Nigerians have been urged to exemplify the spirit of Unity and love as the 2025 Feast of the Pentecost was celebrated by the Christendom globally.
The Auxiliary Bishop, Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja, Nigeria, Most Rev Anselm Umorem, stated this at a 3 Day event of the 2nd Edition of Pentecost Program of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal in Nigeria, Abuja Archdiocese, at the Cathedral of Twelve Apostles, Papal’s Ground, Abuja, the nation’s capital.
The theme for this year’s Programme is: ‘Receive you the Holy Spirit’ taken from the gospel of John chapter twenty verses twenty-one and twenty –two with Holy Mass, Salvation, Divine Breakthrough as its highlights.
Bishop Umorem homily speaks on the significance of the celebration of Pentecost. He said, “Pentecost must become part of our lives and lead our lives always. People should speak words that heal and restore, words that make people happy, words that build up and not the one that divides”.
“These are the hallmarks of spirit-filled people. They build instead of tearing down, pass on the love of God to the people living around them by their act of kindness, mercy, and charity, instead of the spirit of hurt, of helpfulness instead of non-cooperation, generosity instead of grief, of gentleness in place of a spirit of ruthlessness”. He stressed.
The Cleric also called on Nigerians to be agents of transformation. He noted that “the Holy Spirit is a special gift of God to Humanity”, hence the need for all to leverage His gifts to navigate through every facet of life towards making the world a better place. “that you may truly be open to the guidance and direction of the Holy Spirit in your life now and always, and that the Spirit of God may through you transform the world around you after transforming you and I so that we may truly become witnesses to Jesus Christ who died and rose for our sake” The cleric stressed further.
Artificial Intelligence
Also, Voice of Nigeria’s Religious Affairs Correspondent, Ukamaka Okafor, in an interview with a Guest Speaker, a Priest from Lokoja Dioceses, Reverend Father Justin Ikhianosime, sought to know if the wave the Artificial Intelligence is making in today’s world should be equated with communication pattern of the Holy Spirit.
“One thing I want to let us know is that the Holy Spirit is not an artificial spirit. He is a Spirit of grace, a Spirit of power. And so for us to actually have a touch of the Spirit of God, there should be no alteration in any form.And so we must totally submit ourselves to the Spirit of God. Artificial intelligence is not a bad thing, but should not be used in every sphere of life. In terms of our religion, in terms of our faiths, we cannot equate artificial intelligence with our communication, our encounter with God alone. And so I would say that we must be more focused to the Holy Spirit than AI”. Reverend Father Justin Ikhianosime.
He also assured Nigerians that great transmission is underway with the presence of the Holy Spirit. “And He knows that once the Holy Spirit comes, a lot of transformation will take for us Nigerians, Our longing for the Holy Spirit should not only be restricted to the day of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit will teach us to know the truth about God, about His kingdom, about His glory, so that we can in return align our ways to His pattern and to His ways. And so on this day that we celebrate the Pentecost, beginning from the activities we’ve had for these few days as a charismatic renewal of the archdiocese of Abuja, it is good that we make the Holy Spirit our friend, our teacher, our closest companion, our (1:46) prayer partner”
Furthermore, the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, Most Rev Dr Ignatius Kaigama, buttressed his point on what this new and powerful self-communication of God produces. “Where there are divisions and estrangement, the Paraclete creates unity and understanding. The Spirit triggers a process of reunification of the divided and dispersed parts of the human family, a new body, the Church is formed, whose unity should transcend every human frontier, where all sorts of languages are spoken and understood because they become the language of love. Before Pentecost, they were a collection of confused disciples. After Pentecost, they were totally changed. They were filled with a Spirit that radiated from them and swept across the world like a tidal wave” Archbishop Kaigama stated this at St. Martin’s parish Lugbe, Abuja, the nation’s capital, where he confers the sacrament of confirmation on 315 parishioners.
He reminded them that “Remember your Confirmation is not a graduation from Church. It is a missioning/send-forth, The gifts of the Holy Spirit—wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord—are not decorations. They are your tools for life. When the Spirit descended upon the timid and fearful apostles, what had paralyzed them before – fear, uncertainty, division – was suddenly broken. The Spirit gives power to speak, courage to act, and unity amidst diversity. The Son of God, dead and risen and returned to the Father, now breathes with untold energy the divine breath upon humanity, the Holy Spirit, the Church does not need more spectators but needs disciples on fire, men and women who will bring the Gospel into their homes, workplaces and communities.To all of us here, young and old: let Pentecost not be a memory, but a renewal. We need the presence of the Spirit in our homes, in our marriages, in our politics, in our economy, in our schools—and yes, in our Church”
He urged Leaders at all levels to “embrace this love that the Lord has planted in us right from the time of creation. We cannot be happy seeing our country collapsing. We must stand together and make things happen. Let us not allow our religion, tribes, or political party, to divide us and hinder us from building and achieving progress in our country and Church.“Peace be with you.” These were the first words Jesus spoke to His disciples after His resurrection”. He said.
The Holy Spirit infuses not only peace but also courage and confidence in us and transforms us into fearless preachers of the gospel. Prophet Ezekiel chapter 37 had a vision of the valley of the dry bones. That’s how our country is. Pentecost also invites us to reflect on the diversity and yet unity within the Church despite our differences, and calls us to embrace the richness of our faith traditions and cultural diversity. Saint Paul reminds us that “though we are many, we are one body in Christ” (1 Cor 12:12).
The Spirit did not erase diversity; He sanctified it. And so, within the Church, different gifts, different vocations, and different cultures all come together in harmony, not competition.
The Chairman, CCRN, Abuja Archdiocese, Br Christian Ngwu, while driving home the messages of the Pentecost Celebration of the CCRN, he urged the faithful “to return back to the root, which is the Holy Spirit who is the source of living, the owner of the Renewal and the owner of the Church. Having been laid hands upon after the Life in the Spirit conducted for the faithful in all the parishes in the Archdiocese which was carried out by all the Prayer Groups in all the Parishes. The Almighty God has imparted on his children and there are lots of encounters. So they are going home to be guided by their prayer group leaders to their ministries to function in those ministries in accordance with the gifts the Lord has given to them and work in those areas of assignment”
Economic, Security Challenges
On his advice to Nigerians in the midst of economic and security challenges, he said “Holy ghost works through men who are open to him. Our encouraging word and our gospel to all living souls is to repent and put your trust in the Lord. Without the Holy Spirit, nothing can be done, no matter how good your efforts may be, if the Holy Spirit is not with you, you won’t see the desired results, but with him who is the Maker of heaven and earth, the Leader and Director and the perfecter of all things, you’ll see results. But when he’s kept behind, the results is difficult, So we encourage every body in Nigeria, as a family, as an individual, as a government person and no matter the position you are occupying, turn to the Lord, the solutions of this nation and that of the world lies in the hands of the Lord by the leading of the Holy Spirit the solution is assured” he advised Pentecost is a feast celebrated on the fiftieth Day after the Passover feast by the Jews and a feast celebrated on the fiftieth Day after the feast of the Resurrection. Fifty days after Easter, a powerful wind blew over Jerusalem and the flame of the Holy Spirit descended on the gathered disciples.On Pentecost day, where there was division and incomprehension, unity and understanding were born. The Church was born to become a voice to the nations.
Olusola Akintonde