"What You Have Done in the Province of St. Joseph The Worker,
is a Source of Admiration to Me"
fr. Timothy Radcliffe OP Master of the Order.Dear Brothers,
It is with great joy that I offer you congratulations on the occasion of the completion of fifty years of your presence in Nigeria, and assure you also of the continued support of the Order. Gratitude is due firstly to God, for the colossal work you have been enabled to do during these last fifty years, in accordance with the charism of St. Dominic. We recognize specially those who were pioneers of this work, in which they firmly believed: work which bears fruit still today, and will in the time to come.
Even a brief review of the origins of your mission in Nigeria confirms the rapid growth of the Order in your entity. From 1951 to our own day, the numerical strength of the Province has experienced a remarkable growth, with more than one hundred and thirty brothers: a wonderful sign of hope for the future. Nigeria actually is among the most fruitful and blessed lands in terms of religious vocations; and the number of candidates who approach the Order with a view to joining is impressive. I encourage you to go on promoting vocations, with the necessary discernment that is called for.
As far as your apostolic activities are concerned, your entity has from the beginning invested in many activities which correspond well with the mission of the Order. From the early days, for instance, you have been engaged in parish ministry, which has become one of the fundamental options of the Province. Of the eight existing communities, no fewer that seven are linked to parishes, and they have distinguished themselves in the quality of their preaching and the effectiveness of their administration. If Yaba, your first parish, still attracts some 25,000 people to Sunday Mass, it is doubtless due to your awareness and openness to the real needs of the People of God and to your creative response.
Apart from parish ministry, you have also invested in teaching, in the accompaniment of the young and of chaplaincies to universities and tertiary education in general. In collaboration with our sisters, you have managed also to put some social work in place, allowing you actively to contribute to the development of your own people. One of the great achievements of the Province has been the foundation of the Dominican Institute of Philosophy and Theology in Ibadan (D.I.), a fine centre of intellectual and religious formation which is now the pride of the Province and indeed of the Dominicans throughout Africa.
For all these admirable achievements during the last few decades, I offer you my own congratulations and the thanks of the whole Order. My hope is that your dedicated involvement, which continues to be creative, can produce fruit and help you face new challenges as they present themselves now. What you have so far done and will do is a source of admiration to me. And trusting in God's grace, you can meet these challenges with optimism. I assure you of my prayers and my fraternal support.
Your brother in St. Dominic,
fr. Timothy Radcliffe OP
Master of the Order.
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