiele Edo State.
The visit which took place from 23rd to 25th April, 2024, availed the Director and staff members of the department an opportunity for interaction with the formators and seminarians on issues bothering on Missiology, Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue.
In his welcome address, the Rector, Fr. Matthew Ovabor Ihensekhein commended the team from the Catholic Secretariat for the tireless efforts in carrying out their duties, particularly for their contributions to the growth of the Church. He mentioned that the seminary community was happy and eager to hear from the team even as he reiterated the fact that the work of the mission is at the heart of the Seminary formation and noted that their visit was timely as the last visit to the seminary by the team was in 2017.
In his presentation during the visit, the Director, Department of Mission and Dialogue, Rev. Fr. Joseph Nomhwange, SMA, explained to the formators and the seminarians in the seminary, the workings and administrative structures of the Catholic Secretariat and how they operate to interprete and carry out the mandate of the Church through the Catholic Bishops Conference.
Fr. Nomhwange, further gave an exhaustive and indepth exposition on the concept of missiology – its definition and etymology. He explained that missiology which is the mother of theology, seeks to validate, correct and establish on a better foundation, the entire practice of the mission.
Maintaining that the Church is an instrument of the mission of God, Fr. Nomhwange emphasized that mission is God in action in the world through the church and that the Church is missionary by her very nature, because she ceases to exist when you take out mission from her.
The Episcopal Secretary on Ecumenism, Rev. Fr. Lawrence Emehel, explained the importance and necessity of Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue in our already fractured society. Having enumerated the four forms of dialogue (Theological Exchange, Dialogue of Life, Dialogue of Action and Religious Experience), he expressed the hope that dialogue of Life and Dialogue of Action provide platforms for interactions among people of various religions to come together and tackle issues of social and national importance. Now, more than ever fruitful there is the need for these interactions among people in order to douse the tensions that arise every time due to certain clashes and the eagerness of mischief makers to pitch one part of the society against the other based on religion and ethnicity.
Apart from routine Interactive visits to Major Seminaries in Nigeria, to fraternize with the seminarians and formators who are primary agents of mission and evangelization, the department coordinates the activities of the National Missionary Council of Nigeria (NMCN), and represents the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria at the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), amongst other functions.
