By Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
Catholic Bishop of Kaduna Archdiocese, Archbishop Mathew Manoso-Ndagoso, on Friday, April 25, urged Nigerian leaders and Christians in the country to emulate the humble and simple lifestyle of Pope Francis who, to him, lived a life of humility and cared for the marginalized in society.
Speaking after the requiem mass at St Joseph’s Cathedral, Archbishop Manoso-Ndagoso noted: “He live very closely to the way Jesus Christ lived and that’s why Christ identified with the poor; he identified with those at the periphery and those who felt abandoned. This is something we must learn as leaders and followers of Jesus Christ.”
The Archbishop maintained: “As we celebrate this requiem mass for the Pope to remember him, I will like to say Pope Francis actually lived up to the name of the Pope, Pontifex, means bridge builder; every Pope is a bridge builder that is why he is called the Supreme Pontiff.
“There are a lot of legacies he left behind for us as a Church. I pray the Church will be able to carry them through. He worked very seriously for an inclusive Church. Jesus Christ came for everybody –sinners and saints alike — and that’s why He prayed more on the mercy of God. God’s mercy excludes nobody, and I think this is the point he emphasized and decided to leave in simplicity: his car is the lowest grade of car in Italy.
“Given the way Pope Francis lived his life and, like I said, as Africans when God has blessed somebody with that kind of long life, 88 years is no joke and even the way he lived his life …so we are here to thank God for his life and to celebrate it, to thank Him for the gift of this wonderful man, this rare bride of the human being that He has given us as a leader of the Catholic Church.
“It has being wonderful but, yes, death is death. It’s said that your father or loved one can never live long enough; therefore even if they live 200 years, when they die we feel the pain. So he couldn’t have lived long enough with us given what he did, but we thank God for that.
“So like I said, it’s a day primarily to thank God for his life and so we are here to do just that and to pray for him. He led us in the Eucharist; so we are gathered today to do just that for him. Tomorrow (today, Saturday, April 26) he will be buried; so we are gathered here as a particular church of Kaduna to honor him, to pray for him and to commit his soul into the hands of the Lord.”
On Nigerian Cardinals’ qualifications to be elected as Pope, Archbishop Manoso-Ndagoso said: “All the Cardinals, except one Cardinal Peter Okpalake, who is just in his fifties, are qualified, but for the other Cardinals like Arinze, who is in Rome, Cardinal Onaiyekan, Cardinal Anthony Okojie, if they are able, they can participate in the discussions in Rome.
“There will be days of discussion as regards the kind of Pope we want at this time, but when it comes to the real elections, because they are over 80, none of them can vote and be voted for.”
On whether there is a vacuum in the Catholic Church as it is now, the Archbishop said: “As it is now, you saw the ceremony that took place the day he was confirmed dead; they declared sede-vacante.
“They went and sealed his apartment where he lived, declaring that Pope and leader of the Church is dead and therefore there’s a vacant seat. Tomorrow he will be buried and after the burial tomorrow, the next nine days there will be a period of mourning and then after the period of mourning, the process of electing a new leader will commence.
“So, yes, there is interregnum, there is a sede-vacante meaning that the seat is empty. So now it’s the team of the college of Cardinals that is now running the affairs of the Church. So no major decisions will be taken, the normal ordinary running of the Church will continue.”
