On 90th Birthday, Nigerian Cardinal Who Participated in Vatican II Hailed as Legend, Icon

The Nigerian Cardinal who retired from his Episcopal Ministry as Archbishop of Abuja in November 2019 said that Cardinal Arinze also played a vital role in promoting the Church and interreligious dialogue in the West African nation.

Pope John Paul II "had absolute confidence" in Cardinal Arinze on matters regarding interreligious dialogue, "which was why he was kept in that office for so long”, Cardinal Onaiyekan said about the Nigerian Catholic Church leader who started his Episcopal Ministry in August 1965 as Coadjutor Bishop of Nigeria’s Onitsha Diocese.

“The bulk of the work for this was taking place in the offices of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue which His Eminence presided over for over 18 years,” Cardinal Onaiyekan added.

The 78-year-old Archbishop Emeritus of Abuja highlighted the Assisi Annual Gathering of World Religious Leaders as one of the achievements of Cardinal Arinze in interreligious dialogue initiatives. 

Cardinal Onaiyekan who started his Episcopal Ministry in January 1983 as Auxiliary Bishop of Nigeria’s Ilorin Diocese also spoke about Cardinal Arinze’s contribution at the Congregation for Divine Worship where he served as Prefect until his retirement in December 2008.

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“In his relatively few years in that office, he made a strong and lasting impact in insisting on maintaining the dignity and due solemnity of divine worship in the Catholic Church,” Cardinal Onaiyekan said about his compatriot who turned 90 on November 1.

He said that “the clear rules Cardinal Arinze put in place have remained after he left office, because they were good rules.”

Cardinal Onaiyekan went on to laud the Cardinal-Bishop of Velletri-Segni for the role he played in the beatification of Blessed Cyprian Iwene Tansi.

“The relatively quick process for the beatification, which brought the Holy Father (to) Nigeria in 1998, did not happen just by chance,” he said, adding that Cardinal Arinze played a great role "through his dogged hard work in the relevant offices of the Holy See and above all with his tremendous influence with the Holy Father, who was happy to approve the process without any unnecessary delay."

He prayed that Cardinal Arinze would be alive to the canonization of Blessed Tansi "in the not-too-distant future."

Born in November 1932 at Eziowelle in the Archdiocese of Onitsha, Cardinal Arinze was ordained a Priest in 1958. 

After serving as Coadjutor Bishop of Onitsha for some two years, he was appointed Archbishop of Onitsha Archdiocese; he was in this role from 1967 till March 1985 when he resigned.

He was elevated to the rank of a Cardinal in May 1985, making him one of the highest-ranking African Catholic Church leaders at the time.

The Nigerian-born Cardinal was appointed as the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in October 2002.

Silas Mwale Isenjia is a Kenyan journalist with a great zeal and interest for Catholic Church related communication. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communication from Moi University in Kenya. Silas has vast experience in the Media production industry. He currently works as a Journalist for ACI Africa.