By Igbawase Ukumba
Reverend Monsignor David Ajang was yesterday officially ordained by the Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria, Antonio Guido Filipazzi, as the new bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Lafia, Nasarawa State.
The Holy Father had in March 2021 appointed Rev. Ajang as the new bishop of the Diocese of Lafia to fill the vacuum created following the appointment of Bishop Matthew Ishaya Audu last year as Bishop of the Metropolitan Catholic Arch Diocese of Jos.
In a homily before the ordination at the St Williams Cathedral in Lafia, Apostolic Antonio Guido Filipazzi urged the new Bishop, Dr. Ajang, to be a father to all members of the church by avoiding any form of segregation.
The Papal Nuncio also charged Ajang to embrace non-members of the Catholic Church, including those who are not Christians, “because Christ loves them all.”
To the clergy and laity of the Lafia Catholic Diocese, Filipazzi said they must accord the new bishop full cooperation and respect “because he will sit at the cathedral as a representative of Christ.”
President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria and Archbishop of the Catholic Arch Diocese of Benin City, Edo State, Most Reverend Augustine Obiora Akubeze, urged the clergy and laity of the Lafia Diocese to resist the urge to compare every action taken by the new bishop with that of the former, as according to him, “Bishop David Ajang is a different person compared to Archbishop Matthew Ishaya Audu, coming with a different style.”
Bishop Akubeze, however, advised the new Bishop Ajang to give listening ears to those who may want to advise him so that he can make more informed decisions for the good of the church.
Also, the outgone Bishop of the Lafia Catholic Diocese and Archbishop of Jos Catholic Archdiocese, Dr. Audu, urged the clergy and laity of the Lafia Catholic Diocese to extend the same love and support they gave him to the new bishop so that the church will grow to greater heights.
