Abuja, 23 April, 2020 / 3:50 am (ACI Africa).
A Nigerian Archbishop’s “missionary spirit and pastoral skills” have been acknowledged with appreciation by the head of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle as the Prelate marks 25 years since he was ordained a Bishop.
“It is with great pleasure that I take this opportunity of joining with the Archdiocese of Abuja and the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Nigeria in congratulating you as you celebrate the Silver Jubilee of your Episcopal Ordination on 23 April,” the Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle has stated in his message to Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja.
In the one-page-letter sent through the Apostolic Nunciature in Nigeria, Cardinal Tagle acknowledged Archbishop Kaigama’s service to the Church as an ordained Minister who developed the “missionary spirit and pastoral skills” necessary for the “different responsibilities” that the Church entrusted to him by appointing him as the first Bishop of Jalingo, Metropolitan Archbishop of Jos and later the Metropolitan Archbishop of Abuja.
“As a young priest, you already gave yourself wholeheartedly in the different missions entrusted to you,” the Filipino Cardinal stated in his letter to Archbishop Kaigama dated March 19, expressing Propaganda Fide’s “profound appreciation and deep gratitude” for the 61-year-old Nigerian Prelate.
“I, therefore, send you my best wishes and prayers that this celebration be a source of joy and countless blessings for you personally, for the Metropolitan See of Abuja and for the whole country,” Cardinal Tagle who has been at the helm of the Vatican-based Congregation responsible for missionary work since February wrote.