Pope Francis, Head of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of the Vatican City has inaugurated Monsignor David Ajang as a new Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Lafia.
David Ajang was made the second Bishop of the 20-year-old Lafia Diocese following the elevation and transfer of Matthew Ishaya-Audu who was the first Bishop since 2001 to Jos as Metropolitan Archbishop of Jos.
Pope Francis who was represented at the occasion by Antonio Guido-Filipazzi, Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria, congratulated the new Bishop and advised him to be a good Shepherd. He tasked Bishop Ajang to make Priests under his Diocese his closeset neighbours and friends and desist from showing discrimination.
He explained that the Church would support and pray for the new Bishop and urged him to always rely on Almighty God to guide and guard his decisions and actions. On his part, Matthew Ishaya-Audu, Metropolitan Archbishop of Jos who was the first and immediate-past Bishop of Lafia, expressed joy for the successful inauguration of his successor.
The Metropolitan Archbishop of Jos commended members for their support to him while serving as their Bishop in the last 20 years and urged them to extend the same to the new Bishop. In his message, Monsignor David Ajang expressed gratitude to God who made his installation possible and thanked those who contributed in making the occasion a success.
He expressed surprise on why Almighty God selected him despite his unworthiness to be the Bishop, adding that, ‘He would redouble his efforts in serving God for the rest of his life’. He said he would continue to pray for members as well as leaders at all levels for God to intervene to help overcome nomerious challenges bedeviling the country.
In his goodwill message, Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State congratulated the new Bishop and the entire Catholic community for the successful replacement of the former Bishop of Catholic Diocese of Lafia. The Nasarawa State Governor also acknowledged the contributions of Catholic Church to the educational development of the state and the country.
“I benefited from Catholic Church, because I finished from Catholic School and also got assistance from Catholic Church during my studies in the United States of America (USA). “If not for Catholic Church, I may not be where and what I am today,” the governor added.
He also used the occasion to call on the faithful of all religions to understand and respect the rights of each other in the overall interest of the nation.
He explained that if Nigerians respect each other’s religion, the country would be peaceful. Governor Sule therefore expressed the government’s determination to support and work with the new Bishop and other religious leaders to sustain peace in the state.
The occasion was attended by 26 Catholic Bishops across the country, Priests across the state and beyond, Governors of Nasarawa, Plateau States and representatives of Benue State Governor, government’s officials from Nasarawa and Plateau among others.