*Bans clergy, religious and lay faithful from attending his Adoration Ministry
*Lay people wants Mbaka transfered to a war-torn country
The Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Most Rev. Calistus Onaga, has banned members of the Catholic Church from attending Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka’s Adoration Ministry.
This ban, which effectively declares Fr. Mbaka as a persona non grata in the Catholic Church came days after torrents of unprecedented criticisms by Nigerians over his description of Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, as a “stingy man.”
The Bishop’s deputy, Rt. Rev. Ernest Obodo, had issued a stern warning to Mbaka two days ago, telling him he has crossed the rubicon and violated several sections of the Cannon Law, upon which they were ordained priests, which he had done several times in the past.
Though Mbaka on Friday made a detour and tendered apologies for his poor choice of words and misreading of the mood of Nigerian, it was too little too late for the Catholic Church hierarchy.
This time in a letter he personally signed and addressed to ‘All the Clery, Religious and Lay Faithful in the Catholic Diocese of Enugu’, Bishop Onaga banned the lay faithful from having anything to do with the Adoration Ministry.
He said in the letter that Mbaka having refused to heed to the Church’s persistent directives, “and in fulfillment of my pastoral duties as the Chief Shepherd, “I hereby prohibit all Catholics (clergy, religious and lay faithful) henceforth from attending all religious and liturgical activities of the Cathooic Adoration Ministry until the due canonical process initiated by the Diocese is concluded.”
While noting that his decision was based on the fact that Mbaka’s teaching and utterances were not consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church, he enjoined “all Christian faithful to keep praying for Fr. Mbaka.”
*Catholics ask Bishop Onaga to transfer Mbaka, not just warn him
Meanwhile, several member of the Catholic Church, while blaming Bishop Onaga for the untoward attitude of Rev. Fr. Mbaka, asked him to post Mbaka to a rural Parish or send him abroad to work in a Monastery in Somalia, Burundi, Chad or DR Congo.
They based their assertions on the failure of the Bishop to apply appropriate disciplinary measures against Mbaka the several times he veered off his vocation.
They recalled how Mbaka took on the Bishop and his administrayors when they transfered him from the Christ the King Parish, GRA, Enugu, when Mbaka openly criticised the Bishop for “posting me to a rural parish in the bush”.
They asserted that has Bishop Onaga applied the stick, he woul have since whipped Mbaka to shape.
They also said the several indulgences accorded Fr. Mbaka where he was praised over his several activities which they considered was not in the place of Priests, made Mbaka see himself as “a qasi or demi god, who appropriate false claims as prophetic revelations from God”.
Sir. Chris Okeke, one of the leaders of the Knights in Enugu Diocese, said what the Bishop did is far from capable of bringing Mbaka to shape.
Also, Sir Okechukwu Udensi, another Knight said the curriculum for the training of Catholic priests should be reviewed to stop them from embarking on the immitation of Protestant variables which is the hallmark of Pentecostalism.
Chief Damien Chukwugozie, a top Church leader at Holy Ghost Cathedral Parish, urged Bishop Onaga to “post Mbaka to a war-torn country where he will learn the rudiments of relying on God for survival than on his own efforts, which makes him abrogated so much false claims to himself”.
He added that with the tendency of priests to pursue things of the world rather than pay attention more to sacramental and confessional, they Catholic doctrine are gradually being diluted by such false claims by some priests.
Chief Peter Okeani also said the tendency to keep a priest in a particular “juicy post” for too long is the primary reason for the development of such tendencies as Fr. Mbaka exhibited, wondering what a priest was doing owning business concerns and academic institutions all by himself instead of simply being an administrator, holding forth for the Diocese.
