May 25, 2010
I am not a heretic; I’m a Catholic. I am not an apostate. On the contrary, I confess my faith in the one holy, catholic and apostolic church. I confess that Jesus is Lord; I confess the forgiveness of sins and I profess my profound faith in the communion of saints. I confess the resurrection of dead; that even before they die, the meek shall inherit the earth and that the righteous shall be exalted. I make an unabashed ejaculation that Okey Ndibe be saint. Let him be made the patron saint of Nigeria. Let the prayer for Nigeria in distress be made to God through him.
I am not a heretic; I’m a Catholic. I am not an apostate. On the contrary, I confess my faith in the one holy, catholic and apostolic church. I confess that Jesus is Lord; I confess the forgiveness of sins and I profess my profound faith in the communion of saints. I confess the resurrection of dead; that even before they die, the meek shall inherit the earth and that the righteous shall be exalted. I make an unabashed ejaculation that Okey Ndibe be saint. Let him be made the patron saint of Nigeria. Let the prayer for Nigeria in distress be made to God through him.
I profess neither heresy nor an apostasy. The faithful consist of the living and the dead. They aid one another through their prayers and good works. Yes, Okey Ndibe for sainthood. Our saints are imperfect human beings with many perfections. They astonish us with their perfections, edify us with their virtues and overawe us with their holiness. Of course, holiness means integrity. So I call for the canonisation of Ndibe. He does not have to die before he intercedes for us. These are terrible times indeed. A time the faithful are hungry for examples and dying for edification. A time His Holiness is not so holy. An era when virtue among churchmen is a rare commodity. An era of impunity. A season of scandals. So, I profess and propose Okey Ndibe for sainthood. I demand his canonisation and not his beatification. One only needed to read his column to see his beatific vision. His canonisation shall usher in a breath of fresh air into our stinking church and our rotten country.
I have no fear over the making of a live saint. The saints are those whom we celebrate their integrity and love to ignore their peccadilloes. A live Saint Okey Ndibe is not a bad idea at all. Even if it be a risk, a brilliant one I dare say. My call for his canonisation is predicated on his saintly journalism, his virtuous pen, his incorruptible ink and his Ockham’s Razor-like mind. His journalist prayers, firing the heavens every Tuesday from the alter of his columns in the pinnacle of webzines and dailies have given the witches and wizards who pirate rather than pilot the affairs of Nigeria a run for their corrupt lives. His pen is strong and his journalistic stick even stronger. He is unarguably the Chief Whip of our misruling elite; and his lashes sting like no other. Ask Jonathan who has just received a few spanks. (Dr) Andy Uba will testify better. Ndibe sees clearly when others are slumbering. The brown envelop, that sly undoing of Nigerian journalism, has no hold on his life. Who is like unto Okey Ndibe?
A man who preferred poverty to corrupt enrichment. A man demurely described as ‘poverty stricken’ yet he turned down a gratification of a million dollars from the very man who mocked him!
So, in the absence of edifying churchmen, I move the motion for the elevation of Okey Ndibe to the alter of sainthood. The long dead saints will no longer do. The were predominantly, saints of their time. Ours is a different time. We need a saint of our time. We need a fiery saint for Nigeria. Vox populi, vox Dei. Okey Ndibe for sainthood. The elevation of Ndibe is kerygmatic necessity. We, the faithful are in dire need of examples. We need such examples for our spiritual survival. Even if as fantasy, for sure, fantasy is at the heart of the myth of sainthood.
We go to church these days mostly out of habit to hear our largely compromised churchmen remind us of things we already knew. Yet we sit down happily and listen attentively. Elevating Okey Ndibe to the college of saints won’t be a bad idea to suffer. Come to think of it, we would rather have reality preached to us than to have fantasy milked down our ears. A niche dedicated to Ndibe shall not starve of devotees. I rest my case for this desideratic elevation. Once more, I make my ejaculation, Okey Ndibe for sainthood!
Ebo Socrates, [email protected], 08064641470.
I profess neither heresy nor an apostasy. The faithful consist of the living and the dead. They aid one another through their prayers and good works. Yes, Okey Ndibe for sainthood. Our saints are imperfect human beings with many perfections. They astonish us with their perfections, edify us with their virtues and overawe us with their holiness. Of course, holiness means integrity. So I call for the canonisation of Ndibe. He does not have to die before he intercedes for us. These are terrible times indeed. A time the faithful are hungry for examples and dying for edification. A time His Holiness is not so holy. An era when virtue among churchmen is a rare commodity. An era of impunity. A season of scandals. So, I profess and propose Okey Ndibe for sainthood. I demand his canonisation and not his beatification. One only needed to read his column to see his beatific vision. His canonisation shall usher in a breath of fresh air into our stinking church and our rotten country.
I have no fear over the making of a live saint. The saints are those whom we celebrate their integrity and love to ignore their peccadilloes. A live Saint Okey Ndibe is not a bad idea at all. Even if it be a risk, a brilliant one I dare say. My call for his canonisation is predicated on his saintly journalism, his virtuous pen, his incorruptible ink and his Ockham’s Razor-like mind. His journalist prayers, firing the heavens every Tuesday from the alter of his columns in the pinnacle of webzines and dailies have given the witches and wizards who pirate rather than pilot the affairs of Nigeria a run for their corrupt lives. His pen is strong and his journalistic stick even stronger. He is unarguably the Chief Whip of our misruling elite; and his lashes sting like no other. Ask Jonathan who has just received a few spanks. (Dr) Andy Uba will testify better. Ndibe sees clearly when others are slumbering. The brown envelop, that sly undoing of Nigerian journalism, has no hold on his life. Who is like unto Okey Ndibe?
A man who preferred poverty to corrupt enrichment. A man demurely described as ‘poverty stricken’ yet he turned down a gratification of a million dollars from the very man who mocked him!
So, in the absence of edifying churchmen, I move the motion for the elevation of Okey Ndibe to the alter of sainthood. The long dead saints will no longer do. The were predominantly, saints of their time. Ours is a different time. We need a saint of our time. We need a fiery saint for Nigeria. Vox populi, vox Dei. Okey Ndibe for sainthood. The elevation of Ndibe is kerygmatic necessity. We, the faithful are in dire need of examples. We need such examples for our spiritual survival. Even if as fantasy, for sure, fantasy is at the heart of the myth of sainthood.
We go to church these days mostly out of habit to hear our largely compromised churchmen remind us of things we already knew. Yet we sit down happily and listen attentively. Elevating Okey Ndibe to the college of saints won’t be a bad idea to suffer. Come to think of it, we would rather have reality preached to us than to have fantasy milked down our ears. A niche dedicated to Ndibe shall not starve of devotees. I rest my case for this desideratic elevation. Once more, I make my ejaculation, Okey Ndibe for sainthood!
Ebo Socrates, [email protected], 08064641470.
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