My Priestly Silver Jubilee

My Priestly Silver Jubilee Reflection

(1999 -2024)
 Fr. Innocent Abonyi, MSP

 

Introduction

In my view, silver jubilees are momentous occasions and significant milestones that marks a
quarter of a century of success, growth, failures, resilience, and renewed hope. The tradition of celebrating silver anniversaries can be traced back to ancient civilizations. Medieval Germany is where the tradition of giving specific gifts for each anniversary milestone, such as silver for the 25th anniversary, is believed to have first originated. The custom was to give a wreath made of silver to wives. This tradition then spread to other parts of Europe and eventually to the United States. Today, the silver anniversary is widely recognized and celebrated by all men and women across the globe as significant milestone in life, careers, and relationships. 
The thanksgiving events organized to mark my silver jubilee have renewed my sense of being
loved and appreciated by the good people of God whom I was ordained to serve. I am filed with rekindled sense of joy and hope. As I look back on the twenty five extraordinary years of my catholic priesthood, I make my own the beautiful words of the psalmist, “What marvels the Lord worked for us, indeed we were glad” (Psalm 125). In this article, I wish to share a few thoughts on my journey so far, including my missionary placements and experiences.

The Call

Becoming a catholic priest was never in my career or vocational plan as I was growing up. Until my graduation from high school, I had no idea of how people became priests and what the life of a priest was like. However, there was always this deep and persistent desire do something for God and for humanity. My membership of and activities within the Legion of Mary and the Catholic Charismatic Renewal from my earliest years sustained this desire to put myself forward and do something special for the Church, although I was not exactly sure what it was I wanted to do.
Following an advert from a friend’s “Ambassador Diary” at a Legion of Mary meeting, calling on young men between 17 – 25 years of age, to consider becoming catholic priests, I wrote to Fr. Jim Sheerin, SPS (RIP), who was the MSP Vocations Director to inquire about this whole
business of catholic priesthood. His reply was an invitation to attend a vocations retreat in
Abakaliki, Ebonyi State. After one week of vocation retreat, I got another letter from him
inviting me to attend an admission interview in Ogun State. I had a very short interview on the scheduled date and was offered admission.

Seminary Formation
My journey to Roman Catholic priesthood started on 25 th October 1990 when I and seventeen other young men of about the same age (17 – 22) arrived the spiritual year seminary of the Missionaries of St. Paul in Iperu-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria for the start of our formation. We came from various backgrounds including birth, academic, tribes, regions, languages, and culture within Nigeria. We were convinced that like Jeremiah in the Old Testament, we have been called by God (Jeremiah 1: 4- 10).
My nine years seminary formation comprised of first two years of spirituality in Iperu-Remo;
three years of Philosophy in Gwagwalada, Abuja; and four years of rigorous studies of Theology also in Abuja.
According to the Second Vatican Council, major seminaries are necessary for priestly formation (Vatican II, Decree on Priestly Training –Optatam Totius). My formation in the seminary were spiritual, intellectual, human, and pastoral. Rigorous course work, study, field education known as apostolic work, spiritual direction, community life, labour, all sorts of workshops and many other program of discernment involving regular evaluations and promotions exercisers were undertaken during my seminary formation. These exercises were geared towards continuing conversion of heart, mind, and soul, so as to help us maintain priestly discipline and carry out our ministries in the service of the Gospel.

Mission/Pastoral Placements

According to Pope Francis, the call to seek the face of Christ in his people is a call to serve him
in the people of our parishes and communities, but also this includes the call to seek Christ
beyond the safe confines of our churches. My mission placements since 1999 include:

- Seminary
My first posting was to a Spiritual Year Seminary in Ogun State, my alma mater. My job here
was to assist in the spiritual formation of seminarians. In addition to being a spiritual director, I also taught introductory courses in Scripture, liturgy, and church history. The whole exercise were meant to help candidates acquire a solid foundation towards emotional and spiritual maturity. This includes self awareness, a good habit of prayer, and personal love for Jesus Christ.
Following the completion of my post graduate studies in 2003, I was assigned to a major
seminary as a formator. Here, I taught Applied Psychology, Homiletics, Latin, and Patristics. I
was also Dean of Students for a short while. While still in this placement, I travelled to a few
places giving retreats and conference talks. One of such travels took me to Liberia and to the
diocese of Cape Palmas where I spend three weeks giving retreats to priests and religious. My
years as a seminary formator was quite remarkable. Like St. Paul, my aim was to become all things for all men (1 Cor 9:22). I was determined to strive to the finish and to get the price (Philippians 3:14) if at all possible.

