By Uche Mbah
A Roman Catholic Priest could not restrain his hatred for the Igbo race, even in the Church. In the process, he desecrated the body of Christ and, deservedly, earned himself an indefinite suspension.
Rev. Fr. James Anelu descended from the Olympian height into the gutter.
The Parish Priest in-charge of the Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Ewu-Owa Gberigbe, Ikorodu, was officiating when the devil manifested in him, and he spewed forth evil.
As the Congregation was happily singing soul-lifting choruses, led by the Choir, Anelu thundered from the Alter and asked them to stop when they began a chorus in Igbo.
He asked the congregants to shut-up. And banned the singing of Igbo choruses in the Church.
Then, he descended on the Igbo race. He said the race has taken too much. “Everywhere you go to, you dominate”, he said in Church. He told the Igbo that their excesses must be cut short. “You keep dominating Everywhere, even the Church.”
How?
Anelu gives an example, he said in his home Diocese, Benin, Edo State, an Igbo, His Lordship, Akubueze was appointed a Bishop. And, in a bid to mislead the people, he told them that God only understands and recognizes the Indigenous language of the people.
“In Ekwulobia, will they sing Yoruba songs there?”
Some of Anelu’s unbelievable utterances when the Church members began to protest:
“If you are aggrieved, see me after Mass, not during the Mass. If you know you have arguments to put forward before the altar of God, see me after Mass.
“If I go to Ekwulobia (in Anambra State) and start speaking Yoruba, Ekwulobia people will use stone to drive me away.
“I was in Awo Omama (Imo State) to go and bury someone, they said I can’t say Mass because I can’t speak Igbo, but I now told them that the woman or that corpse will kill the Reverend Father, before the Reverend Father now allowed me to use English.
“We are here to evangelise everybody, we are not here to dominate and to suppress. If you sing Igbo, will the Yoruba person come to this Church?
“Will other tribes come to this church? If all other tribes start to sing their song, how many people will remain in church?”Most people in the Church, in anger, walked out of the Church. The video of his infamy has since gone viral.
Immediately recognizing the damage Anelu has caused, and fully aware of the Igbo population in the Church, the Archbishop of Lagos, His Grace, Alfred Adewale Martins, gave Anelu a red card.
In a statement he personally signed, Martins disclaimed Anelu and his bizarre utterances. He suspended him indefinitely.
Dated February 7, and entitled DISCLAIMER, the Archbishop said:
“It has been brought to our notice that Rev. Fr. James Anelu, the Priest in-charge of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Ewu-,Owa Ikorodu, made some completely unacceptable comments about Igbo songs being sung in the Church and unsavory remarks that do not represent the Catholic Church’s position on common brotherhood of peoples of all tribes and religions.
“For this reason, he has been asked to proceed on an indefinite leave of absence to give an opportunity for a thorough investigation of all matters relating to the Ministry in the Parish. The leave of absence takes effect from Tuesday, 8th February, 2022, till further notice.
“We, therefore, urge all Catholic faithful, to hold unto the faith and continue in our worship of God as one big family, united in love, and not separated by language, culture or race.”
However, not a few people are asking for more. Suspension, they say is not enough. They say Anelu should be stripped of his Priesthood of the Catholic Church for desecration the body of Christ.
