“Pope Benedict was a great Church man who spent his whole life working for the Church” – Cardinal Onaiyekan

“Pope Benedict was a great Church man who spent his whole life working for the Church” – Cardinal Onaiyekan

By Padre Mike Nsikak Umoh, CSN

A foremost ecclesiastic of the Catholic Church in Nigeria, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has called on all Catholics and men and women of good will not to mourn, but to “celebrate the Holy Father’s departure.” He said, “We celebrate his glorious passing into glory after 95 years of faithfully serving God and the Church. We have another saint in heaven now who will pray for us.”

The Archbishop-Emeritus of Abuja Archdiocese added his voice to that of numerous  Church and world leaders describing the late Pope Benedict XVI as “a great Church man who spent his whole life working for the Church.”

The great Nigerian theologian, in an exclusive interview with the National Director of Social Communications, Padre Mike Umoh, said it is not easy to contain the role of Pope Benedict in few words because of his significant contributions in the areas  of theology, Church governance and at the very top as a Pope.

Cardinal Onaiyekan praised Pope Benedict, then Cardinal Ratzinger, for his distinguished contributions to the success of Pope John Paul II’s papacy. He stressed that, “Much of the theological positions taken by Pope John Paul II in his 25 years pontificate are the results of the work of Cardinal Ratzinger. He is the big theological brain behind Pope John Paul II.”

“We thank God for his life and pray God grants him eternal reward in heaven with the Saints,” he concluded.