- Other placements and services

I have served in four amazing parishes as parish priest. I have also served as Catholic Chaplain to a University and a few other lower schools at various times. I was chaplain to Diocesan Youth groups and the Knights of St. Columba. I was involved in the formation of permanent deaconate as a Tutor and Spiritual Director for few years. As parish priest, I was foundation governor to all the schools within my jurisdiction. I had the privilege of serving as the Regional Superior for my religious order, an experience that I will never forget all my life. I am currently the dean for my own deanery. My experiences and placements these past twenty five years have been sources of great strength in my ongoing formation, self evaluation, and in the personal journey as a pilgrim who desires to see the face of God at the end of my sojourn here on Earth.

 

What has kept me going

From the start of my priestly ministry, I knew that I was merely an earthenware vessel (Jer. 18:5-6; 2 Cor.4:7). It was not about me but about others, the people of God. My life was going to be that of service. Priesthood for me is a gift and a privilege. It is also a fruit of grace (an unmerited favour), for as the scripture says, “no one takes this honour upon himself” ( Hebrew 5:4). The beauty and joy of the Priesthood is that awareness that in spite of my unworthiness, I have been welcomed by Jesus to work in his vineyard and to represent him in a special way. As Christ himself says, “You did not choose me, I chose you to go out and to bear fruit...” (Jn. 15:16).
What has kept me going include:

Faith: My faith in God has been the source of my strength. My conviction that my life has
meaning and that God has formed me from my mother’s womb and sent me on a mission
(Jeremiah 1) has been my drive and motivation. As John Henry Newman says, God has sent me to do him some definite service. I am convinced that this service is what I am giving within the catholic priesthood. The hunger to do more, driven by the love of Christ (2 Cor 5:4) spurs me on. The special privilege of celebrating the holy Eucharist brings everything together and serves as my fountain of strength. As the highly celebrated Jesuit General, Paedro Arrupe says “what you are in love with, what seizes your imagination, will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in Love, stay in love, and it will decide everything. My vocation is my first love, so I strive to stay faithful to it.
I question myself occasionally about the word of God which as a priest I ought to embody. I
wondered many times whether I was radical and prophetic enough. The scripture text from 1
Cor 4:1-2, which says, “This is how they should regard us: Servants of Christ and Stewards of the mysteries of God. And it is required of stewards, that they should be trust worthy” remains one of my favorite texts for all time.

Prayer: People often said that I am a happy person, always peaceful and smiling. Well, I admit that like Nehemiah, the joy of the Lord is my strength (Neh 8:10). One can only love who they know. The knowledge of the Lord for a priest comes through prayer. Prayer for me is life. It is the totality of my life with God. It also involves the time and space we give to God and that he gives to us. Prayer has been a sustaining force for me. It gives me nourishment and meaning especially on those times when ministry is dry, arid, dark, and shallow. It reminds me on those moments, that God of the mountain is also God of the mountain, and that God of the night is also the God of the day. The prayer, "Father, I place my life in your hands (Luke 23:46, Psalm 30:5) are always on my lips. It gives me consolation as I struggle to surrender all to God.

Support from Family and Friends: My everyday life is enriched by love and friendship from my family and friends including fellow priests and parishioners. In sharing their lives with its ups and downs, I found consolation and succor. They help me touch the very mysteries of existence as they unfold in daily life. I see the Lord in all these amazing people. In accompanying souls and the recipient of my piece of ministry, I found my own strength, direction, and renewed focus. The memory of those I accompanied helped me deal with the dark moments of ministry.

Conclusion
When I reflect on how I came to be a priest and still remain one, I am a little bit surprised on
how little has changed by way of my motive or drive. I have never lost sight of that initial
motivation that made me want to become a priest in the first place. While experience has
tempered my idealism and some new factors, events and people have entered into my story,
challenging or sustaining me, discouraging and spurring me on, much of what originally inspired me remains the same and are quite true now. I am in love with my vocation as a priest and I am very positive about its future. Like Jeremiah (Jeremiah 1:4-10), I believe that I am fulfilling God’s plan for me on this planet earth. Hence, it is the truest way of life that I can ever choose for myself.
It has been the most extraordinary honour of my life to serve God’s people in the past twenty
five years, in line with the commitments and vows I took at my ordinations. Today, I continue to make my own the declaration of TS Eliot who said  “I have rolled up my sleeves and taken the Church on my back, I shall never put her down”.  My most passionate desire is to live like Jesus (Philippians 2:5), who said “I am among you as one who serves ( Luke 22:27). As the Psalmist says, “better is one day in your courts O Lord, than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked ( Psalm 84:10).