Cardinal Onaiyekan: The World needs more peace

The Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan has reiterated the paramount importance of peace and unity to make the world a better place for the common good of all humankind. Cardinal Onaiyekan made this assertion in his homily at the celebration of Holy Mass when he recently paid a Canonical visit to St Gabriel Chaplaincy, Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN), Durumi, Abuja.

According to the Cardinal, “If we are able, in this world, to share the blessings of God that come our way, there would be no poverty, misery and all the horrible things we see in the world today.” Cardinal Onaiyekan also noted that even those who speak about economic realities agree that there are enough resources in the world to feed everybody.

The Cardinal regretted that greed and the unequal distribution of the world's resources remain a worrisome bane of society. His words: “…the only problem is that the resources are not well distributed and will never be well distributed unless the world embraces the logic of Jesus Christ – the Gospel of charity and faith,“ the Cardinal said.

Using the readings of the Holy Mass to buttress his point, Cardinal Onaiyekan drew the attention of the faithful to how the members of the early Church were so united that “they held everything in common.” He remarked, “we are told that those who were rich sold what they had and brought the money together, and they shared it among themselves, and because of this, wonders and signs and miracles were performed daily in their midst. This made a great impact on those who were out there watching them,” Cardinal Onaiyekan remarked.

Expressing concern about the Nigerian situation, with particular reference to the issue of corruption in the country, Cardinal Onaiyekan noted that the spirit of greed is still very much in the hearts of many people and it is not easy to get things done properly in the country. He added that for things to get better,  “it will require sincere conversion of heart of each person, and without that, no war against corruption will succeed.”

Addressing the faithful that received the Sacrament of Confirmation at the Mass, Cardinal Onaiyekan stated, “The only enemy that we have, above all is the evil that is in our heart and also the evil that is out there in the world. Confirmation prepares us to be all the time ready to join hands with all other men and women of goodwill to combat the evil around us.”

Cardinal Onaiyekan commended the priests and faithful of the chaplaincy for the various structural developments made. “…. and when we look at the structures coming up, we have every reason to thank God that He has made it possible for us to create a space here where many can come to gather; to praise the name of the Lord and to seek His blessings.

(CNSNg.org)

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