“Pray for Peace and Unity in Ghana”, President Appeals to Catholics at Golden Jubilee

Sekondi-Takoradi, 11 December, 2019 / 10:17 PM

At the conclusion of yearlong celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Ghana’s Diocese of Sekondi-Takoradi Sunday, December 8, the country’s President, Nana Akufo-Addo appealed to Catholics to pray for him and the West African nation to have lasting “peace and unity, progress and prosperity.”

“Pray for Ghana, for peace and unity, her progress and prosperity, for me and for the men and women of my team so that God will grant us courage, honesty, strength, wisdom and a good heart to administer the affairs of this nation to the welfare of the Ghanaian people and the glory of God,” the Ghanaian President told the faithful of the Diocese in Ghana’s Western Region who gathered at Our Lady, Star of the Sea Cathedral, Takoradi.

All Ghanaians have a “sacred duty to God and man to help build in Ghana, a nation founded on the values of equity, fairness and integrity and an economy that will bring progress and prosperity to our people,” the President said at the conclusion of the jubilee whose theme was, "Arise Catholic Faithful, Let Us Build Together."

“We can do so through hard work animated by a sense of enterprise, creativity, innovation and with the determination to fight corruption in our public life,” President AKufo-Addo further said, addressing himself to the clergy and lay faithful who gathered at the cathedral for the celebration

He expressed gratitude for the Church’s contribution toward national development especially in the sectors of health and education and pledged government’s continued support to the Church ministry.

In his homily, the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese, Archbishop John Bonaventure Kwofie, called for a change of attitude in Ghana saying, “Let us change our mental attitude. Let us change the way we think, let us change our way of doing things.”

Further, in his keynote address, the Archbishop who is also the Local Ordinary of Accra expressed gratitude to “the priests, religious and lay faithful who have served the Diocese since its creation” in November 1969 when it was curved out of Cape Coast Archdiocese.

The Ghanaian Prelate also reminded the clergy and lay faithful of their responsibility to embrace their respective evangelization mission received at baptism saying, “In gratitude to God and all those whose generous love taught us the Christian faith and nurtured it for growth and conscious of our responsibility in our own time to go, make disciples, baptize and teach.”

In a message of congratulations from the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference (GCBC), the President, Archbishop Philip Naameh acknowledged the role of the Diocese in the mission of evangelization in the country.

“Ever since its creation, the diocese has been faithful to its divine mandate of evangelization, diligently bringing the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to the Western part of our country and beyond,” GCBC’s President, Archbishop Naameh said.

Speaking to ACI Africa on the sidelines of the Sunday event, the Communications Director of the diocese, Fr. Emmanuel Dolphyne encouraged Catholics in the 50-year-old diocese to “continue to remain faithful to the church.”

“Though the Jubilee has ended, the living of our faith continues,” Fr. Dolphyne said.